Michigan Penal Code Made Simple

by Kimani Upshur, M.Ed.

Most people never learn criminal law until they need it — at a traffic stop, in a holding cell, or across the table from a prosecutor. By then, it is too late to learn it calmly. Michigan Penal Code Made Simple is your plain-English guide to the criminal law of Michigan, built on the real code: the Michigan Penal Code, Act 328 of 1931. In twelve short chapters, Kimani Upshur explains how the code is organized, how crimes are graded from civil infractions to life-without-parole felonies, and what the major offenses mean — homicide, assault, kidnapping, stalking, criminal sexual conduct, theft, burglary, home invasion, drug crimes, weapons offenses, fraud, and OWI. You will learn what defenses the law recognizes, including Michigan’s self-defense law, and what happens from arrest through trial, sentencing, and beyond, with expungement and Clean Slate relief and youthful-trainee options explained, plus where to find free and low-cost help. Every chapter ends with ‘Know the Law’ takeaways and ‘Protect Yourself’ action steps, built on the framework’s guiding triad: Learn. Respect. Protect. This is general education, not legal advice, and the book says so plainly. Written from a Christian worldview — Scripture first.