Attorney Offices by Municipality
Texas G-Z
- Abilene
- Addison
- Alice
- Scoggins, Gary:
Traffic citations can have serious negative consequences for
both your driver's license and insurance rates. Speaking to an
experienced attorney can help you minimize, and often eliminate, the
adverse effects of a traffic citation.
* Careless and reckless driving
* Driving after consuming alcohol if the driver is under 21
* Driving while license or registration suspended or revoked
* Driving While Intoxicated - DWI
* Driving with a blood alcohol level of .08% or greater
* Driving with expired registration
* Felony death by vehicle
* Hit and run
* Manslaughter or negligent homicide involving a motor vehicle
* Speeding tickets
* Speeding to avoid arrest
* Speeding in a construction zone
* Speeding in a school zone
* Racing
* Failure to yield to emergency vehicle
* Failure to yield right-of-way
* Failure to have liability insurance
* Failure to stop for a siren
* Passing a stopped school bus
* Running a red light
* Running a stop sign
* Illegal passing
* Following too closely
- Allen
- Alvin
- Amarillo
- Angleton
- Arlington
-
Austin
- A-B
- C-K
- C-K
- C-K
- C-K
- C-K
- C-K
- L
- M
- N-Z N-Z
- Azle
- William Copenhaver:
bad things happen to good people
- Beaumont
- Bellaire
- Strauss, Lisa:
# You have 15 days from the date of your arrest to save your driver's license - so you must act now!
# DWI is a very expensive situation - if convicted of a DWI, you will have a $3000 surcharge on your driver's license at the end of the case, even if you accept probation as a punishment. Additionally, you will have to pay fees, court costs, program costs, increasing insurance costs, occupational license fees and more... You deserve to know everything UP FRONT.
# You may qualify for a Pre-Trial Diversion if you this is your first offense, but you must act on this special program quickly. I can explain the process to you and let you know whether or not the program would be good for your situation. If you are admitted in the program, the final result may be a dismissal.
- Bedford
- Belton
- Big Spring
- Donald Richard:
You should consult an attorney for individual advice regarding your own situation.
- Boerne
- Hostetler, Michael:
Employment Law
Criminal Law
DWI
Family Law
Wills and Estates
Auto Accidents
- Greene, Reed:
* Violent crimes, including homicide/murder, assault, aggravated assault
* Sex crimes, including sexual assault, aggravated sexual assault, indecent exposure and failure to register as a sex offender
* Crimes against property, including robbery, aggravated robbery, burglary and theft
* Crimes against children, including sex crimes, aggravated kidnapping, abducting a child, abandoning or endangering a child and interference with child custody
* Injury to a child, elderly individual or disabled individual
* Drug crimes, including drug possession, possession for sale, drug manufacturing, drug trafficking/distribution and prescription fraud
* White-collar crimes, including fraud, insurance or welfare fraud, internet crimes, bribery and forgery
* DUI/DWI, including first-time offense DUI/DWI, multiple offense DUI/DWI and felony DUI/DWI
* Traffic violations, such as reckless driving, driving without a license, speeding and running a stop sign
- Brownsville
- Bryan
- Burleson
- Williams, Kevin:
DWI/DUI
Because Texas convictions for DWI (driving while intoxicated) or DUI (driving under the influence) carry heavy penalties, even for the first offense, it is essential to have a criminal attorney defend you.
State law sets the limit for intoxication at .08 blood alcohol concentration (BAC). However, regardless of BAC, a police officer can issue a DWI charge for impaired driving due to alcohol or other drugs, legal or illegal. The Texas zero tolerance law makes it illegal for anyone under 21 to drive with any detectable amount of alcohol.
When you are arrested and charged with drunk driving, you will be dealing with two separate casesÑan administrative hearing dealing with license suspension and a DUI/DWI criminal proceeding. Generally you must appear in court where a judge or jury renders a decision. However, once you are convicted, Texas law sets mandatory punishments, that leave the judge no discretion.
- Cameron
- Carrolton
- Russell, Andee:
Family Law
Divorce - Child Custody - Modifications
Protective Orders - Adoption
Grandparents Rights - Visitation
Criminal Law
DWI Felonies Misdemeanors
Drug & Weapons Charges
Theft - Prostitution
Assault - Family Violence
Personal Injury
Traffic Accidents - Injuries at Work
Serious Injury or Death Cases
Nursing Home Negligence
- Cedar Park
- Butler, Ron:
In Texas, DWI cases can be tough to defend against, and that is why you want an aggressive defense to attack the evidence and explore every possible option to weaken the prosecution's case against you. I will also take the time to explore the potential for plea bargaining with the prosecution to reach a fair deal that protects your rights.
