Summer is just around the corner, and that means that in a matter of weeks, kids and teenagers will be out of school and looking for ways to entertain themselves. Unfortunately, some of the things they wind up doing could get them into serious trouble.

For instance, some young people can end up accused of theft or other property crimes. As this article notes, certain types of property crimes increase by as much as 12 percent during the summer months. 

Given the choice of facing a felony or a misdemeanor charge, people would choose a misdemeanor. This is because the consequences of a conviction for a misdemeanor offense are typically less severe than those for a felony conviction.

That being said, there are still penalties if a person pleads guilty or is convicted of a misdemeanor offense. It is a mistake to minimize these situations or assume you just need to plead guilty and move forward. Below, we explain three reasons why it is critical to take a misdemeanor charge -- and your defense against that charge -- seriously.

Situations involving violence or threats of violence between family members or partners are often emotionally charged. People can feel attacked or scared, and many could be dealing with physical pain.

Under these circumstances, it can be difficult to accurately assess what might happen to the person accused of assault. Below, we examine some of the potential consequences of a domestic assault allegation and conviction in Tennessee. 

Seeing the red and blue flashing lights of a police car in your rear view mirror can be enough to make any driver nervous. If you happen to have any drugs or drug paraphernalia in your car, then you can be especially uneasy about how the traffic stop will end.

In these situations, typically all that stands between a driver and an arrest is a search of the driver's vehicle. Because of how much damage can be done in the span of a vehicle search, it is important for Tennessee drivers to understand a few facts about traffic stops and police searches.