Houston DWI Lawyer | DWI Defense in Houston, TX

One of the many benefits of focusing my criminal law practice in Harris County, Texas is that I have a working knowledge of the judge's tendencies.  I am not so naive to think that I know what each of the judges are going to do on a particular case because each scenario is different, but I do have a good idea how I my clients will be treated in their respective courts.  For instance, I know that in some misdemeanor courts a person may be required to install the interlock device in their vehicle after a DWI arrest involving an accident.  In the same respect, I know which courts allow a non driving affidavit stating that the accused will not be driving a vehicle instead of obtaining an interlock.  In some felony courts they require a person on bond for a drug case to submit to urine analysis at any time.  These are the type of things that are important to know beforehand. 

The judge that I have the hardest time dealing with is the one that is never consistent with their decisions.  One day they will reduce the astonishingly high bond in a case while stating the next time I am in their court that they will not deviate from the bond that was set initially.  This type of judge is akin to the umpire without a defined strike zone.  A pitcher and batter need to know how the ump is going to call the game. They need know if they are going to get one of the corners of the plate.  When an umpire is all over the place this makes it more difficult for all the players.  The judge that is not consistent with their actions makes it difficult for all the "players", the prosecutor and the criminal defense attorney.  While I can appreciate the theory that every criminal case involves a different set of facts the parties should have a working knowledge of what the judge will do.  Law is based on precedent.   Thus, if a judge rules one way on an issue I expect the same ruling in the future.  I should not be expected to take a temperature reading of the judge before proceeding on a given day. 

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 IAs a DWI lawyer I  would never offer accounting advice to anyone since I am not a CPA.  Why do people think they can give legal advice when they are not a lawyer?  What is even worse then a non lawyer giving advice is when they give wrong advice.  For some reason the Harris County Probation Department thinks they can give legal opinions despite the fact they are not lawyers.  On more than one occasion this month they have scared my clients into thinking that they will be arrested for driving while their license is suspended after their DWI arrest.  I imagine that the person dispensing this advice did not bother to actually run my client's driver's license to see that it has not been suspended.  The probation department fails to realize is that it takes several months to get a "ALR" hearing in Harris County, Texas where it will be decided if a person's driver's license will be suspended after their DWI arrest.  Most importantly, they fail to realize that it is more likely that their license will not be suspended after the hearing.  

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I remember Ozzie Guillen as a slick fielding shortstop for the Chicago White Sox  who was constantly trying to get into the opposing teams head by running his mouth throughout the game.  As a manager he has continued with the chat, but at times it has landed him in hot water.  Most of his comments are directed at his team intending to "fire them up."  Nevertheless, his recent rant that Asian players get treated better then Hispanic players has drawn the ire of major league baseball. His main issue is that Asian players get more assistance when starting their professional baseball career than Hispanic player in the form of translators and assistants.   Mr. Guillen should try being a non English speaker that gets arrested in Harris County, Texas.  He would be appalled to know that most Hispanics that are arrested are presumed to be here illegally.  It  is common that a Hispanic defendant must show proof of his legal status in the United States.  Moreover, if a Hispanic is undocumented they will not be offered probation by the Harris County District Attorney's office or allowed to participate in their DWI DIVERT program.  Not surprisingly, I have represented similar situated non Hispanics that have not had the same issues.

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The man to the left, Michael Anthony Green, was freed last week after spending 27 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit. Green was convicted of Aggravated Sexual Assault and sentenced to 75 years in prison.  This has to be a potential nightmare for a criminal defense attorney.

Try to put 27 years in perspective. I was in the 6th grade 27 years ago. Think of the time you spent with your family. The good times you had with friends. The family you may have started. The joyous holidays spent. The opportunity to be with your parents as they grow old. Green lost all of that locked up behind bars for a crime he didn't commit.  That is a picture of his mother he is holding. She passed away while he was in prison. He wasn't able to attend her funeral. Credit must go to the Post Conviction Review Section of the Harris County District Attorney's Office who found and tested the evidence that cleared Green.

Green was 18 years old when a 31 year old woman using a pay phone was abducted and raped by 4 men. Green has admitted that he used to steal cars at the time of incident. He was in the general area when and was later stopped by police after fleeing from the police in a stolen car. The police had the victim have a look at Green to determine if he was one of the rapist. She did not identify him as one of the rapist. 

The victim who said Green was not among the men who attacked her changed her mind eight days later. She identified him in a photo array and after that in a live lineup. That persuaded a jury to find him guilty of aggravated sexual assault and to send him to prison for 75 years. There was no physical evidence tying him to the assault, nor witness testimony, other than the victim’s, placing him at the scene of the crime.  

Green's terrible experience is an example that standards should be created for  live and photo lineup methods to minimize instances in which victims are inadvertently tipped to suspects by investigators. Research has repeatedly proved that sloppy ID methods lead to false IDs.  As a criminal defense attorney this is our job to keep this from happening.

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