www.seiferflatowlaw.com Historically, the distinction between the two types of criminal offenses was based on the amount of jail time that the statute authorized as punishment. If the authorized jail time was greater than a year, then the crime was classified as a felony. A year or under, it was a misdemeanor. Keep in mind the distinction is not based on actual jail time but on the amount the judge was authorized to give. Depending on the circumstances of the crime and on prior convictions, you could face active jail time for a felony conviction OR a misdemeanor conviction. You could also be convicted of some low level felonies and not serve ANY actual jail time because you have a completely clean history.
