I don't think prosecutors generally are very motivated to pursue tiny misdemeanor fines unless they have slam dunk evidence.
As far as I can tell, the most likely charges for the garbage bag strategy where I'm located would be a maximum $500 fine, which is too low for most people to even bother with a lawyer.
If they wanted any jail time, they would have to try to frame it as obstruction of justice, which is a stretch and would be difficult to get to stick with a jury.
Sounds like someone who's never had to hire a lawyer before. They vary in cost and quality, and there's not a 1:1 correlation between the two. There's also many different areas, eg real estate vs corporate vs labor vs immigration vs criminal.
Lawyer costs the same per hour either way.