Royal Oak, Berkley and the 44th District Court

Barnwell Law, PLLC Team

If you have been charged with a crime in Royal Oak or Berkley your case will be heard at the 44th District Court located at 400 E. 11 Mile Rd. Royal Oak, MI 48067

Bill Barnwell of Barnwell Law is very well known in Royal Oak. He is actually a pastor of a church right across the street from this court and practices extensively in Royal for both misdemeanor and felony cases. He is the only 100% criminal defense attorney anywhere in Michigan who is also a leader in the faith community. However, Bill represents clients of all diverse backgrounds and has secured very positive results regardless of a client’s race, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, gender, etc. He is very well acquainted with the Judges, the court staff, the probation office, and how to navigate a court many consider “tough”.

There are two Judges who preside in Royal Oak: Judge Derek Meinecke and Judge James Wittenberg. Attorney Bill Barnwell has appeared in front of each of these judges in both felony and misdemeanor cases and has secured favorable results for clients, including outright case dismissals and jury trial victories in Royal Oak. . If you are being arraigned on a charge, you may first appear before a magistrate, or one of the two Judges, who will inform you of the charge you are facing and set bond. If your case is a misdemeanor, it will be set for pretrial. If you are facing a felony charge, it will be set for Probable Cause Conference.

If you’re facing a misdemeanor charge, your case will be heard in its entirety at the 44th District Court from one of the two Royal Oak and Berkley District Court Judges. A misdemeanor charge has a maximum possible jail penalty of up to one year in the county jail. Common misdemeanor charges are DUI, OWI, OUIL, disorderly conduct, reckless driving, retail fraud, assault and battery, indecent exposure, domestic violence, minor larceny, and embezzlement cases. This is not an exhaustive list, but an example of the types of cases heard in District Court.

If you are facing a felony case, such as felony drug possession, felony home invasion, homicide, delivery and manufacturing of marijuana, cocaine, heroin, felony assault,  or any other type of felony, your case will be arraigned in the 44th District Court. This will be followed by a Probable Cause Conference within 14 days of your arraignment, followed by a Preliminary Exam (also known as Probable Cause Hearing) within 21 days of your arraignment. If a client “waives” their Preliminary Exam, the matter then proceeds to the 16th Circuit Court, otherwise known as the Oakland County Circuit Court. If the Preliminary Exam is held, the case may be dismissed or it will be “bound over” to the 6th Circuit in Oakland County Circuit Court for further proceedings. 

Bill Barnwell of Barnwell Law has conducted preliminary exams for felony cases in the 44th District Court and has successfully fought cases all the way through Oakland County Circuit Court. Oakland County is seen as one of the “toughest” counties in the state. Barnwell Law has even had excellent results such as serious sex crime allegations never being charged in Oakland County for proactive clients who have reached out to Barnwell Law prior to being charged where Attorney Bill Barnwell has convinced law enforcement and prosecutors that insufficient evidence existed even to bring the case forward.

It is important when hiring an attorney to choose legal council who has a track record of solid results in a given court room. Barnwell Law is well known and respected in Royal Oak and Berkley.

If you have been sentenced already in Royal Oak in the 44th District Court and have been put on probation and have been told that you are in violation of your probation, it is highly advised that you hire an attorney for your Probation Violation proceeding as well. Royal Oak, like all courts in Oakland County, take probation violation accusations very seriously. Jail can be very possible on first probation violation accusations in Royal Oak and Oakland County, but Barnwell Law has successfully helped numerous clients avoid this fate and get much more positive results.

Whatever the situation may be, contact Bill anytime at (810) 394-2952 if you are facing a misdemeanor, felony, or probation violation allegation arising out of Royal Oak, Berkley, or anywhere in Oakland County. Your freedom is too important.

Call an attorney who handles ONLY criminal law on a daily basis throughout Metro-Detroit and the state of Michigan.

Client Reviews

Call him. Day or night, he actually answers. And he personally will fight your case. Not pass it off to someone else who won't return your calls once you hire them, like so many other law firms. Great results!

Cheryl T.

Excellent attorney. Fights hard for all his clients and produces results. Not only knows his stuff but you can tell cares about all his clients and sees them as real people and worth fighting for.

Jake A.

Absolutely amazing. Bill goes above and beyond for his client. I have been blessed to have had him by my side and would definitely recommend him to anyone needing legal counsel.

Jamie N.

I contacted Bill Barnwell personally, spoke with him and hired. He represented me in a domestic violence case. I felt that the accusations on me we're incorrect. Bill was able to have the case dismissed with no key...

Matt

Mr. Bill Barnwell is by far the Best Attorney I have ever had the luxury of representing me. He was very persistent and persuasive to the point of me only serving 12 days in county on a 4th Habitual felony of violation...

Joseph

Bill was extremely helpful, from the beginning of my initial consultation through my appearance in front of the judge. I was charged with a misdemeanor in Highland Park while on vacation from a different state. I had no...

Kevin

Mr. Bill Barnwell assisted me through a pretty scary situation where I had a person harass/stalk me. Mr. Barnwell was very empathetic and helpful. After dealing with police, detectives, different attorneys and judges...

Jessica

Receiving an OWI ticket with a .15 bac from a State police officer on I-696 was something I wasn't ready for. It was also written on the ticket that I was speeding more than 15mph over the speed limit. The officer didn't...

Jeff

I hired Bill for a felony case on which I wrongly accused and my rights were violated. Mr. Barnwell fought this charge tooth and nail and I am happy to say all charges were dismissed. His dedication for his clients...

Erica

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