Columbus Criminal Damage Lawyers

Accused of Criminal Damage in Ohio? Call LHA Today. Free Consults: (614) 500-3836.

To be charged with criminal damaging or endangering, you must have caused or created a serious risk of physical harm to someone else’s property when either of the following applies:

You did it knowingly
You did it recklessly, as a result of fire, an explosion, flood, poison gas, poison, radioactive material, caustic or corrosive material, or other dangerous action or substance

Every day in central Ohio people are charged with criminal damaging or endangering. Depending on the nature of the allegations, penalties can range from a first degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to 180 days in jail to a fourth degree felony punishable by up to 18 months in prison.

If you are convicted of criminal damaging or endangering, additional potential issues include:

Maintaining your current employment
Licensure issues in some professions
Difficulty getting a good job in the future
Difficulty and possible denial in immigration and naturalization proceedings

Simply put, if you are convicted of criminal damaging or endangering, it will potentially be on your criminal background for the rest of your life. No matter what the circumstances were in your case, you run the risk of being considered someone who cannot respect the property of others. Therefore, it is critical that you to give your criminal damaging or endangering charge the level of importance it deserves.

At Luftman, Heck & Associates, our Columbus criminal damage lawyers take an aggressive and comprehensive approach when representing clients charged with criminal damaging or endangering. First and foremost, we will figure out what mistakes the police made, whether your arrest was lawful, whether there were issues with the collection, storage and testing of evidence and what other legal issues can be raised on your behalf.

We do this by requesting discovery from the prosecutor. The discovery will generally consist of police reports, additional investigative notes, lab reports and potentially video or audio. As our client, you will receive a copy of everything received from the prosecutor for your review

Based on the legal weaknesses in the State of Ohio’s case and any other mitigating factors, we will negotiate the best possible plea available with the prosecutor for you to consider in resolving your case.

If your case cannot be resolved satisfactorily with a plea, it would then proceed to a motion hearing (a hearing where the judge issues a ruling on an evidentiary issue) or a trial to the judge or jury, depending on the circumstances.

For nearly ten years, the Columbus criminal damage lawyers at LHA have successfully represented clients charged with criminal damaging or endangering. That extensive previous experience will enable us to better help you.

Are you in trouble? Contact our Columbus Criminal Damage Lawyers.

If you’ve been charged with criminal damaging or endangering, it’s important to know what you’re up against. If you have any questions left unanswered by this page, or if you need a competent, experienced Columbus criminal property damage lawyer to fight for you in court, please contact us at (614) 500-3836 or via email at advice@columbuscriminalattorney.com.

Penalties

General penalties

This is a misdemeanor of the second degree and carries the following penalties:

A jail sentence of up to 90 days
- In its place, your judge may sentence you to probation or other community control punishments
At most, a fine of $750

With a risk of physical harm to other people

This is a misdemeanor of the first degree and carries the following penalties:

A jail sentence of up to 180 days
- In its place, your judge may sentence you to probation or other community control punishments
At most, a fine of $1,000

The property was an aircraft or an aircraft part, with a risk of physical harm to other people

This is a felony of the fifth degree and carries the following penalties:

A prison term of six months to one year
- In its place, your judge may sentence you to probation or other community control punishments
At most, a fine of $2,500

The above, but the property was either an occupied aircraft or there was a serious risk of harm

This is a felony of the fourth degree and carries the following penalties:

A prison term of six to 18 months
- In its place, your judge may sentence you to probation or other community control punishments
At most, a fine of $5,000

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if I'm charged with a hate crime?

While Ohio law only refers to hate crimes per se in its ethnic intimidation offense, the same basic rule applies, whether it’s based on prejudice against race, religion, gender, sexuality or social group: the classification for your crime or misdemeanor will move up one degree. For example, if you were to receive a second degree misdemeanor for criminal damage and endangering, it would become a misdemeanor of the first degree instead, with the accompanying penalties.

Resources

Ohio Revised Code: Criminal Damaging or Endangering