When do I Have to Plead Guilty or Not Guilty in a Criminal Case?

August 17, 2010

By Dallas and Collin County Criminal Defense Lawyer Jeremy Rosenthal

(972) 562-7549

texasdefensefirm.com

In Dallas and Collin County criminal defendants are typically not required to enter into a plea on initial court settings and typically only do so either immediately prior to trial (in the case of a not guilty plea), or obviously if and when they make a plea bargain with the State. Most initial and second settings are merely to make sure the defendant is keeping up with requirements of bond as well as giving the prosecutor and defense lawyer an opportunity to make progress towards the resolution of the case… Be that a dismissal, a trial, or a plea bargain. Visiting directly with the judge is rare at these court dates.

Chapter 26 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure governs arraignments (the formal process where a court informs the accused of the charges against them as well as advising the accused of other rights). The arraignment is typically where a defendant will enter a plea, but the code is relatively silent on exactly when that must occur. Tex.Code.Crim.P. 26.03 only says arraignment is improper if it’s done within two days of indictment and the accused is still in jail.

Most Texas Courts have their own policies in place for when they do arraignments requiring a defendant to plead guilty or not guilty. In General, Dallas and Collin Counties only require the plea to be made at a guilty plea or before trial begins.

Some courts may seek to arraign defendants at their initial court setting for other reasons. This doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t change your plea but you should obviously consult your lawyer first.

*Jeremy Rosenthal is Board Certified in Criminal Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and licensed by the Supreme Court of Texas. Nothing in this article should be considered as legal advice. For legal advice you should directly consult an attorney.

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Posted by Jeremy Rosenthal, Esq.

What is Hearsay?

July 31, 2010

By Collin County Criminal Defense Lawyer Jeremy Rosenthal

(972) 369-0577

texasdefensefirm.com

As a general rule, if a witness on the stand is repeating what someone else said who isn’t testifying in a case… there are hearsay issues.  In trial you have a constitutional right to cross examine someone testifying against you — but you can’t effectively cross examine someone who isn’t there.

For starters, a short blog can’t possibly do the concept of hearsay any justice. Hearsay is one of the hardest topics in evidence and is heavily covered on the multistate bar exam.

The hearsay rule can block damaging statements from being admitted into evidence at a criminal trial. In some cases, such as assault/ family violence cases, the entire outcome can rest on a single hearsay objection. Yeah… It’s THAT important.

The legal definition of hearsay is, “a statement, other than one made by the declarant while testifying at the trial or hearing, offered in evidence to prove the truth of the matter asserted.”. Clear as mud, right?

For example… Let’s say person A is on trial for theft from a retail store.  At trial, the clerk who was there during the incident isn’t present at trial for whatever reason.  Instead, the prosecutor calls a police officer who came after the fact and made a report.  If the policeman relayed the observations of the clerk (such as A did this, A did that, or A hid something in a bag), this would be impermissible hearsay.  This is because A has a right to cross-examine the clerk directly about the clerk’s observations.  The law recognizes when one witness relays what is said by someone out of court — it acts as a shield protecting the out of court declarant — and the out of court declarant’s true observations cannot be tested in front of the jury deciding the case.

Hearsay shouldn’t be confused with what is known as an “admission.”. An admission is a statement made by the accused and is non-hearsay.

Again, I can’t emphasize enough how difficult a concept hearsay can be. The U.S. Supreme Court is still constantly refining how the rules work and the Texas Legislature devoted an entire chapter of the Texas Rules of Evidence to the concept of hearsay. It’s important to have a lawyer that understands it too.

*Jeremy Rosenthal is Board Certified in Criminal Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and licensed by the Supreme Court of Texas. Nothing in this article is intended to be legal advice. For legal advice you should consult an attorney directly.

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Posted by Jeremy Rosenthal, Esq.

Robbery

July 23, 2010

By Collin County Criminal Defense Lawyer Jeremy Rosenthal

texasdefensefirm.com

(972) 369-0577

Our mind’s eye tends to think of a typical robbery as a person holding up a bank or a convenience station with a gun and asking for all the loot.  In reality, the Texas robbery statute is far thinner and believe it or not, some robbery cases can be extremely difficult cases for the prosecution.

Texas Penal Code Section 29.02 governs robbery and under subsection (a), robber is committed where, “…in the course of committing theft as defined in Chapter 31 and with the itent to obtain or maintain control of the property, he; (1) intentionally, knowingly or recklessly causes bodily injury to another; or (2) intentionally or knowingly threatens or places another in fear of imminent bodily injury or death.

One main reason why these cases present difficulties to the State is that there is no requirement under the law that the robbery be pre-meditated.  In other words, it is a common scenario for a “robber” to be someone that in the course of simple shoplifting gets into an altercation with a shop-owner.  So a person who merely intended to shoplift property from a store can walk-out being saddled with a robbery charge!  These present the prosecution with headaches because jurors think robbery charges in those circumstances may be a bit harsh.

Aggravated Robbery is committed under Penal Code Section 29.03 and differs from a simple robbery because the victim suffers serious bodily injury or the defendant “use or exhibits” a deadly weapon.

Robbery is a 2nd Degree felony punishable between 2 and 20 years in prison and a fine not to exceed $10,000; and aggravated robbery is a first-degree felony and is punishable between 5 and 99 years of prison and a fine not to exceed $10,000.

