Dallas Criminal Justice

June 16, 2013

“This system is all about money isn’t it”- Typical Defense Client

A pair of stories highlight how much our criminal justice system has been taken over by unrestrained government greed. When I talk to a defendant about the costs of the average DWI plea, the $450 court costs, the $1,000 fine,$50 a month for community service, the $3,000 surcharge, most are shocked. Then I tell them how court costs are really a regressive tax for all kinds of special projects. The fine is the county’s take, the probation fee is a make-work program for the local government, and the surcharge is the result of politicians taxing the group least likely to complain or organize.

They usually reply “This system is all about money isn’t it”. Yes it is. DWI cases have the fake moral outrage factor. That somehow these defendants are awful people who “chose to break the law”, ignoring the fact that DWI is an opinion crime prosecutoed with make believe bullshit SFSTs and crooked DPS lab workers.

The real theft occurs in ticket cases. Ticket courts are cash cows for city and county government. There is less of the phony pretense of “safety” or “justice” involved. The city needs your money, and they will throw lock you in a cage until you pay. Have you ever wondered why a typical speeding ticket fine is over $200. Was the “danger” you posed to the community $200 bad? Or does the government want to maximize how much it steals from each driver? Ticket fines are a political decision. Judges get pressure from other pols (county commissioners, city officials) to up the take so the city can avoid raising tax rates.

May 23, 2013

Dallas County Bond Schedule

by Robert Guest

Most criminal defendants never planned on getting arrested. But if you are a forward looking recreational drug user or retailer, It may help to know how much bail money you need to set aside when LEO shows up. I’ve attached a copy of the Dallas County recommended bond schedule to help you plan ahead.

bond schedule.docx

January 17, 2013

Dallas Police Department, Public Choice Theory, and Warrant Rounups

by Robert Guest

Economics is the study of scarcity and choices. That is, the world has a limited amount of stuff, so what are we going to do about it? One of those limited resources is law enforcement. We only have so many police man-hours in any given year, how are we going to allocate this limited resource?

Recently, Dallas has seen a rise in the number of family violence related homicides and DPD is facing pressure to “do something”. Limited resource, plus choice = a new effort to focusing on clearing warrants for those charged with violent offenses.

From DMN-

July 31, 2012

Dallas Court of Appeals Reverses Sexual Assault of Child Conviction

by Robert Guest

Today the Dallas Court of Appeals reversed a sexual assault of a child conviction. The case is Wiseman vs. State. This case highlights the limits of expert testimony on the issue of honesty. Basically, an expert can’t offer an opinion that certain groups of people lie, or certain groups tell the truth.

The expert testified that only 2% of children make up sexual assault allegations, and that most of those false allegations are from child custody cases. Fortunately, even in convict-at-all-Texas we don’t allow trial by statistics.

What’s the law on sexual assault experts? From the opinion-

April 18, 2012

Dallas Court of Appeals Affirms Kaufman County Drug Conviction

by Robert Guest

I often have a hard time quickly explaining to my non-lawyer friends exactly how the appeals system is stacked against criminal defendants. Fortunately today’s case, Barnes vs. State, crystallizes how the constitutional rights of defendants are effectively waived through nonsense technicalities. It’s a Kaufman County Drug case, appealed to the 5th District in Dallas.

What happened?

Barnes filed a motion to suppress claiming the police investigation was unconstitutional. Specifically, Barnes sought to exclude statements made during the investigation. This motion was denied (as are most motions to suppress).

March 30, 2012

Dallas Court of Appeals Overturns Prohibited Weapon Conviction

by Robert Guest

Today’s case of the day is Michael Scott Page vs. The State of Texas. It’s a Kaufman County weapons case that was appealed to the 5th Circuit in Dallas.

What happened?

Michael was out on bond (agg assault). While on bond Michael told his neighbor he we was going to blow up the courthouse. Michael’s neighbor called the police and relayed the details of this conversation. Michael’s bond was then declared insufficient (a topic for another post) and an arrest warrant was issued.

March 27, 2012

Dallas Appeals Court Reverses Retaliation Conviction

by Robert Guest

Today’s Dallas Court of Appeals case of the day is- Lowell Merritt vs. The State of Texas!

What happened? From the opinion.

The events leading up to appellant’s indictment on a felony retaliation charge began in July 2007 when appellant’s neighbor reported that appellant “cussed” his wife. After reviewing the report, a Collin County sheriff’s deputy filed a disorderly conduct complaint against appellant in the Precinct 2 Justice of the Peace Court of Terry Douglas.

September 1, 2011

New Dallas County Deferred Adjudication/Non Disclosure Admonishment

by Robert Guest

“Will this be on my record?” is a common client concern. After all, in the information age employers, friends, enemies et al, all have access to your complete criminal history with only a few clicks of the mouse. Criminal cases can leave a permanent scar. You can spend a lifetime explaining that misdemeanor pot charge you got in your 20’s. Ergo, it’s important the before you plead guilty and accept that “great” plea offer, you understand the long term effects on your criminal history.

Unfortunately, the idea that a deferred case can be expunged is probably the most common erroneous legal advice given. (Disclaimer- class c/traffic tickets can be expunged after deferred). Many defendants plead guilty thinking, again erroneously, that since a deferred case is dismissed upon a succsefful completion of probation, and leaves no conviction, they should be entitled to an expunction.

Dallas County is seeking to end the confusion with a new written admonishment, which lays out the expunction/non disclsoure ramifications of a deferred plea. I OCR’ed the text so you don’t to read the PDF.

January 24, 2011

Dallas District Attorney Email Addresses

by Robert Guest

Need to email your prosecutor?
Dallas DA email addresses.pdf

June 22, 2009

How much does marijuana cost in Terrell?

by Robert Guest

I had another two court day; morning in Dallas, and afternoon in Kaufman. I had a few passes and an open plea in Dallas. I saw a few friends at the courthouse one of whom pointed out a MADD courthouse runner.

MADD sends spies to the courthouse to monitor the DWI cases. I’ve never actually seen one until today. He was an earnest looking young man armed with a notebook. I wonder who he reports to and what he is reporting? If I see him again I’ll ask.

On my open plea- I had a DWI case (don’t tell MADD), the state made a plea offer but we chose to plead open to the judge.