A probation violation lawyer in Arizona defends clients accused of violating the conditions of probation under Arizona Revised Statutes 13-901 and Rule 27 of the Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure. Oliverson Law DUI & Criminal Defense combines judicial, prosecutorial, and law enforcement experience across Maricopa and Mohave counties. Call (480) 582-3637 for a free case evaluation.
Probation in Arizona is governed by Arizona Revised Statutes 13-901 and related Title 13 statutes. Conditions of probation are set at sentencing and can include reporting requirements, drug testing, counseling, restitution, community service, employment or educational conditions, and no-contact orders. Probation violations are divided into technical violations (missed check-in, failed drug test, failure to pay restitution or fees) and new-offense violations (an arrest or charge for new criminal conduct).
The violation process is governed by Rule 27 of the Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure. A petition to revoke is filed, a summons or warrant issues, and the court holds a violation hearing. At the hearing, the State must prove the violation by a preponderance of the evidence — a significantly lower burden than beyond a reasonable doubt, but with its own procedural rules.
If the court finds a violation, sentencing options include continuing probation on the same terms, modifying conditions, imposing additional jail time as a sanction, or revoking probation and imposing the original sentence. Because the hearing runs on a different burden and procedural footing than a criminal trial, probation-violation defense is a specialized track that requires early and aggressive engagement.
Arizona’s criminal process moves quickly, and the decisions made in the first 48 to 72 hours after an arrest shape the rest of the case. The exact timeline depends on the charge and the court, but most Arizona cases follow the same four stages.
If you are arrested, Rule 4.1 of the Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure requires that you be brought before a judge for an Initial Appearance within 24 hours. That is when release conditions — bond, own-recognizance release, or pretrial detention — are set. Having counsel in place before the Initial Appearance can directly affect the conditions the court orders.
Felony arraignments in Superior Court and misdemeanor arraignments in city or justice court are where the charges are formally read and a plea is entered. A not-guilty plea at arraignment preserves every defense and triggers the State’s disclosure obligations under Rule 15.
This is the stage where most criminal cases are decided. Motions to suppress evidence, motions challenging the charging instrument, and review of police reports, body camera video, and witness statements all happen here. A successful suppression motion can end a case before trial.
Most Arizona criminal cases resolve through a negotiated plea, a diversion program, or dismissal after a successful defense motion. When trial is the right path, Rule 8 sets time limits the State must meet. Our approach is to prepare every case as if it is going to trial, because that preparation is what produces better plea offers.
An effective Arizona criminal defense is built around four questions: Was the State’s evidence lawfully obtained? Can the State prove every element of the charge beyond a reasonable doubt? Are there affirmative defenses or justifications that apply? And what resolution produces the best long-term outcome for the client? Every case we take is worked through this framework.
Fourth Amendment issues are where many Arizona criminal cases break down. Traffic stops without reasonable suspicion, searches beyond the scope of consent, and warrantless home entries without exigent circumstances all create suppression arguments under ARS 13-3925 and the Fourth Amendment.
Chain of custody, lab testing protocols, officer credibility, body-camera gaps, and witness reliability are all challengeable. The State must prove every element of the charge beyond a reasonable doubt — breaking any single element ends the prosecution.
Arizona recognizes self-defense under ARS 13-404, defense of a third person under ARS 13-406, defense of premises and property, necessity, duress, and mistake of fact. When the facts support it, we raise these defenses early and present them to the jury.
Our preferred resolution is always dismissal or diversion. When a plea is the right outcome, we negotiate from the leverage created by trial preparation. Prosecutors move their offers when they see a defense that is ready to go.
Oliverson Law was founded in 2009 by Derek Oliverson, who brings a career spanning law enforcement, prosecution, and the judiciary. He earned his B.S. in Criminal Justice (magna cum laude) from Southern Utah University and his J.D. with a concentration in litigation from Creighton University School of Law. He was admitted to the Arizona Bar in October 2009.
Before founding the firm, Derek served as a police officer in Henderson, Nevada, worked as a criminal prosecutor in Mohave County, Arizona, and presided as a judge at both Page Magistrate Court (overseeing adjudication of 3,000+ cases annually) and Glendale City Court (starting in 2012, overseeing 40,000+ cases annually). He left the bench in 2014 to focus on criminal defense.
Attorney David Tangren is a graduate of the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law where he served as Note and Comment Editor on the International and Comparative Law Journal. Before joining Oliverson Law, David was a prosecutor at the Pima County Attorney’s Office, handling cases from misdemeanors through the felony trial team in the Property and Narcotics Bureau.
Oliverson Law handles probation violation cases throughout Arizona from our main office at 60 E Rio Salado Pkwy, Suite 900, Tempe, AZ 85281. We appear regularly in courts across Maricopa County and Mohave County.
Maricopa County Superior Court at 201 W Jefferson St, Phoenix handles all felony cases. Misdemeanor cases are heard in the 26 justice court precincts and municipal courts located throughout the county, including regional facilities in Mesa (222 E Javelina Ave), Surprise (14264 W Tierra Buena Ln), and North Phoenix (18380 N 40th St).
Mohave County Superior Court at 415 E Spring St in Kingman handles felony cases. Our founder Derek Oliverson began his legal career as a prosecutor in Mohave County and maintains direct familiarity with the local courts and procedures.
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A technical violation is a violation of the conditions of probation that is not itself a new criminal offense — for example, missing a check-in, failing a drug test, or failing to pay restitution. A new-offense violation is an arrest or charge for new criminal conduct while on probation. Both can lead to a petition to revoke under Rule 27 of the Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure.
At a probation violation hearing governed by Rule 27, the State must prove the violation by a preponderance of the evidence — a lower burden than the beyond-a-reasonable-doubt standard that applies at a criminal trial. A probation violation lawyer can still challenge the evidence, the reliability of drug testing, and the witness testimony at the hearing.
The court has discretion. If the court finds a violation, it can continue probation, modify the conditions, impose additional jail time as a sanction, or revoke probation and impose the original sentence. A defense lawyer will argue for the least-restrictive response given the history, the nature of the violation, and the underlying case.
Probation violation proceedings can run parallel to the new criminal case. A probation violation lawyer will often seek to coordinate or stay the violation hearing pending resolution of the new charge, because statements made at the violation hearing can affect the new-case defense.
In some cases, yes. ARS 13-901 allows early termination of probation under certain statutory conditions. Where conditions have been met and the probation officer and prosecutor do not oppose, a motion for early termination can be filed. A defense lawyer can prepare and present that motion.
Oliverson Law’s team includes a former judge (Glendale City Court), former prosecutors (Mohave County and Pima County), and a former police officer. That combined experience on the charging, prosecuting, and judicial sides of Arizona criminal cases is what informs our defense strategy. We have been defending Arizona criminal charges since the firm was founded in 2009.
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Derek Oliverson has presided over thousands of cases from the bench, prosecuted criminal cases in Mohave County, and patrolled streets as a police officer. Now he uses that experience to defend you.
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