Minnesota misdemeanor examples include disorderly conduct, fifth-degree assault, theft of $500 or less, fourth-degree DWI, first-offense domestic assault, driving after license suspension, trespass, careless driving, fifth-degree arson, and fourth-degree criminal damage to property. All share the same ceiling: up to 90 days in jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.1Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.02 – Definitions
What a Minnesota Misdemeanor Is (and What It Isn’t)
A standard misdemeanor in Minnesota is any crime punishable by up to 90 days in jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both. A judge can impose jail alone, a fine alone, or a mix within those limits, and most sentences also carry probation.
Two neighboring categories often get confused with misdemeanors, and the difference matters.
A petty misdemeanor is not a crime. It carries a fine of up to $300, no jail time, and no criminal record.1Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.02 – Definitions Most minor traffic tickets and low-level regulatory violations land here. If someone tells you a speeding ticket is a “misdemeanor,” they usually mean petty, which carries nothing worse than the fine.
A gross misdemeanor sits above the standard misdemeanor and below a felony, with penalties up to 364 days in jail and a $3,000 fine.1Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.02 – Definitions Several offenses that start out as misdemeanors become gross misdemeanors on a second occurrence or when a dollar amount crosses a threshold.
Common Misdemeanor Examples by Category
Public Order Offenses
Disorderly conduct is one of the most frequently charged misdemeanors in the state. You commit it by fighting, disturbing a lawful assembly, or using offensive or abusive language that would reasonably provoke alarm or resentment, so long as you know or should know the behavior will disturb others.2Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.72 – Disorderly Conduct The statute reaches public and private places alike, including school buses.
Unlawful assembly is a misdemeanor when three or more people gather intending to carry out an illegal act by force, or when a group conducts itself in a disorderly way that threatens public peace.3Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.705 – Unlawful Assembly Staying at an unlawful assembly after an officer tells you to leave is a separate misdemeanor.4Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.715 – Presence at Unlawful Assembly
Trespass covers intentionally entering or refusing to leave someone’s property after being told to go, entering a posted construction site without permission, or returning to property you’ve been told to stay away from.5Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.605 – Trespass
Driving Offenses
Fourth-degree DWI is the baseline criminal charge for impaired driving. It applies to any impaired-driving incident without aggravating factors, first offense or not.6Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 169A.27 – Fourth-Degree Driving While Impaired “Impaired” covers driving with a BAC of 0.08 or higher, driving under the influence of a controlled substance, or driving with any amount of a Schedule I or II drug in your system.7Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 169A.20 – Driving While Impaired Crime On top of the criminal penalties, a DWI brings license consequences and almost always higher insurance premiums.
Driving after suspension is a misdemeanor when your license has been suspended, you know about the suspension or reasonably should, and you drive anyway.8Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 171.24 – Violations; Driving Without Valid License
Careless driving is a misdemeanor for operating a vehicle in a way that endangers people or property without rising to conscious disregard of a substantial risk. That higher conduct is reckless driving, charged under the same statute but treated more seriously.9Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 169.13 – Reckless or Careless Driving
Theft and Property Offenses
Theft of property or services worth $500 or less is a misdemeanor. One detail trips people up: prosecutors can add up the value of multiple thefts committed within a six-month period.10Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.52 – Theft If the running total crosses $500, separate misdemeanor-level thefts can be charged together as a single gross misdemeanor or felony.
Fourth-degree criminal damage to property is a misdemeanor for intentionally damaging someone else’s property without consent, when the damage stays below the thresholds that trigger more serious degrees.11Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.595 – Damage to Property Repair costs above $1,000 or any risk of bodily harm push the offense into felony territory.
Fifth-degree arson is a misdemeanor for intentionally setting fire to any real or personal property.12Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.5632 – Arson in the Fifth Degree Setting fire to personal property inside an apartment building or public building moves up to fourth-degree arson, a gross misdemeanor.13Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.5631 – Arson in the Fourth Degree
Assault Offenses
Fifth-degree assault is the most common assault charge in Minnesota. You commit it by doing something intended to cause fear of immediate bodily harm, or by intentionally inflicting or attempting to inflict bodily harm.14Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.224 – Assault in the Fifth Degree It reaches shoving during an argument or throwing a punch, provided no substantial injury results. Serious injuries push the case into higher assault degrees with felony penalties.
Domestic assault is a separate misdemeanor on a first offense when the act is committed against a family or household member.15Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.2242 – Domestic Assault The elements track fifth-degree assault, but the domestic relationship triggers its own statute with its own escalation path.
When These Charges Become Something Worse
Several of the offenses above don’t stay misdemeanors. Minnesota’s code is built with escalation triggers that bump charges to gross misdemeanors or felonies based on prior convictions, dollar amounts, or aggravating facts.
- DWI: a fourth-degree DWI is a misdemeanor, but a second DWI within ten years becomes a gross misdemeanor. Aggravating facts like a BAC above 0.16 or a child in the vehicle can push even a first offense higher.
- Theft: $500 or less is a misdemeanor; above $500 up to $1,000 is a gross misdemeanor; above $1,000 is a felony.10Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.52 – Theft
- Domestic assault: first offense is a misdemeanor, a second qualified offense within ten years is a gross misdemeanor, and a third within ten years is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison.15Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.2242 – Domestic Assault
- Fifth-degree assault: a second offense against the same victim within ten years can be charged as a gross misdemeanor.
What a Misdemeanor Conviction Actually Costs You
Jail time and fines are the visible penalties. The lasting ones usually aren’t.
A standard misdemeanor conviction creates a criminal record that appears on background checks for employment, housing, and professional licensing. A petty misdemeanor does not, which is why the line between the two categories matters so much.
Domestic violence misdemeanors carry a federal consequence that outlives the state sentence. Under federal law, anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence is permanently prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition.16Office of the Law Revision Counsel. United States Code Title 18 Section 922 – Unlawful Acts The ban has no expiration date.
Noncitizens face additional risk. Offenses that qualify as “crimes involving moral turpitude” under federal immigration law can make a noncitizen deportable or inadmissible, even at the misdemeanor level. Theft with intent to permanently deprive, fraud, and intentional bodily harm offenses typically qualify. Simple negligence-based offenses like standard careless driving generally do not. Getting legal advice before entering any plea is essential if your immigration status is at stake.
International travel is another overlooked area. Canada, for example, can deny entry to anyone with a criminal conviction, including misdemeanors like DWI or assault, and may require a formal rehabilitation process years after the sentence ends.17Government of Canada. Overcome Criminal Convictions
Clearing a Misdemeanor From Your Record
Minnesota offers two paths to expunge a misdemeanor conviction: automatic expungement and petition-based expungement. Both require a two-year waiting period after you complete your sentence, including any probation.18Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609A.02 – Petition for Expungement
Automatic expungement reaches many misdemeanors but excludes some of the most commonly charged ones: fourth-degree DWI, fifth-degree assault, domestic assault, violation of an order for protection, violation of a harassment restraining order, interference with privacy, obscene or harassing phone calls, and indecent exposure.19Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609A – Expungement A conviction for one of those requires a petition and a showing that sealing the record benefits you in a way that outweighs any disadvantage to public safety. Courts treat petition-based expungement as an extraordinary remedy, not routine.
The two-year clock runs from discharge, meaning jail time served, fines paid, and probation finished. A new conviction for anything other than a petty misdemeanor resets your eligibility.