As reported in the Dallas Morning News is the  case of Rosalio Reta and his teen friends who were recruited as early as age 13 to be hitmen for the violent Mexican drug cartel,  the Zetas.

Officials know that the cartels reach into stateside gangs for assistance on this side of the border and urge parents, particularly in border communities, to be aware of the possibility of them reaching directly into the schools.

While becoming a teen hitman for a Mexican drug cartel isn’t very likely, it is possible. Even more possible, however, are Texas teens getting involved in the local drug trade or even simply drug use.

For a child, getting involved in drugs can be a gateway towards a life of crime and unhappiness. If caught early your child may be getting a reality check within the Texas juvenile court system. Hopefully, if this is the case, you have an attorney experienced in juvenile matters looking out for the best interest of your child.

In many juvenile cases I see the parents go through a stage of denial thinking their child is not capable of the things they are accused of. Soon after they realize that yes, their child probably did make some mistakes but wonder how they can right the wrongs and ensure their son or daughter doesn’t get caught up in the system and the cycle that so often repeats itself.

Having a group of concerned adults on their side, a juvenile can make a change for the better. Whether your child is accused of a drug charge or simple status violations, I can help.

No one wants to see their children get into trouble. However, once your child is exposed to the system, the important thing is seeing that it works for their benefit, not their demise.

Contact me today to discuss the case against your juvenile. I can explain to you how the juvenile court system works here in Texas and the potential outcomes we may see in your child’s case.

Thirty nine year old Martin Garcia Vargas is being held in the city jail on a $5,000 bail and facing charges of misdemeanor terroristic threats.

Police were called when Vargas threatened to shoot a woman. Houston police officers spotted Vargas on food in the 300 block of Jensen, according to this brief from the Houston Chronicle.

When officers demanded Vargas stop, he reached into his waistband and pulled out what officers believed to be a real firearm. He aimed the weapon at veteran Officer M.W. Thacker who felt threatened and fired on Vargas. His shot missed but it was apparently enough for the officer to gain control of the situation and make an arrest.

When dealing with guns, you never know what you might get. Of course this weapon was determined to be a toy but given the distance and the supposed realistic look of the weapon, the officer may not have had any reason to suspect a toy.

The Bill of Rights protects our right to bear arms but state laws strictly regulate that right. How we carry a firearm, what arms we can bear, and the procedure for legally owning a weapon are just a small snapshot of all of the laws on the books about firearm usage.

Criminal weapons offenses are considered very serious and Vargas is lucky, in this case, that his weapon was not real. Although there are several common weapons offenses that are considered misdemeanor, there are also many gun felonies as well.

If you are facing weapons charges or any criminal charges in our state, call me today. I can provide some useful and free legal advice and possibly help you at trial. Contact me today.

The shoplifters did not have a weapon and did not threaten Romero. They seem to have simply grabbed the beer and ran out of the store.

Romero, however, followed the fleeing men and shot one of them, Jorge Luis Vielma as he ran for the getaway car. Vielma later died.

What began as a bad night at work has now landed Romero behind bars on a $250,000 bail. He has been charged with murder.

Texas law does allow people to defend their property if they feel threatened or if they are justified. In this case, however, it appears that Romero may have acted in a manner out of proportion with the threat of danger by killing a man over a 12 pack of beer.

Who knows what went through Romero’s head at the time. Perhaps there are some facts that have not yet been made public. This report from the Statesman Blotter, however, leads us to believe Romero was way out of line.

Had Vielma gotten away with an injury, Romero may have faced aggravated assault charges. Unfortunately, that was not the case. What began as a shoplifting ended in murder and a much heavier law enforcement involvement.

This is an extreme case but it just goes to show, you never know what will happen when your intentions are not good. There is little doubt that these two shoplifters thought they would make it home with their beer and no further repercussions would result. The risk of death in a crime like this is actually pretty small.

But sometimes criminal acts spiral out of control. If you have ever been charged with a crime you probably know this to be true.

