Category: Criminal Defense
In recent years, many forensic techniques have been discredited as new information cast doubt on their reliability. Texas has a trailblazing state law allowing courts to overturn convictions in cases where the scientific evidence that led to the original verdict has since changed or been discredited. Although the law is not often used, it has…
A 66-year-old man in a wheelchair who claimed his veins would not handle a lethal injection failed to halt his death by lethal injection in Texas. Danny Bible was executed last month almost 40 years after the body of 20-year-old Inez Deaton was found in a field near a car wash in Harris County. Bible…
Scams targeting elderly people are endemic in Texas. Older people are more vulnerable to fraudsters leading police departments to step up awareness campaigns to protect the elderly. Recently, the Dallas Morning News featured the work of Christopher Bianez, an officer with the Plano Police Department. AARP Magazine featured Bianez on the cover of its March…
A recent case in which a Romanian man was sent to a federal prison for a year illustrates how aggressive cyber gaming tactics can cross a line and become a criminal offense. Last month, a federal judge sentenced hacker Calin Mateias after he launched a series of cyber attacks after he became angry in the…
Most of us are familiar with field sobriety tests for suspected drunk drivers. A DWI suspect may be asked to walk in a straight line or to stand and turn to indicate if he or she is intoxicated. These tests are still widely used in Texas DWI cases to establish probable cause despite evidence that…
A secretive federal surveillance program led to the arrest of a black activist in Dallas who was jailed for five months over his Facebook posts, a new report claims. The ordeal faced by Rakem Balogun was detailed by The Guardian last week. The black activist described how he was picked up in an FBI operation…
Over the years, various celebrities have been caught up in high-profile cases involving animal cruelty. When these cases make the news, many people wonder what the law says about animal abuse—specifically, what constitutes animal abuse and what types of penalties are involved when a person is charged with abusing a dog. Perhaps most infamously, NFL…
At a criminal trial, it’s usually necessary to establish the ‘guilty mind’ of a defendant to secure a conviction. This doctrine underpins the criminal law and known by the Latin mens rea. However, in the case of Crystal Mason from Texas, a genuine mistake failed to avert a five-year prison sentence. The case has again…
In recent years, video footage has played an increasingly important part in criminal proceedings whether obtained from street or traffic cameras, social media video or home security systems. Recently, police in Mansfield in Texas said footage obtained from footballer Trevone Boykin’s home security video system may have captured an alleged assault on his girlfriend that…
A statute of limitations sets a limit for prosecuting certain crimes. Criminal charges must be filed within the specified time period or they cannot be filed at all. Not all crimes in Texas are subject to a statute of limitations. There is a good reason why these laws are in place. Evidence deteriorates with time,…