Criminal Defense
Arrested or charged in Lakeland, Tennessee? Lakeland is unusual among Shelby County’s suburbs: it has no police department of its own. Law enforcement in Lakeland is provided by the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, and the city operates no criminal court — so a Lakeland arrest goes straight into the Shelby County court system in downtown Memphis. Brooks Law Firm defends DUI, drug, domestic assault, theft, and other criminal charges arising from Lakeland arrests, from first appearance through trial.
Charged after a stop in Lakeland? Call (901) 324-5000 or call/text the criminal defense line at (901) 412-2973.
Where a Lakeland Case Goes
Because the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office polices Lakeland, arrests are booked into the Shelby County system and the case begins in General Sessions Criminal Court at 201 Poplar Avenue in Memphis. Misdemeanors can resolve there; felonies proceed by preliminary hearing and grand jury to the Shelby County Criminal Courts. Tennessee Highway Patrol arrests on I-40 — which runs through Lakeland with exits at Canada Road — follow the same path. There is no city courtroom to check first: if you were arrested in Lakeland, your case is downtown.
Charges We Defend for Lakeland Clients
DUI
I-40 through Lakeland and the Highway 64 corridor along its southern edge see regular DUI enforcement. Tennessee’s penalties include a mandatory minimum 48 hours in jail and a one-year license revocation on a first offense, and a DUI conviction can never be expunged. A DUI defense tests the stop, the field sobriety tests, and the breath or blood evidence.
Drug Charges
Drug cases range from simple possession to felony possession with intent under the Tennessee Drug Control Act. The I-40 corridor generates interdiction stops, and these cases frequently turn on whether the stop and the search were lawful.
Domestic Assault
Domestic assault arrests carry a 12-hour mandatory hold and firearm consequences on conviction, and the conviction can never be expunged. A companion order of protection is a separate civil proceeding with its own hearing.
Theft and Property Offenses
Theft and property offenses are graded by value under Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-14-105. Qualifying first offenders are often eligible for diversion and expungement.
Why Local Court Knowledge Matters
Lakeland families are often navigating 201 Poplar for the first time. It is a large, busy courthouse where cases move by division and docket, and where knowing the courtroom — the prosecutors, the judges, the realistic outcomes for a given charge — matters more than anything printed on a website. On many settings your attorney can appear or reset without you present, saving the drive downtown from Lakeland when your appearance is not required.
Other Courts We Serve
Brooks Law Firm appears throughout West Tennessee: Bartlett · Arlington · Millington · Germantown · Collierville · Fayette County · Tipton County — or see all courts we serve and the criminal defense overview.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who polices Lakeland?
The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office provides law enforcement in Lakeland under contract with the city. That is why a Lakeland arrest is booked into the Shelby County system rather than a city jail, and why the case starts at 201 Poplar in Memphis.
Does Lakeland have a city court?
Lakeland does not operate a criminal court. State criminal charges arising in Lakeland are handled in Shelby County General Sessions and Criminal Courts in Memphis.
Can a Lakeland charge be expunged?
Many can, through dismissal or judicial diversion for qualifying first offenders. DUI and domestic assault convictions can never be expunged under Tennessee law — which is exactly why those charges deserve a full defense from the start.
Brooks Law Firm defends criminal charges for Lakeland residents and drivers in the Shelby County courts. Call (901) 324-5000 or call/text (901) 412-2973. Contacting the firm does not create an attorney-client relationship.