(713) 227-4444

Professional criminal lawyers in Houston, Texas for theft / white collar cases

May 24th, 2012

Texas State Law has a zero tolerance policy when it comes to theft-related accusations. If you are found guilty, the effects can be devastating on your personal relationships, professional aspirations, and in some cases your liberty when you face jail time.

Texas has a long tradition of disdaining thieves, going back to the days when people who stole barbwire or cattle faced public scorn and lengthy jail sentences. We Texans are proud of the property and money we legally earned in life, and when someone takes it away illegally from us, we take it personally and want to avenge the criminal act. That means complainants in these cases are often very upset and want jail time or serious punishment unless they get their property or money back, and even then it is no guarantee of avoiding a conviction.

Unfortunately, in this economy, recent law graduates and non-criminal lawyers have decided to become Houston criminal attorneys because, frankly, they either cannot do any other type of legal work or think criminal law is easy. The problem is the client becomes a guinea pig for these lawyers’ inexperience. For the same reason you would never want some doctor whose never performed surgery to cut on you, you do not want an inexperienced criminal lawyers in harris county texas representing you.

The Neal Davis Law Firm, PLLC, which consists of criminal lawyers in Houston, Texas, understands your plight and what is at stake. Even with a misdemeanor theft, you are in the fight for your life. Your job is at risk, your immigrations status (if you are not a U.S. citizen) is endangered, and you are facing long-term consequences of a theft conviction. Neal Davis is highly experienced and knowledgeable when it comes to handling your case. You don’t even have to think twice about availing his Houston criminal defense firm for defending your case. His firm strives to achieve the best result, through a combination of experience, knowledge, and good old fashioned common sense. He means business and he gets results. His firm, on a regular basis, has many theft cases on the docket.

There are several criminal attorneys in Houston, Texas. You need to be careful who you choose to hire you. DO NOT JUST CALL AND ASK FOR PRICE QUOTES. You are not comparison shopping for laptops; you are hiring someone whose representation will have a lasting impact on your life. Experience and expertise of the lawyer is mandatory when it comes to decision making. Your life is at stake and you cannot afford to lose it. Your name, reputation, career, profession, family and everything that you have built face destruction. You need someone who cares for you and the case, will fight as hard as they can, and who has a history of getting results.

Only certain criminal attorneys in Houston, TX have the experience to really know what they are doing in a criminal courtroom. Theft related accusations are very serious and you cannot take it lightly. Never compromise over quality services for cheap price at any cost. Get the best lawyer you can afford, after you have thoroughly investigated them and met with them, and trust he will represent you zealously.

“An insight into juvenile penalties”

May 21st, 2012

Getting arrested for a juvenile crime certainly changes the life of the suspect but also his family, who have helped raise him. It is a wake-up call for everyone involved and the question that arises is: How did this happen and what can be done? Several reasons can be the basis of actual juvenile crime, including:

• family environment

• mental disorder

• social disorganization

• peer pressure

• substance abuse

On the whole, juvenile offenses adversely affect parents, neighbors, families and people surrounding them.

So what do you do? You hire an experienced Houston, Texas juvenile defense lawyer who knows the system, means business, and gets results. Needless to say, now is not the time for tough love and trying to teach your juvenile loved one a lesson. Now is the type to get good legal representation so your loved one does not become a sucked into the black hole of injustice and misery that is the juvenile system.

So when does juvenile law apply? When a crime or offense is committed by an individual whose age is 17 or under, then Texas juvenile law applies. More to the point, the juvenile system and laws are set out in the Texas family code and the adult criminal system and laws are set in the Texas Penal Code and the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure.

But there are certain key differences:

The law applies only in cases where the delinquent is age 17 or under. Misdemeanors committed by individuals age 18 or elder are considered adult crimes and they are covered by Texas criminal law. When it comes to juvenile system, age determines the control of a juvenile court; on the other hand in the adult criminal system, the type of crime determines the jurisdiction of a criminal court. A qualified Harris County criminal defense lawyer can discuss this with you in detail.

However every system has is its own separate purpose and the most important goal of the juvenile system is to rehabilitate the delinquent while the rationale of the criminal structure is to penalize and dissuade. And because of this reason adult crimes have harsher punishments than juvenile offenses. But make no mistakes of the lasting effects of a juvenile disposition, including possibly being deprived of college admission, financial aid, or job opportunities. Now is the time to call the best Houston criminal defense lawyer you can afford to get help for your loved one.

Top 10 mistakes people make when they are arrested for DWI

February 8th, 2012

The State of Texas treats driving-while-intoxicated (DWI) cases seriously. This includes Houston, Texas, and the Harris County District Attorney’s Office. Some commonly refer to DWI as “drunk driving.” Even though attorneys are schooled in the laws pertaining to a wide variety of legal areas, a huge amount of expertise comes from practical experience, either by prosecuting or defending individuals or businesses.

For DWI cases, which involve a great deal of science in addition to just knowledge of the basic governing laws, this experience may be the most critical thing.
To protect yourself and to help decide whom to hire and how to plead, you had better know what these mistakes are.

