Defense representation across the full range of Texas criminal allegations.
A criminal charge is one of the few situations where the entire weight of state government is aligned against a single person. Police investigate. Prosecutors decide what to file. Crime labs analyze evidence. Probation officers prepare reports. Judges issue rulings. Through all of it, the accused needs someone on the other side of the table whose only job is to protect them.
Texas criminal procedure is governed primarily by the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure and the Texas Penal Code. The Penal Code defines what conduct is criminal and what the punishment ranges look like. The Code of Criminal Procedure governs how the case moves through the system: arrest, magistration, bail, indictment, discovery, plea practice, motions, trial, sentencing, and appeal.
A criminal defense attorney's role spans all of those stages. The work is not just showing up in court. It includes reviewing the offense report, watching every minute of body camera footage, requesting and analyzing discovery, identifying constitutional issues, negotiating with prosecutors, preparing for and conducting hearings, and when necessary trying the case to a jury.
Texas classifies offenses into misdemeanors and felonies based on potential punishment.
Class C misdemeanors are fine-only offenses tried in justice or municipal courts. Class B and Class A misdemeanors carry jail time up to 180 days or one year respectively, plus fines.
Felonies range from state jail felonies, which carry 180 days to two years in a state jail facility, through third, second, and first degree felonies. First-degree felonies can carry life sentences. Capital felonies, the most serious classification, carry life without parole or death.
Our approach begins with a confidential consultation where we listen before we advise. We pull the charging instrument, request the offense report, and review whatever discovery is available. We watch the video, read the witness statements, and look at the evidence the state intends to use.
From there we identify the issues. Sometimes the problems are constitutional: a bad stop, a search without consent or probable cause, a statement taken without Miranda. Sometimes they are evidentiary: chain of custody gaps, lab procedure problems, identification issues. Sometimes they are factual: witnesses with credibility problems, alibi evidence the police did not consider, alternative explanations for the physical evidence.
Once we know where the case is weak we decide how to use that. Sometimes the answer is a motion to suppress. Sometimes it is negotiation backed by the threat of one. Sometimes it is preparing for trial because the state will not offer anything acceptable. The decision depends on the case.
If a case goes to trial in Texas, the process generally includes pretrial motions, jury selection (voir dire), opening statements, the state's case in chief, the defense case if any, closing arguments, jury charge conference, deliberation, and verdict. If the jury convicts, a separate punishment phase follows where the jury or judge decides the sentence within the statutory range.
Misdemeanor jury trials use six jurors. Felony jury trials use twelve. Defendants have the right to elect bench trial in most cases, where the judge decides both guilt and punishment, but jury trials are the default and usually the right choice in serious matters.
Talk to an attorney who handles these cases regularly. Consultation requests are reviewed personally and treated with full confidentiality.
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