In Nevada, a felony is a crime punishable by one year or longer in state prison. There are five types of felonies ranging from category A felonies (the most serious) to category E felonies (the least serious).
Here are five key things to know:
- All felonies are more serious than misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor offenses.
- Everyone charged with a felony is entitled to a jury trial.
- Even if you avoid incarceration by felony probation or a plea bargain, having any criminal record can hinder future job opportunities.
- The waiting period to get a felony record sealed ranges from 2 to 10 years or sometimes never, depending on the crime.
- Non-citizens convicted of certain aggravated felonies face deportation from the U.S.
In this article, our Las Vegas felony lawyers will address the following key issues:
- 1. What are felonies?
- 2. Penalties
- 3. Jury Trials
- 4. Record Seals
- 5. Immigration
- Additional Resources
Felony sentences are served in state prison, not county jail.
1. What are felonies?
Felony charges are the most harshly punished crimes in Nevada.1 The second most serious class of crimes are gross misdemeanors, and the least serious are misdemeanors.2
Under NRS 193.130, Nevada has five categories of felony offenses. They are (ranging from most serious to most minor):
- Category A felonies, such as first- or second-degree murder or sexual assault
- Category B felonies, such as reckless driving with substantial injury, robbery or home invasion
- Category C felonies, such as violating a protection order, domestic violence with strangulation, battery with substantial bodily harm, or internet stalking
- Category D felonies, such as involuntary manslaughter, forgery or unpaid casino markers
- Category E felonies, such as first-time auto burglary
Note that attempting to commit a category C, D or E felony is a “wobbler” that can be punished as either a felony or a gross misdemeanor.3
Also note that the category of certain theft crimes like grand larceny depends on the amount stolen.4
2. Penalties
The punishment for a Nevada felony depends on the category:
- Category A felonies: Life in prison with or without the possibility of parole; the death penalty is an option in certain first-degree murder cases.
- Category B felonies: 1 to 20 years in prison and possibly a fine.
- Category C felonies: 1 to 5 years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines.
- Category D felonies: 1 to 4 years in prison and up to $5,000 in fines.
- Category E felonies: Probation and a suspended sentence, with a possible jail sentence of up to 1 year. (Though if you have two or more prior felony convictions, the court may order a prison term of 1 to 4 years and up to $5,000.)5
It may be possible to get even the most serious charges reduced to lesser offenses as part of a plea bargain or dismissed outright. The judge may also grant alternative sentences to prison, such as house arrest with electronic monitoring.
3. Jury Trials
If you are facing a felony charge in Nevada, the United States Constitution’s Sixth Amendment entitles you to a jury trial. If you do not want a jury trial, you may have a bench trial where the judge instead of a jury returns the verdict.6
All felony defendants in Nevada may have a jury trial.
4. Record Seals
Three types of crimes can never be sealed in Nevada:
- Sex crimes,
- Crimes against children, and
- Felony DUI.
Violent crimes as well as burglary of a residence may not be sealed until 10 years after the case closes.
Otherwise, felonies may be sealed after specified time periods depending on the category:
- Category A felony convictions may be sealed 10 years after the case is closed.
- Category B felony convictions may be sealed 5 years after the case is closed.
- Category C felony convictions may be sealed 5 years after the case is closed.
- Category D felony convictions may be sealed 5 years after the case is closed.
- Category E felony convictions may be sealed 2 years after the case is closed.
Note there is no waiting period to seal felonies that get dismissed (meaning there is no conviction). Also, the judge has final discretion over whether to grant a record seal request.7
Crimes that get dismissed are sealable immediately in Nevada.
5. Immigration
Non-citizens in Nevada face deportation for being convicted of an aggravated felony or crimes involving moral turpitude. Examples of deportable crimes include:
- murder,
- rape (including statutory rape),
- child pornography,
- kidnapping,
- drug trafficking,
- racketeering,
- fraud or tax evasion involving more than $10,000, and
- theft or violent crime with a sentence order of at least one (1) year.8
Aliens arrested for any crime in Nevada should retain experienced counsel as soon as possible. The prosecutor may agree to dismiss the case or reduce it to a non-deportable offense.
Additional Resources
For more information, refer to the following:
- Nevada Department of Corrections (NDOC): This is the state agency responsible for the incarceration and supervision of offenders in Nevada’s state prisons and for parole.
- Reentry Services: Part of NDOC that aims to help offenders reintegrate into society.
- Innocence Center of Nevada (ICON): A non-profit dedicated to exonerating the wrongfully convicted and reforming the criminal justice system in Nevada.
- Rocky Mountain Innocence Center (RMIC): A non-profit that covers Utah, Nevada, and Wyoming, providing pro bono post-conviction innocence investigation and litigation services.
- Hope for Prisoners: A non-profit that helps individuals transitioning from correctional facilities reintegrate into the workforce and society.
See our related article, What are the Nevada felony sentencing guidelines?
Legal References
- NRS 193.120.
- NRS 193.140. NRS 193.150.
- NRS 193.153.
- NRS 205.220.
- NRS 193.130. Categories and punishment of felonies.
1. Except when a person is convicted of a category A felony, and except as otherwise provided by specific statute, a person convicted of a felony shall be sentenced to a minimum term and a maximum term of imprisonment which must be within the limits prescribed by the applicable statute, unless the statute in force at the time of commission of the felony prescribed a different penalty. The minimum term of imprisonment that may be imposed must not exceed 40 percent of the maximum term imposed.
2. Except as otherwise provided by specific statute, for each felony committed on or after July 1, 1995:
(a) A category A felony is a felony for which a sentence of death or imprisonment in the state prison for life with or without the possibility of parole may be imposed, as provided by specific statute.
(b) A category B felony is a felony for which the minimum term of imprisonment in the state prison that may be imposed is not less than 1 year and the maximum term of imprisonment that may be imposed is not more than 20 years, as provided by specific statute.
(c) A category C felony is a felony for which a court shall sentence a convicted person to imprisonment in the state prison for a minimum term of not less than 1 year and a maximum term of not more than 5 years. In addition to any other penalty, the court may impose a fine of not more than $10,000, unless a greater fine is authorized or required by statute.
(d) A category D felony is a felony for which a court shall sentence a convicted person to imprisonment in the state prison for a minimum term of not less than 1 year and a maximum term of not more than 4 years. In addition to any other penalty, the court may impose a fine of not more than $5,000, unless a greater fine is authorized or required by statute.
(e) A category E felony is a felony for which a court shall sentence a convicted person to imprisonment in the state prison for a minimum term of not less than 1 year and a maximum term of not more than 4 years. Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b) of subsection 1 of NRS 176A.100 or paragraph (a) of subsection 2 of NRS 453.336, upon sentencing a person who is found guilty of a category E felony, the court shall suspend the execution of the sentence and grant probation to the person upon such conditions as the court deems appropriate. Such conditions of probation may include, but are not limited to, requiring the person to serve a term of confinement of not more than 1 year in the county jail. In addition to any other penalty, the court may impose a fine of not more than $5,000, unless a greater penalty is authorized or required by statute.See also SB 413 (2023)(revising the method for determining credits to reduce the sentence of an offender). See also AB 51 (2023)(committing a felony in violation of a restraining order carries an extra 1 to 5 years in prison – or an extra 1 to 20 years if the felony was a category A or category B felony). Fullerton v. State (2000) 116 Nev. 435; Miller v. State (1997) 113 Nev. 722. - See also Baldwin v. New York (1970) 399 U.S. 66. NRS 175.
- NRS 179.245. NRS 179.255.
- 8 U.S. Code § 1227.