 Many states have "wobblers", which refers to criminal activity that is charged as a felony, but has a possibility of being reduced to a misdemeanor.In matters involving a wobbler, many times a reputable lawyer can either have the felony reduced to a misdemeanor or in the alternative have the felony appear to be a misdemeanor so that the felony can be reduced to a misdemeanor at a later date, which may be good strategy since the typical felony cannot be expunged.The initial process of becoming a criminal defense attorney is similar to becoming a lawyer practicing in any other legal practice area.