Recent Blog Posts
When Is Deadly Force Justified As An Act Of Self-Defense?
There are situations where an otherwise unlawful act, such as killing someone, may be legally justified. In Texas, a person may use force–even deadly force–when acting in self-defense. To be more precise, the Texas Penal Code recognizes a self-defense justification to a murder charge when the defendant “reasonably believed” their actions were “immediately necessary”… Read More »
Is Threatening Someone With A Knife A Felony?
Criminal assault does not necessarily mean making physical contact with a victim. Indeed, the definition of assault under the Texas Penal Code includes “intentionally or knowingly threaten[ing] another with imminent bodily injury.” So merely threatening to strike someone in the face is assault even if no punch is ever thrown or makes contact. To… Read More »
When Are The Conditions For Erasing An Arrest From My Criminal Record?
A criminal arrest can follow you around for many years, even if you were never ultimately tried or convicted of the original charge. Texas law does make it possible to seek an expunction of a criminal arrest. This effectively wipes the arrest off of your record and permits you to deny the arrest ever… Read More »
How The “Plain View Doctrine” Helps Police In Drug Cases
A police officer does not always need a search warrant to look for and seize evidence of a possible crime. Under a judicial rule known as the “plain view doctrine,” an officer who is lawfully present at a location may seize an item that is in plain view–i.e., it is not hidden or concealed–and… Read More »
Do Prosecutors Need An Eyewitness To Convict An Armed Robbery Suspect?
Aggravated robbery is how Texas law defines the crime of committing a robbery while using or exhibiting a deadly weapon. In other words, if someone pulls a gun on a store clerk and demands the contents of the cash register, that is aggravated robbery. This is a first-degree felony in Texas. So even if… Read More »
Can You Challenge A Photo Identification In A Criminal Case?
Police often use lineups or photo arrays to help potential witnesses to a crime identify a suspect. Such pretrial identifications are generally admissible as evidence in court unless the police used a procedure that was “impermissibly suggestive” to the point where there was a “substantial likelihood of irreparable misidentification.” In other words, if the… Read More »
Does Assault Require Proof Of Injury?
A common misconception is that assault requires proof of a physical injury. But if you read the specific language of the Texas Penal Code, you will find that is not always the case. Assault can be defined as the intentional, knowing, or reckless causing of “bodily injury” to another person. But it also covers… Read More »
How Fabricating Evidence Can Land You In Serious Legal Jeopardy
If you know that you are under investigation for a possible crime, the one thing you should never do is try and destroy or alter the evidence. Indeed, even if you are never charged with the crime under investigation, the act of tampering with–or fabricating–physical evidence is itself a criminal act under the Texas… Read More »
What Is The “Plain View” Exception?
In most situations, the police are not allowed to search your property–including your vehicle–without first obtaining your consent or a warrant. There are, however, circumstances where the courts permit warrantless searches. Or to put it another way, there are cases where evidence against you may be admissible in a criminal trial even though the… Read More »
What Is “Felony Murder”?
If someone asked you to define the term “murder,” you might respond that it is the “intentional killing of another human being.” And while this is one definition of murder, it is also possible to legally commit murder without forming an intent to kill. In fact, the Texas Penal Code provides three separate definitions… Read More »