Personal friend and criminal appeals guru has reentered the world of private defense practice. His website could use some SEO magic, so here it goes.
www.souzalawdallas.com
Chris designed his own website, I outsourced mine to Justia. Check out his page of significant decisions. It’s pretty significant. Chris is fluent in Spanish, a former ADA, a former public defender, and a has earned a solid Avvo review from yours truly.
You know what I enjoy? Emailing politicians and asking them to support my favorite pet causes. I can’t tell you how many marijuana reform emails I’ve sent Joe Barton (he’s not coming around on the issue at all). NORML, MPP, StopTheDrugWar.Org etc make it easy to contact your rep with a simple fill in the blank form.
Recently I asked future Texas governor Kay Bailey Hutchinson to support SWAT reform. Letting LEO play GI Joe to serve warrants on private residences is dangerous and an insult to our Constitution. This list of drug war casualties is littered with SWAT victims.
How does KBH feel?
Are there police in your neighborhood? Are you concerned about the rampant Constitutional violations that come from over zealous policing? How can you protect yourself from being a victim of unscrupulous law enforcement? Start by ordering “10 Rules for Dealing with the Police” from Flex Your Rights.
This is a must see film for anyone looking to avoid becoming another casualty of the police state.
Steve Blow published a column on the notorious I 45 speed trap. I was happy to be interviewed to highlight the highway robbery in Ellis County.
I spoke with Steve two weeks ago and reminded him that we met in 1995 at a high school journalism conference. I was a columnist for the Eagle Eye looking to hone my craft. I remember Steve’s advise to this day- write columns like a letter to your friends. On to the speed trap.
I live in Ennis and my caseload is mainly in Dallas and Kaufman. Going to work in Kaufman means a 26 mile trip on state highway 34. The speed limit on this two lane country road reaches 65 mph. The limit is lower when passing through Scurry/Rosser.
I don’t have any inside information on the TABC Rainbow club raid. I did notice that the TABC was checking for public intoxication when they swarmed the gay bar in Fort Worth.
I’ve received a decent number of inquiries from PI defendants who claim to have been abused or unlawfully arrested by law enforcement.
I’ve had enough experience with criminal law to know that not every tale of police misconduct is accurate. I’ve also had enough experience with law enforcement to know that PI can be a great cover for malfeasance.
It’s that time of year when TXDOT rolls out the Click It or Ticket revenue/harrassment campaign. The ads are typical police state propaganda- The cops are watching you, they are coming to get you, change your behavior or the state will send the police to steal your money!
Texas drivers can thank the federal government when they get pulled over. Local law enforcement gets federal funds to pump out tickets, which fills up the coffers of local governments. It’s a win/win for government at all levels. The only losers are the hard working Texas drivers caught up in this ticket pork scam.
How does TXDOT sell this steaming pile to the public? By telling you how much they care. (At least it’s not “for the children”).
Kaufman is the county east of Dallas. Kaufman county is served by three major east-west highways; I-20, 175, and I-80. These highways see a steady flow of Dallas commuters, locals driving to Dallas and back for entertainment, Shreveport gamblers, and drug couriers. Basically, money comes from the east to Dallas, drugs flow out of Dallas towards Atlanta.
Kaufman law enforcement officers (LEO) dutifully carry on the futile sysiphean quest of highway drug interdiction. KC LEOs regularly intercept drug couriers and most of the cases shape up the same way. Let’s look at the similarities.
Dirty license plates and out of state plates
The DWI roadblock bill has passed through the Senate is working it’s way through the House as I type this. The roadblock, I mean “checkpoint” bill is SB 298.
So how much security are we getting for our freedom?
From DMN and State Senator John Carona (R-Dallas)
NO NO NO.
Never, ever, for any reason, go to the police station (or sheriff’s department) and make a statement. If the police have called and asked you to come to the station quit reading this and find a criminal defense lawyer now.
“Won’t the police think I’m guilty if I get a lawyer?
CLEAT is the Combined Law Enforcement Association of Texas, the cop lobby. CLEAT ‘s website lists their legislative agenda, identifying bills they support and oppose. It’s no surprise that CLEAT supports longer sentences, less freedom, and/or more tax dollars for policing; all of which fall under the umbrella of “law enforcement.” One would surmise that CLEAT would support any bill that results in more law enforcement.
When does CLEAT oppose more law enforcement? When the suspects are cops. They like their blue wall of silence just the way it is. From CLEAT’s site
Dallas Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog