{"id":1736,"date":"2021-04-14T16:27:58","date_gmt":"2021-04-14T16:27:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/?p=1736"},"modified":"2021-04-14T16:27:58","modified_gmt":"2021-04-14T16:27:58","slug":"does-your-indiana-criminal-defense-case-involve-aggravating-factors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/does-your-indiana-criminal-defense-case-involve-aggravating-factors\/","title":{"rendered":"Does Your Indiana Criminal Defense Case Involve Aggravating Factors?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\" style=\"font-size:18px\">What are aggravating factors? If you were recently arrested in Indiana, and your criminal charges involve aggravating factors, you need to read this. Continue below to learn what you want to know about your aggravating factors, including what they mean, how they can impact your ultimate judgement, and how you can build a strong and impactful defense against them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"512\" src=\"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Indianapolis-IN-Criminal-Defense-Lawyers-1024x512.jpg\" alt=\"Indianapolis Indiana Criminal Defense Lawyers \" class=\"wp-image-1737\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Indianapolis-IN-Criminal-Defense-Lawyers-1024x512.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Indianapolis-IN-Criminal-Defense-Lawyers-300x150.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Indianapolis-IN-Criminal-Defense-Lawyers-768x384.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Indianapolis-IN-Criminal-Defense-Lawyers-1536x768.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Indianapolis-IN-Criminal-Defense-Lawyers.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Indianapolis Indiana Criminal Defense Lawyers 317-636-7514<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Aggravating Factors<\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p>Aggravating factors are specific facts and elements involved in your alleged offense that can make your criminal charge more serious. Ultimately, if the judge or jury finds that your criminal charges do in fact involve aggravating factors, your sentence and subsequent penalties will be harsher than if your case did not involve aggravating factors. Here\u2019s an example: Jeff was arrested for selling drugs. The location in which he was caught by law enforcement trafficking illegal drugs was within 50 yards of an elementary school. Because his offense took place within close proximity to the school, this element would be considered an aggravating factor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In another example, if a person were to commit the crime of assault and battery against a person, Indiana statutes would penalize them with a Class B misdemeanor. However, if their offense caused the opposing party bodily harm, it would be considered an aggravating factor to the case, and their criminal charges would be increased to a Class A misdemeanor. In the same example, if the offender used a weapon against the victim, such as a baseball bat or even a beer bottle, it would be considered another aggravating factor, so the criminal charges would be increased to a Class C felony.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Mitigating Factors<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Do not confuse aggravating factors with mitigating factors. Mitigating factors, also known as <em>extenuating circumstances<\/em>, are the opposite of aggravating factors because instead of increasing the severity of the charge, they reduce it or suggest the opportunity for leniency. For example, if a person is arrested shoplifting at a store to satisfy a substance abuse addiction, their criminal charges might be reduced if they agree to alternative forms of sentencing such as drug rehabilitation. This element would be considered a mitigating factor to their case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:19px\"><strong>Are you facing aggravating factors in your current or pending criminal case?<\/strong> <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/contact-us.php\" target=\"_blank\">Contact the Law Office of David E. Lewis<\/a> at 317-636-7514 to schedule a free consultation with a seasoned <a href=\"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/criminal-defense.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Indianapolis Indiana criminal defense lawyer<\/a> who cares about your freedoms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:19px\"><strong>You Might Also Enjoy:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/the-difference-between-aggravating-and-mitigating-factors\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Difference Between Aggravating and Mitigating Factors<\/a><br><a href=\"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/factors-that-affect-jail-sentences\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Factors That Affect Jail Sentences<\/a><br><a href=\"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/how-your-sentence-will-be-determined-as-a-defendant-facing-criminal-charges\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">How Your Sentence Will Be Determined as a Defendant Facing Criminal Charges<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/contact-us.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"447\" src=\"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/4-Copy-e1561564766838-1024x447.jpg\" alt=\"Indianapolis Criminal Defense 317-636-7514\" class=\"wp-image-1296\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/4-Copy-e1561564766838-1024x447.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/4-Copy-e1561564766838-300x131.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/4-Copy-e1561564766838-768x336.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption>Schedule a Free Consultation Today!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What are aggravating factors? If you were recently arrested in Indiana, and your criminal charges involve aggravating factors, you need to read this. Continue below to learn what you want to know about your aggravating factors, including what they mean, &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/does-your-indiana-criminal-defense-case-involve-aggravating-factors\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1737,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1140,2,1],"tags":[730,733,732,7,6,1073],"class_list":["post-1736","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-assault-and-battery","category-criminal-defense","category-criminal-law","tag-aggravating-factors","tag-aggravating-factors-misdemeanor","tag-aggravating-factors-penalties","tag-criminal-defense-attorney-indianapolis","tag-criminal-defense-lawyer-indianapolis","tag-mitigating-factors"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1736","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1736"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1736\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1738,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1736\/revisions\/1738"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1737"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1736"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1736"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.delewislaw.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1736"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}