Punishment in these types of cases are often the greatest battles.  The Collin County District Attorney’s Office, for example, has policies which do not allow prosecutors to plea negotiate very much and have harsh prison recommendation for first-time defendants.

Getting a lawyer on a robbery case is important for both guilt-innocence and punishment phases of a trial.  Having a trial lawyer that knows how to show you as a human to the jury is critical.

*Jeremy Rosenthal is Board Certified in Criminal Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and licensed by the Supreme Court of Texas. Nothing in this article is intended to be legal advice.  For legal advice you should consult an attorney.

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Posted by Jeremy Rosenthal, Esq.

Interference With Child Custody

July 18, 2010

By Collin County Criminal Defense Lawyer Jeremy Rosenthal

texasdefensefirm.com

(972) 369-0577

As most people know, divorces may unfortunately turn very nasty. On occasion there are collateral criminal problems which can arise from a party’s conduct either prior to or after the court makes custody determinations for the children. While the blame may often seem trumped-up or baseless — being accused of interference with child custody is as serious as a heart attack because it’s a felony accusation in Texas. Also –as with any criminal prosecution –it is important to remember that the charges are no longer between you and your divorcing spouse; it’s between you and the State of Texas.

Texas Penal Code Section 25.03 is titled “Interference With Child Custody,” and that section reads accordingly:

(a) A person commits an offense if the person takes or retains a child younger than 18 years when the person:

(1) knows that the person’s taking or retention violates the express terms of a judgment or order, including a temporary order, of a court disposing of the child’s custody; or

(2) has not been awarded custody of the child by a court of competent jurisdiction, knows that a suit for divorce or a civil suit or application for habeas corpus to dispose of the child’s custody has been filed, and takes the child out of the geographic area of the counties composing the judicial district if the court is a district court or the county if the court is a statutory county court, without the permission of the court and with the intent to deprive the court of authority over the child.

(b) A noncustodial parent commits an offense if, with the intent to interfere with the lawful custody of a child younger than 18 years, the noncustodial parent knowingly entices or persuades the child to leave the custody of the custodial parent, guardian, or person standing in the stead of the custodial parent or guardian of the child.

(c) It is a defense to prosecution under Subsection (a)(2) that the actor returned the child to the geographic area of the counties composing the judicial district if the court is a district court or the county if the court is a statutory county court, within three days after the date of the commission of the offense.

(d) An offense under this section is a state jail felony.

The legal and factual scenarios and defenses are seemingly endless. Take, just as one example, a case prosecuted under 25.03(a)(1)… A prosecution under that section would probably include a complete order from the Divorce Judge which may or may not be written clearly enough to provide a party with sufficient guidance as to what is or is not permitted for times of custody (at least in the context of criminal liability.)

Also, Section (C) provides what is known as a “safe harbor,” where the offense was committed under 25.03(a)(2)… Which is to say that if the violating person returns the child within 3 days to the area or county controlled by the Court they have a defense to prosecution. This is to facilitate the return of children and to a lesser degree (I suspect) because the criminal justice system has a some biases against getting involved in the micromanagement of custody disputes and orders.

If you are being accused of interference with a child custody order, you should involve competent and qualified criminal representation at once. It’s not something to fool with.

*Jeremy Rosenthal is Board Certified in Criminal Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and licensed by the Supreme Court of Texas. Nothing in this article is intended to be legal advice. For legal advice about any specific situation you should consult an attorney directly.

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Posted by Jeremy Rosenthal, Esq.

Criminal Mischief

July 13, 2010

By Collin County Criminal Defense Lawyer Jeremy Rosenthal

texasdefensefirm.com

(972) 369-0577

Criminal Mischief is the essentially Texas’ way of labeling vandalism.  Under Tex.Pen.C. 28.03, a person commits an offense if, without effective consent of the owner, he intentionally or knowingly damages or destroys the tangible property of the owner; intentionally or knowingly tampers with the tangible property of the owner and causes pecuniary loss or substantial inconvenience to the owner or a third person; or intentionally or knowingly makes makings, including inscriptions, slogans, drawings or paintings, on the tangible property of the owner.

The level of offense of a criminal mischief case stems from the amount of damage to be alleged just as in theft cases.  Less than $50 of damage is a Class C misdemeanor; $50 to $500 is a Class B, $500 to $1,500 is a Class A; $1,500 to $20,000 is a State Jail Felony; $20,000 to $100,000 is a 3rd Degree Felony; $100,000 to $200,00o is a 2nd Degree Felony; and $200,000 or greater is a first degree felony.

Also, the punishment levels can differ if the property tampered with are public communication devices, for public transportation, and for utilities such as water gas and utilities.

Criminal mischief cases can often be very difficult for the prosecution to prove.  Much of the time the culprit is not apprehended at the scene of an offense.  As such, these cases tend to be built on circumstantial evidence and confessions and a skilled criminal defense attorney can be of great value.

If you are contacted by the police investigating a criminal mischief case you should involve an attorney at once!

*Jeremy Rosenthal is Board Certified in Criminal Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and licensed by the Supreme Court of Texas. Nothing in this article is intended to be legal advice.  For legal advice about any specific case you should consult an attorney.

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Posted by Jeremy Rosenthal, Esq.

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