Whether you face criminal charges for the first time or you have been convicted of a DWI in the past, my focus is to keep you out of jail. I will also help you take action to protect your license and minimize any potential fines you may face.
In Texas, your third DWI is considered a felony. This is not just the case for drunk driving convictions over a period of a few years, but applies to convictions over the course of your lifetime. We will look at the circumstance surrounding your particular case in order to come up with a defense tailored to your needs.
Drivers License Suspension
If you have been arrested for a DWI, you have 15 days to challenge the mandatory suspension of your license, and 40 days to get an alternate license in its place. These administrative concerns are especially important for people who make a living with an occupational or commercial driver's license, or ODL.
- Shanks, Matthew:
Most Texans drive at least once every day. You probably take your car to work or to school. Maybe you also drive other places throughout the day. Drunk driving charges automatically jeopardize this lifestyle. Even if you are not convicted of the crime, your driver's license may still be suspended or revoked.
- Murray, Joshua:
* Drunk driving (DWI)
* Possession of a controlled substance and other drug charges
* Assault
* Family violence
* Theft
* Juvenile crimes
- Clerburne, College Station, Conroe, Corpus Christi
- Crocket
- Pemberton, William:
# Criminal Law
# General Civil and Criminal Trial and Appellate Practice Commercial Litigation
# Personal Injury
- Dallas Dallas Dallas Dallas Dallas Dallas
Dallas Dallas Dallas Dallas Dallas
- Conroe
- Duane Corley:
If you have been arrested or accused of a crime or traffic offense, you need an experienced trial attorney who is able to honestly answer your questions and zealously defend your individual and constitutional rights.
- Coppel
- Decatur
- Deer Park
- Denison
- R.J. Hagood:
... goal is to provide the highest quality legal services to you in a timely fashion.
- Denton
Denton
Denton
- Desoto
- Fred McDanieL: You should consult an attorney for individual advice regarding your own situation.
- Edinburg
- El Campo
- Manske & Manske:
An arrest for driving while intoxicated (DWI) can be intimidating and can have lifelong ramifications. If you've been pulled over and charged with DWI (known in some other states as driving under the influence or DUI), you need an advocate who will remain on your side throughout the process.
- El Paso
- Fair Oaks Ranch
- James
Mitchell: DWI and DUI charges are an increasingly common social problem
in today's world. Throughout Texas and in all other U. S.
jurisdictions, it is considered a serious offense and can lead to
severe criminal penalties, including heavy fines, loss of driving
privileges, and incarceration. The authorities in many states are
currently cracking down on DUI offenses by reducing the blood alcohol
content level at which a person can legally operate a motor vehicle.
However, knowledgeable legal counsel can help you avoid hefty fines,
license suspensions, or large insurance increases.
- Floresville
- Andres
Cedillos: The Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment, which
generally prohibits the government from putting any person "in jeopardy
of life or limb" for the same offense twice, does not bar successive
trials for the same offense by "separate sovereigns."
- Flower Mound
- Forney
- Blair, Casey:
Criminal
* Divorce
* Child Custody
1. How are crimes classified in Texas?
Texas law classifies criminal offenses into two broad categories: felonies and misdemeanors. Felony offenses are the more serious and involve possible commitment to the Institutional or State Jail Division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Misdemeanor cases involve possible fine and/or imprisonment in the county jail.
2. What is a Complaint?
A complaint is a legal document charging a person with violating a criminal law. It must be sworn to by someone who knows the facts of the crime charged, either by direct knowledge or through investigation. A complaint is generally necessary before an officer can obtain an arrest warrant authorizing him to apprehend a person accused of a crime.
3. What are the steps to a criminal procedure?
*
Booking
*
Arraignment
*
Bail
*
Preliminary Hearing
*
Trial
*
Sentencing
*
Fine, Probation, Jail
*
Appeal
4. Do the police need a warrant to arrest me?
No, in most cases. It all comes down to probable cause. If the police have probable cause to believe you have committed a crime, then they do not need a warrant to arrest you.
5. What is probable cause?
Probable cause exists when law enforcement has more than a Òbare suspicionÓ that a crime has been committed, and that the person they want to arrest has committed the crime. The police donÕt actually have to witness the crime; they just have to honestly believe it is more likely than not that the suspect was involved.
6. What is the legal definition of intoxication in Texas?
* not having the normal use of mental or physical faculties by reason of the introduction of alcohol, a controlled substance, a drug, a dangerous drug, a combination of two or more of those substances, or any other substances into the body; OR
* having an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more.
