Former Lake County Superior Court Judge Paul Stanko is one of Indiana's most experienced, distinguished & respected criminal lawyers, with over 42 years of courtroom experience in Indiana criminal law. As a prosecutor in Starke & Lake Counties, presiding judge in the Superior Court of Lake County, Constitutional Law & Criminal Justice professor at Indiana University, & criminal defense attorney throughout northern Indiana, he has helped thousands of persons. The Law Offices of Paul Stanko do not accept any cases other than criminal defense in Indiana Trial courts. Our offices are laser-focused on Criminal Defense and ONLY Criminal Defense!
The three regional Law Offices of Paul Stanko, Attorney at Law focus on providing high-quality client service & superior outcomes in the field of Indiana criminal defense, EXCLUSIVELY. Paul Stanko's practice is devoted to the defense of those accused of drunk driving & boating, drug possession & dealing, domestic violence, violent crimes, white collar crimes, & other criminal offenses throughout northern Indiana. From his South Bend & Plymouth offices, he serves clients with criminal cases in St. Joseph, Marshall, Kosciusko, Fulton, Miami, Starke, Elkhart, & surrounding counties. From his Crown Point office, he serves counties along the I-65 corridor, including Lake County. Besides drunk driving & drug law defense, he handles all other criminal cases, including felonies & misdemeanors.
Paul Stanko has been honored to serve as a member of the Board of Governors, Court of Appeals & Historian of the American Judges Association, as well as chairman of the Retired/Senior Judges Committee & member of the Membership, Court Security & Conference Site committees of that organization. Paul is also a proud member of the NORML Legal Committee, the National Rifle Association, the National Legal Aid & Defender Association, National Alliance of Sentencing Advocates & Mitigation Specialists & life-long defender of the Bill of Rights.
- National Judicial College-University of Nevada
- Special Courts Jurisdiction Certificate (1986) | Judicial Education
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- Attended and successfully completed numerous courses offered by the National Judicial College at the University of Nevada-Reno.
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- Valparaiso University
- J.D | Law
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- Honors: Tribune, Rentner Senate, the Delta Theta Phi Law Fraternity
- Activities: Delta Theta Phi Law Fraternity; Radio (WVUR-FM disk jockey and newscaster); Intramural football
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- Duquesne University
- B.A. | History Major; Speech & Communications Minor
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- Honors: Duquesne University Academic Scholarship; Duquesne University Outstanding Senior Award; Debate Outstanding Senior Award; Alpha Phi Omega Outstanding Senior Award; Inducted into Phi Alpha Theta International Honorary Society in History
- Activities: Student Judicial System (Judge-1 term); Student Government Association (Senator-three terms; Chairman of Appropriations, Constitution, Rules, and Parking Committees); Duquesne University Debating Society (Vice-President; Varsity Debater); Phi Alpha Theta International History Honorary Society; Alpha Phi Omega National service Fraternity; Intramural football; Radio (WDUQ-FM)
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- Owner - Founder
- Law Offices of Paul Stanko - Plymouth Office
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- Practice concentrated in the defense of those accused of crimes in Marshall County and surrounding Counties (Kosciusko, Starke, Fulton and Miami Counties).
- Owner - Founder
- Law Offices of Paul Stanko - South Bend Office
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- Practice concentrated in the defense of those accused of crimes in St. Joseph County and North Central Indiana.
- Owner - Founder
- Law Offices of Paul Stanko - Crown Point Office
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- Practice concentrated in the defense of those accused of crimes in Northwest Indiana courts.
- Appellate Attorney
- Superior Court of Lake County, Appellate Division
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- Responsible for dozens of appeals in the Indiana Court of Appeals and Supreme Court
- Presiding Judge
- Superior Court of Lake County, Indiana
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- Presided over criminal and civil cases in one of Indiana's busiest courts.
- Attorney in Private Practice
- Law Offices of Paul Stanko
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- General trial and appellate practice.
- Deputy Prosecuting Attorney
- Lake County, Indiana Prosecuting Attorney
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- Successfully prosecuted hundreds of criminal cases including serious felonies.
- Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney
- Starke County, Indiana Prosecuting Attorney
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- Successfully prosecuted all types of criminal and juvenile cases.
- Nebraska Press Association v. Stuart (Article)
- ENCYCLOPEDIA OF THE SUPREME COURT
- Schmerber v. California (Article)
- ENCYCLOPEDIA OF THE SUPREME COURT
- Instant OWI: Just Add Clients (computer software)
- Paul Stanko
- Recent Developments in Criminal Law, 2nd Annual Bench and Bar Conference, Valparaiso University Law School
- Porter County Bar Association
- Effects of Out-of-State Convictions, DWI: Live CLE
- Lake County Bar Association
- Representing the Habitual Offender, DWI: Live CLE
- Lake County Bar Association
- Commencement Address, Crown Point High School
- Crown Point Community School Corporation
- Special Courts Jurisdiction Certificate
- National Judicial College-University of Nevada
- Dispute Resolution
- National Judicial College-University of Nevada
- Case Management: Reducing Court Delay
- National Judicial College-University of Nevada
- Constitutional Criminal Procedure
- National Judicial College-University of Nevada
- Judicial Writing
- National Judicial College-University of Nevada
- Advanced Evidence
- National Judicial College-University of Nevada
- Special Court: High Volume Proceedings
- National Judicial College-University of Nevada
- Handling Capital Cases
- National Judicial College-University of Nevada
- Distinguished Lawyer
- Lawyers of Distinction
- Best of the Best Attorneys-Top 10-Criminal Defense
- Best of the Best Attorneys
- Best of the Best Attorneys-Top 10-DUI Defense
- Best of the Best Attorneys
- Elite Lawyer Award
- Elite Lawyer
- Client Satisfaction Award
- Martindale-Hubbell
- National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
- Member
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- NORML Legal Committee
- Member
- Current
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- National Legal Aid & Defender Association
- Member
- Current
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- National Alliance of Sentencing Advocates & Mitigation Specialists (NASAMS)
- Member
- Current
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- Kosciusko County Bar Association
- Member
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- Plymouth Chamber of Commerce
- Member
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- Fulton County Bar Association
- Member
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- Marshall County Bar Association
- Member
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- The National Trial Lawyers
- Member-"Top 100 Trial Lawyers"
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- American Judges Association
- Governor (2009-2019); Court of Appeals (2019-Present)
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- Activities: Elected to Board of Governors in 2009. Re-elected in 2012, 2015 and 2017. Elected to Court of Appeals in 2019. Chairman, Retired/Senior Judges Committee. Conference Site Committee. Membership Committee. Historian-2011-Current
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- Indiana State Bar
- Admitted to practice in January 1979
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- Indiana
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Free Consultation
Free no obligation initial consultation by telephone, text, email or in person. *Covid-19 Social Distancing can be practiced for your protection! -
Credit Cards Accepted
Visa, Master Card, American Express, Discover -
Rates, Retainers and Additional Information
Flat fees are quoted in advance in almost all cases. Fees are based on type and seriousness of the case. In most instances, flat fees save a client a substantial amount of money compared to hourly fees. Veterans and active-duty armed forces personnel are offered substantial discounts on fees.
- Criminal Law
- Drug Crimes, Fraud, Gun Crimes, Internet Crimes, Sex Crimes, Theft, Violent Crimes
- DUI & DWI
- Cannabis & Marijuana Law
- Medical Marijuana
- Domestic Violence
- Domestic Violence Criminal Defense
- White Collar Crime
- Boating While Intoxicated
- Breath Test Refusal
- Cocaine Dealing Defense
- Cocaine Possession defense
- Consulting Attorney - Criminal Defense
- English: Spoken, Written
- Q. If a person is brandishing a firearm on the city sidewalk and you're on your property can you shoot them with a handgun?
- A: I don't know what you mean by "brandishing", but it would take far more than that to justify use of deadly force against that person. Keep in mind that there IS a right to bear arms, both for you and the other person. You can't just shoot people because they are armed.
- Q. Can someone get arrested for resisting arrest if they are not commiting a crime?
- A: "Officer safety" is often used as an excuse for excessive force. For resisting to be a legitimate charge, the police officer must be reasonably engaged in his official duties. If he engages in excessive force, then resisting that unreasonable force (in a reasonable way) would not be a crime. A question such as this is extremely fact sensitive. Hopefully there was a video record of the encounter.
- Q. i was arrested april 20, 2020 on a level 2 dealing in meth. i still havent recieved a plea deal. is that normal
- A: Every county is different, and the COVID situation has delayed things quite a lot. Contact your lawyer to see if he/she has received anything.
- Website
- Website