Contact Czarnecki & Taylor PLLC
Michigan Criminal Appeals and Criminal Defense
If you or a family member needs help with a Michigan criminal appeal, post-conviction matter, or pending criminal charge, contact Czarnecki & Taylor PLLC to discuss the case.
For appellate matters, time can be important. The procedure and available options may depend on when sentencing occurred, whether the conviction followed a trial or plea, whether appellate counsel was appointed, whether transcripts have been filed, and whether an appeal has already taken place.
You do not need to know the correct legal argument before contacting us.
The first step is determining where the case stands, what has already happened, and what records need to be reviewed.
Call Czarnecki & Taylor PLLC
James Czarnecki: (586) 718-2345
Genevieve Taylor: (586) 350-6044
59 N. Walnut Street, Suite 200
Mount Clemens, Michigan 48043
Contact Us About a Michigan Criminal Appeal
If a conviction or sentence has already been entered, do not assume that there is nothing more that can be done.
Depending on the procedural history, potential matters can include:
- Michigan criminal appeals
- Applications for leave to appeal
- Appeals following guilty or no-contest pleas
- Sentencing appeals
- Michigan Court of Appeals proceedings
- Michigan Supreme Court applications
- Postjudgment motions
- Motions to withdraw a plea
- Motions for resentencing
- MCR 6.500 motions for relief from judgment
- Other post-conviction proceedings
Whether a particular issue can actually be raised depends on the record, preservation of the issue, applicable law, procedural history, and appellate deadlines.
Our goal at the beginning is not to promise a particular result. It is to determine what happened and whether there is a legally viable path forward.
What We Need to Know About a Potential Appeal
If you are contacting us about an appeal, please provide as much of the following information as you know.
You do not need to have every answer before calling.
Basic Case Information
Please tell us:
- Defendant’s full name
- County and court where the case was handled
- Case number, if known
- Original charges
- Final conviction
- Date of sentencing
- Sentence imposed
- Whether the conviction followed a jury trial, bench trial, guilty plea, or no-contest plea
Previous Appeal History
We also need to know:
- Is this the first time the defendant has attempted to appeal the case?
- Was appellate counsel previously appointed or retained?
- Has an appeal already been filed?
- Did the Michigan Court of Appeals issue an order or opinion?
- Was an application filed with the Michigan Supreme Court?
- Has a motion to withdraw the plea, motion for new trial, motion for resentencing, or other postjudgment motion already been filed?
- Has an MCR 6.500 motion for relief from judgment previously been filed?
Prior appellate history is extremely important because it may affect both the issues that remain available and the procedure that must be followed.
Documents That Can Help Us Review an Appeal
If you have any of the following, let us know.
Useful documents can include:
- Judgment of Sentence
- Plea transcript
- Trial transcripts
- Sentencing transcript
- Presentence Investigation Report (PSI)
- Sentencing-guidelines scoring information
- Register of Actions
- Plea agreement or plea forms
- Prior motions and trial-court orders
- Previous appellate briefs
- Applications for leave to appeal
- Michigan Court of Appeals orders or opinions
- Michigan Supreme Court orders
- Materials from a previous MCR 6.500 proceeding
Do not worry if you do not have every document.
One of the first steps in reviewing a potential appeal is determining what records already exist and what additional materials may need to be obtained.
Tell Us What You Think Went Wrong
You do not need to know whether the problem is technically called ineffective assistance, prosecutorial misconduct, an evidentiary error, a sentencing error, or something else.
Tell us what happened in your own words.
For example, you may be concerned that:
- important evidence was not presented;
- a witness was not called;
- defense counsel failed to investigate something significant;
- improper evidence was admitted;
- the prosecutor made improper statements or arguments;
- the judge made a legal error;
- the sentence was based on inaccurate information;
- sentencing guidelines were incorrectly calculated;
- the plea agreement was not followed;
- the guilty plea was entered under circumstances you now question; or
- a previous appeal failed to address an important issue.
An appellate attorney’s job is to review those concerns against the actual record and determine whether they present a legally viable issue.
Do You Have the Plea, Trial, and Sentencing Transcripts?
Transcripts can be particularly important in criminal appellate work.
If the conviction resulted from a guilty or no-contest plea, please tell us whether you have:
the plea transcript and sentencing transcript.
If the conviction resulted from trial, please tell us whether you have:
the trial transcripts and sentencing transcript.
Also tell us whether you have a copy of the PSI.
These documents can reveal substantially more than the Judgment of Sentence alone, including what occurred during the plea, what objections were made, how issues were preserved, what arguments were presented at sentencing, and what the court relied upon in reaching its decisions.
What If the Appeal Deadline Has Passed?
Do not automatically assume that no legal remedy remains simply because substantial time has passed.
At the same time, the expiration of a direct-appeal deadline can significantly change the available procedure.
Depending on the case, the analysis may involve direct appellate review, a postjudgment motion, an application for leave to appeal, or post-conviction proceedings under MCR 6.500.
That is why we need to know:
the sentencing date, whether an appeal previously occurred, and what proceedings have already taken place.
If you are unsure, contact us with whatever information you have.
Contact Us About a Pending Michigan Criminal Charge
Czarnecki & Taylor PLLC also represents individuals facing criminal charges at the trial-court level.
If you have a pending criminal matter, please provide:
- Your name
- The court and county
- Case number, if known
- Charges
- Next court date
- Whether you are currently represented by another attorney
- A brief description of what has occurred
Our criminal-defense practice includes misdemeanor and felony matters, plea negotiations, motions, evidentiary hearings, preliminary examinations, sentencing, and trials.
For pending charges, earlier review can provide more opportunity to examine the evidence, identify defenses, investigate witnesses, preserve issues, and develop an appropriate defense strategy.
Why Trial and Appellate Experience Matter
Criminal appeals require a different type of analysis from trial work, but understanding what actually happens in a criminal courtroom can be valuable when reviewing the record afterward.
Czarnecki & Taylor PLLC’s practice includes both criminal defense and criminal appellate representation.
That combination allows the firm to evaluate a case from two perspectives:
How should the case have been handled in the trial court?
and
What legally significant errors, if any, can now be raised on appeal?
Our Michigan Docket articles provide detailed information about the Michigan appeal process, applications for leave to appeal, guilty-plea appeals, sentencing appeals, post-conviction proceedings, and common grounds for appellate relief.
We encourage prospective appellate clients and their families to review those resources and learn more about the appellate process.
Speak With Czarnecki & Taylor PLLC
If you are considering a Michigan criminal appeal, challenging a sentence, investigating post-conviction relief, or facing a pending criminal charge, contact Czarnecki & Taylor PLLC.
James Czarnecki
(586) 718-2345
Genevieve Taylor
(586) 350-6044
Office
59 N. Walnut Street, Suite 200
Mount Clemens, Michigan 48043
Serving clients throughout Michigan in criminal defense, criminal appeals, and post-conviction matters.
Before Sending Case Information
Please do not post confidential case information, PSI materials, detailed facts, or other sensitive information in any public comment area of this website.
Contacting the firm does not by itself create an attorney-client relationship. An attorney-client relationship is established only after the firm has agreed to undertake the representation.
Information on this website is provided for general informational purposes and is not legal advice. Past results do not guarantee future results.