Facing up to something you know was wrong but you didn’t expect to happen can be very difficult. Having an experienced attorney in your corner can make all the difference in the world. Call me today to discuss the criminal charges you are facing, and how I can make sure you are treated fairly and defended in court.

According to this piece from the Houston Chronicle, guns are often smuggled from Texas cities like Houston into Mexico where weapons are typically banned from civilian possession. This gun trade and the opposite flowing drug trade have significantly contributed to crime in our state.

The new law makes “firearm smuggling” a state offense. Already a federal crime, this new state law will affect people caught smuggling multiple guns more than once, for profit. Because the feds often don’t have the resources to prosecute on all federal gun charges, this will give Texas the option of prosecuting on a state level.

Firearm smuggling will be a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. When compared with other weapons charges currently on the books in Texas, this one seems quite serious.

An existing firearm offense, possession of a prohibited weapon, is typically considered a 3^rd degree felony and carries 3-10 years in prison. This law applies to weapons like machine guns and short-barreled shotguns and rifles.

Although the second amendment guarantees our right to bear arms, there are many laws that regulate this right. Knowing them all would require a law degree.

If you are facing weapons charges in the state of Texas, it is beneficial to have an experienced and local attorney working on your behalf. I can help you figure out the best way to handle your case and may be able to assist you in getting probation in lieu of jail time.

In order to determine how to help you with your case, I need to hear from you. Call me to discuss the details today.

In August of 2007 Hannon was arrested outside of a Dallas hotel. According to court documents he ran into a friend at the hotel. Upon leaving the hotel, the men went in opposite directions. Hannon’s friend, who was carrying a black bag, went one way while Hannon was arrested on a felony warrant upon leaving. The police stated that Hannon had, in his possession, the black bag that actually belonged to his acquaintance.

This black bag ended up containing methamphetamines and a firearm. The changing point in the case came when the defense presented a security video from the hotel which showed the other man, and not Hannon, in possession of the black bag in question. Just as Hannon had claimed from the beginning, he never had control over the bag.

Thanks to good representation, the criminal case was dismissed and now Hannon seeks civil damages in Federal Court.

Who knows why the officers lied. Perhaps they were concerned with building a reputation of cracking big cases and sending dangerous men to prison. Maybe they had personal interest in the case or had encountered Hannon before.

Whatever the case, it is a perversion of the justice system. There is no doubt that people are wrongly accused of criminal acts. Even if the accusations aren’t intentionally false, it is not uncommon for innocent people to end up facing a judge on drug charges, weapons offenses, or property damage cases.

When facing criminal charges it may feel like the state of Texas and everyone in the court system has already assumed your guilt rather than presumed your innocence. Although this wasn’t Hannon’s first run in with the law he still deserved fair treatment in the justice system and until the dismissal of his charges he was denied this by the very people tasked with representing the integrity of the legal system.

A qualified and experienced Texas defense attorney can be critical to anyone facing prison time or a mark on their record. You attorney is there  in order to ensure the system works how it was designed, to apply the laws in a fair and consistent manner.

This law would essentially turn the legal doctrine of reasonable doubt on it’s head in many criminal defense cases in Texas courts.

Prosecutors cite one hypothetical example where there is a fight in a parking lot, and a man is killed. If the defendant claims that the victim was trying to break into his vehicle, he gets the presumption of having the right to use deadly force under the Texas castle law as currently written. That means a jury would have to believe beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant’s claim of defending himself was untrue, in order to convict him of a crime.

One possible compromise that may be worked out is to redefine the meaning of “travelling”, in defending your car while on the road. Or maybe that entire section should be scrapped, and the castle law restricted to one’s home or property, and not defined so broadly.

But if the law passes in it’s current form, and the defenses that prosecutors fear become reality, there is no doubt that the law will eventually be ammended. But by then, it is likely that some violence criminals will have gone free by exploiting this technicality in Texas’ generous gun and self defense laws.