Author: Mick Mickelsen
A plan to set up a child sex-trafficking victim services program is being rolled out in Texas with the first set of grants being announced by Gov. Greg Abbott. The Texas Tribune recently detailed $133 million in grants that the state’s criminal justice division is allocating to law enforcement agencies and victims’ assistance programs in…
Every day at least one potential client asks me, “What can you do for me?” It is natural enough. A person has been charged with a crime; they are concerned about their future; and they are confronted with the expensive prospect of hiring a lawyer to defend them against the charges. Before they make that…
The arrest of teachers inevitably makes news headlines. The Dallas Morning News recently reported on how a Richardson ISD teacher who was arrested last week on suspicion of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy later told police that he has HIV. The news report said Roger Kessler, 43, told investigators he hadn’t revealed his medical condition…
How to Write a Character Letter of Support to a Judge Prior to your sentencing, you may have friends and relatives write character letters of support to the judge which the judge will consider in imposing sentencing. Because of the sentencing guidelines, the judge does not have a great deal of discretion as to your…
On July 25, 2014 court documents were unsealed accusing longtime Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price and three co-defendants; his longtime assistant Dapheny Fain, two political consultants Kathy Nealy and Christian Campbell of a variety of white collar crimes that abused the public’s trust. Last Friday, Our Man Downtown, and his three co-defendants were brought…
Just as cell phones and smart phones have become a way of life in recent years, it has become routine for police to seek to recover information from the devices as part of their investigations. However, a recent U.S. Supreme Court has drawn a line in the sand on use of information from these devices…
Texas hit the headlines last week for one of the worst crimes seen in the Lone Star State for some time. A 33-year-old man stands accused of killing six members of his former wife’s family, including four children in a home in suburban Houston. Reuters reported on an appearance in court by 33-year-old Ronald Lee…
Murder for hire cases can be difficult to prosecute as demonstrated by a recent case in Texas in which the Collin County District Attorney’s Office dismissed a felony charge against man from Garland who was accused last year in a murder for hire plot in Allen. The Dallas Morning News reported that Robert Wayne Bass,…
GPS tracking devices were used in stolen phones to track down two robbery suspects in Dallas, according to media reports. The Dallas Morning News reported a robbery at an AT&T store in the 8500 block of Abrams Road, when police are said to have tracked the suspects and apprehended a car. The suspects were accused…
Rick Perry, the governor of Texas, has become the latest state governor to face criminal charges after an indictment was brought against him alleging an abuse of power. Perry has dismissed the indictment as a “farce.” He faces two counts of abuse of power and coercion over a funding veto he imposed last year, which…