Our client was charged with Malicious Destruction of Property Over $1,200, which is a felony in Massachusetts. We wrote a motion to partially dismiss the charges based on a lack of probable cause. After some negotiations with the prosecutor, we were able to convince the prosecution to offer "pretrial probation." 

Pretrial probation means a defendant maintains their innocence (still not guilty) and they do not have to make an admission to the charges. They are given some time to stay out of trouble and complete conditions and, if they successfully do this, the charges are dismissed. If they do not, the case is returned to the trial list, they do not go to jail and they can still exercise their rights to trial. 

We were able to negotiate pretrial probation for our client with the condition to complete community service. As a result, our client has a chance to get felony charges dismissed by staying out of trouble and doing community service. If they are unsuccessful, they can still go to trial.