Not taking the case seriously: This is the main problem for your life because it will affect your rest of your life and keeps track of it until you are dead so make sure that you look of the matter seriously.

  • Not hiring an attorney: The DWI lawyers are very experienced and professional to tackle this case so you must raise the right defenses at the right time or you will lose them and get in to the trouble.
  • Hire an attorney based on the amount of the fees: the Texas state has marvelous resources available to them and their only goal will be to convict you of this charge. If you pay a low fee to a defense attorney, he or she will not be able to put in the time and experience that is necessary to protect and successfully defend your case. When it comes to criminal defense lawyers, you will get what you pay for.
  • Driving after your license has been suspended: If you drive with the suspended license then the result of this will be very serious. You could be required to serve up to 180 days in jail if convicted of this offense. You will have to post a higher bond, and appear in the same court as your DWI offense.
  • Not taking the full advantage of the constitutional rights: You have the right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures, you have the right to remain silent and not give evidence against yourself.
  • Not complying with the driver license law: If you fail to obey the law then you would loose your rights to drive for ever.
  • Prosecutors first offer: The first offer is not the bargain its just an another way to get rid of your case.
  • Failing to appear in the court: If you fail to appear in the court on the assigned date then the court will issue a warrant for your arrest and forfeit your bond. You will then be arrested with a higher bond being set for you to be released.
  • Talking to people about your case other than the attorney: The law says that anything you know and if you discuss with you’re the third person other than the attorney is not protected by the attorney-client privilege and can be used against you in court.
  • Hire an attorney: You would be cheated and it may leas to live in the jail if you are hiring an attorney hence it is essential that you hire an attorney to represent you when you are accused of a crime.

Probation officers

January 27th, 2012

Anyone in Texas who is on community supervision is assigned a “probation officer” typically. The probation officer can be helpful. They can set up needed appointments, answer questions you have, and refer you to classes you must complete.

It is also the probation officer’s job to:

  • Supervise you as directed by the court, and to inform the court how you are abiding by the rules
  • Protect the community, by seeing you at home or work as well as in the office.
  • Provide community-based referrals, such as drug/alcohol counseling, employment counseling and literacy/ged preparation that will help you change your negative behavior.

Of course, every job area has bad apples, and probation is no exception. Probation officers are often underpaid and overworked, and as a result can be negligent or take a “don’t care” attitude towards probationers. Or, occasionally, the probation officer is overzealous, holier-than-thou, and does everything in their power to see the probationer fail.

When you are accused of violating the terms of your community supervision, you have the right to challenge the accusation. As an experienced probation attorney, Neal Davis, a criminal defense attorney in Houston Texas, can handle any motion to revoke or adjudicate, assist you throughout the entire process, and put forward the best defense that he can. Rest assured that he will do whatever he can to get the best result he can.

The accomplice witness rule

January 16th, 2012

According to the January 3, 2012, Houston Chronicle, northeast Houston-area residents have been charged with felony theft in connection with an alleged $70,000 coupon fraud scheme at the Humble supermarket where they worked.

The four, who were not in custody Tuesday morning, were identified in court records as Traveon Monte Boyd, 19, of Humble; Krystal Keaira Cormier, 19, of Houston; Corey Scott Lester, 21, of Porter; and Latrisha Wilkerson, 23, of Humble.
An investigator for Kroger stores told Humble police that the four suspects, while employed as cashiers at the store at 19611 U.S. 59, took part in a coupon scheme that allowed customers to buy items at a large discount.

They used a “coupon override function” on the cash register that allowed them to give the coupons a dollar value of their choosing, according to a complaint filed Friday by the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.

The alleged scheme took place from July 20 to Oct. 16, bringing the store’s total loss to nearly $69,900, according to court documents.

The store investigator said she interviewed three of the defendants, who told her operators of a flea market paid them to override coupons that did not match the products being purchased, records state.

Cormier declined the agent’s request for an interview, according to the complaint.

The investigator reviewed each defendant’s register log and also saw footage of them using the override function on security-camera video, the complaint said.

So that’s the story. But the question arises: what if one or more of these individuals testifies against another? What does the law say? How does the jury weigh that?

The accomplice witness rule is a rule of Texas Criminal Procedure. In Texas, you cannot be convicted solely on the word of another party who was involved in the crime. So the prosecution in this case must show something to support or corroborate what the cooperating witness says. But if all they have is his word, you can’t be convicted. You can be convicted on the word of one person, but that person can’t be charged or implicated in the same crime that you are charged with. Houston criminal lawyers have won cases based on the accomplice witness rule. So the rule is alive and well in Harris County, Texas. Indeed, prosecutors sometimes are unable to file charges because they realize they have nothing but a snitch’s word to support their case.

You need a criminal defense attorneys in Houston Texas, who understands the law of parties and accomplice witnesses if you are charged with a case involving a snitch or cooperating witness. This is a relatively complex area, often arising in drug cases, and requires the guiding hand of a Board Certified criminal attorney.