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One legal choice can add years to a sentence, and we unpack exactly how that happens. We walk through how Indiana courts decide whether multiple convictions run at the same time or one after another, using simple, real-world examples that turn abstract rules into clear outcomes. You’ll hear why a three, five, and ten year set can be either ten years or eighteen, and what levers actually move a judge toward concurrency or stacking.

We go deep on Indiana’s framework: the presumption that multiple sentences run concurrently, the requirement to state specific aggravators to stack, and the powerful single episode of criminal conduct rule that caps consecutive time when crimes are tightly connected in time, place, and circumstance. Then we contrast it with federal sentencing under 18 USC 3584, where the default often tilts the other way and the defense must fight for concurrent orders. That state–federal split changes strategy, leverage, and expectations from day one.

From there, we break down the factors that tip the scales: criminal history, victim vulnerability, injury, and weapons use on one side; cooperation, remorse, treatment, employment, and community ties on the other. We also tackle the practical questions clients ask most: how plea agreements can lock in concurrent terms, why sentences from different counties often stack unless you negotiate a global resolution, and how to build a mitigation record that makes concurrency feel both fair and sensible. If you or someone you love is facing multiple charges in Indiana, this is a clear roadmap to the rules, the risks, and the strategies that can reclaim years.

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The Law Office of Mark Nicholson

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