- Fort Bend
- Anthony Segura:
A person commits an offense if the person is intoxicated while
operating a motor vehicle in a public place. Intoxicated means: a) not
having the normal use of mental or physical faculties by reason of the
introduction of alcohol, a controlled substance, a drug, a dangerous
drug, a combination of two or more of those substances, or any other
substance into the body; or b) having an alcohol concentration of 0.08
or more. Alcohol concentration means the number of grams of alcohol
per: a) 210 liters of breath; b) 100 milliliters of blood; or c) 67
milliliters of urine.
Breath Alcohol Testing
Under Texas law an individual is legally intoxicated if his/her alcohol concentration is .08 or greater. A person's alcohol concentration can be determined by testing the blood, urine or breath. ÒAlcohol concentrationÓ means the number of grams of alcohol per:
* 2
* 10 liters of breath; 100 milliliters of blood; or
* 67 milliliters of urine.
Blood testing is generally considered to be the most reliable and accurate, while urine tests are regarded as the least precise. If you are arrested for DWI in Fort Bend County you will most likely be asked to give a sample of your breath. Breath testing is the most commonly utilized method because it is the least expensive to administer. The scientific community is sharply divided over the accuracy and reliability of breath testing procedures. The police do not save the sample of breath tested. Thus, it is not available for re-testing by an independent laboratory.
Time of Driving v. Time of Test
An essential element of the crime of DWI is that the person is intoxicated at the time of driving. However, chemical tests only reflect a person's alcohol concentration at the time of testing. A person's alcohol concentration at the time of driving may have been higher, lower or the same. In order to link the test result to alcohol concentration at the time of driving the prosecution may attempt to present expert testimony concerning alcohol concentration at the time of driving. The process the expert uses to relate the test result back to the time of driving is known as retrograde extrapolation. However, in order for the expert to offer an opinion which will be admissible at trial, the court must find that the expert's opinion will be reliable. Factors effecting reliability include:
1.
the length of time between the offense and the test(s) administered;
2.
the number of tests given and the length of time between each test; and
3.
whether, and if so, to what extent, any individual characteristics of the defendant were known to the expert. These characteristics and behaviors might include, but are not limited to:
*
weight and gender
*
typical drinking pattern
*
tolerance for alcohol
*
how much the person had to drink on the day or night in question
*
what the person drank
*
the duration of the drinking spree
*
time of the last drink
*
how much and what the person had to eat either before, during or after the drinking
Intoxilyzer 5000 - The Breath Machine
The State of Texas uses the Intoxilyzer 5000 to determine a person's breath-alcohol concentration. The Intoxilyzer's manufacturer claims the device works on the principle of Infrared Spectrometry. A sample of the subject's breath is collected in the device's sample chamber. At one end of the chamber is a light bulb. At the other end is a light detector. The machine measures the amount of light that passes through the chamber when no alcohol is present. This is this compared with the amount of light passing through the chamber after a sample of the subject's breath is introduced. In theory, the alcohol in a breath sample will absorb some of the light, thus the less light that passes through a breath sample the higher the concentration of alcohol. The Intoxilyzer has a computer chip which processes the results of the test to arrive at a specific alcohol concentration. The calculations the device performs are unknown as the manufacturer refuses to release the computer code.
You may be interested to learn that the Intoxilyzer's manufacturer does not warrant that it is fit to accurately determine the alcohol concentration in human breath. In addition, there is no way to check the accuracy of results obtained by using this device because the State refuses to preserve breath specimens for future testing.
Police Decide Between Breath, Blood and Urine Test
Under Texas law the officer has the right to determine which type of sample to request. For example, if the officer requests a breath sample and you will consent only to a blood test, your license is subject to suspension as a refusal. However, if you submit to a chemical test you have the right to have a physician, qualified technician, chemist, or registered professional nurse take an additional sample of your blood for analysis. Your request must be made within two hours of your arrest and the police are not required to transport you for testing.
- Fort Worth
Fort Worth
Fort Worth
Fort Worth
Fort Worth
Fort Worth
- Fredericksburg
- Barnett, Chris:
When you are arrested for DWI in Texas, the police officer must have had reasonable belief that you were driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. If you have more than .08% blood alcohol content in your system, you can be arrested for DWI. But just because you were stopped and charged does not mean you can't fight the charges and win a case against the police. Many officers fail to take the exact and necessary precautions they are supposed to when pulling you over and then testing you for possible DWI. It is just those mistakes that can get your charges overturned!
- Frisco
- Texas G-Z
RETURN TO DRUNK DRIVING DEFENSE
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