Posted on February 06, 2025 in Drug Crimes

While driving while intoxicated charges routinely involves a driver under the influence of alcohol, the reality is there is a growing trend of drivers operating vehicles under the influence of prescription medication or other controlled substances. From illegal drugs to prescription pills, medication presents a series of challenges that are not present in typical alcohol-related DWIs. Law enforcement has struggled with finding an objective test to determine drug intoxication similar to how a driver's blood alcohol concentration may be used to determine alcohol intoxication. However, many drugs cannot be accurately measured in the human bloodstream that demonstrates a "per se" level of impairment like they can for alcohol. This has led to a number of wins at trial for Texas DWI attorneys. Harris County, TX DWI attorney Doug Murphy has published numerous articles and spoken all over the United States on how to defeat and attack the fallacies of the DRE opinion and protocol.

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 Posted on January 29, 2025 in Criminal Defense

While you are sentenced to court supervision, you have an opportunity to avoid or reduce your jail time and remain in the community. While you are on probation, you are much more free than you would be in jail, but there will be conditions you must abide by. Common conditions of probation include remaining drug and alcohol-free, reporting to a probation officer regularly, abiding by a curfew, and avoiding all contact with the alleged victim. It is easier than you might think to make a simple mistake that could get you re-arrested for a probation violation. Simply being around the wrong people or failing to plan ahead to make sure you have transportation when you need it can lead to a violation. You should be represented by an experienced Houston, TX probation violations attorney while you are under court supervision.

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 Posted on January 22, 2025 in Drug Crimes

The term "drug distributors" might sound like it should apply to people who are moving bulk quantities of street drugs like cocaine or methamphetamine. However, in Texas, anyone who provides just a small quantity of a controlled substance to another person even once can be prosecuted for drug distribution. This includes sharing a medication that was prescribed to you with another person. Drug distribution is a felony offense that can carry years of prison time. A lot of people who are charged with this offense for sharing a prescription drug are understandably surprised at the harshness of the charges. If you are being charged with drug distribution for sharing a prescription drug, you need an experienced Houston, TX drug crimes lawyer. An attorney may be able to negotiate a reduction in charges.

Sharing Prescribed Controlled Substances is Distribution

It is legal for you to possess and use your own prescribed medications. However, you are the only person permitted to take the medication. However, the second you share even a single pill with another person, you are opening yourself up to a distribution charge.

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 Posted on January 15, 2025 in Criminal Defense

In the past year, at least 18 newborn babies have been found abandoned in Texas. This represents a drastic increase in cases from a decade ago when only seven babies were abandoned in one year. While Texas state law protects parents who safely surrender a baby less than 60 days old at designated safe haven sites, parents can face serious criminal charges for abandoning an infant in unsafe circumstances. If the infant is found alive and healthy, the parent who abandoned the baby can be charged with felony child abandonment. In very sad cases where an abandoned infant is found deceased or has been harmed, the parent can instead be charged with more serious offenses ranging from child abandonment to homicide. If you are concerned about facing charges for abandoning an infant, you need to speak with an experienced Houston, TX criminal defense lawyer.

Charges Brought Against Mothers for Infant Abandonment 

Depending on the circumstances of the abandonment and the outcome for the child, parents who abandon newborns might be charged with a number of serious offenses. When a newborn is found deceased, it is not always clear to law enforcement whether the baby died as a result of its abandonment or had died of natural or unnatural causes before being placed in the spot where he or she was ultimately found.

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 Posted on January 14, 2025 in Drug Crimes

While there is a movement across the country to decriminalize the medicinal or recreational use of some controlled substances, the same cannot be said for their manufacture or distribution. That sentiment is certainly true in Texas. The Lone Star State has some of the toughest laws on the books when it comes to trafficking and distributing controlled substances. If you are charged with either drug trafficking or drug distribution in the State of Texas, you can expect to face the possibility of a lengthy jail sentence, steep fines, and a felony conviction that will follow you for the rest of your life. That said, what is the difference between drug distribution and drug trafficking?

If the terms sound similar, that is because they are often used interchangeably. Texas state law does not have a specific criminal charge known as "trafficking." However, as a broader concept, Texas's prohibition on the manufacture or delivery of controlled substances covers every aspect of the drug distribution process.

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 Posted on January 08, 2025 in DUI/DWI

We all know that feeling you get when you see those blue lights flashing in your rearview mirror. A traffic stop is never fun, but it can become even worse when it turns into a suspected DWI stop. But if you have a child in the car with you, it can be downright traumatic. An arrest for a DWI is frightening for anyone, but it can be terrifying for both of you when your child is there. And there can be long-term consequences. Seeing a parent arrested could be your child's first interaction with the police. No matter their age, this can be a harrowing experience for your child, you, and your entire family. An experienced Houston, TX felony DWI lawyer can help by defending you in court and connecting you with additional resources.

Driving While Intoxicated in Texas 

Under Texas law, you can face a DWI arrest even if your blood alcohol content is below the legal limit. Our statutes define someone as intoxicated in two ways. You can be "intoxicated" if you do not have "the normal use of mental or physical faculties by reason of the introduction of alcohol, a controlled substance, a drug, a dangerous drug, a combination of two or more of those substances, or any other substance into the body, or have an alcohol concentration of 0.08 percent or more." Tex. Penal Code § 49.01 (2001).

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 Posted on December 31, 2024 in Criminal Defense

Anyone who is involved in a motor vehicle accident is required to stop to provide his or her information or render aid if someone is injured. It does not matter how minor the accident appears to be. You cannot keep driving even if you feel certain that no one is injured and there is little or no damage to the vehicles involved. If you are caught after leaving the scene of an accident without stopping to exchange information or render aid, you can be criminally charged with a hit and run. Depending on the severity of the accident, you might be charged with the lesser crime of failure to stop and give information or the more serious offense of failure to stop and render aid. If you have been charged with either offense, you need a highly experienced Houston, TX traffic crimes attorney to represent you in court. Hit-and-run charges can be life-altering if you are convicted.

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 Posted on December 26, 2024 in DUI/DWI

New Year’s Day is consistently the worst night of the year for drunk driving accidents and arrests. Most arrests happen in the hours just after midnight, when people who were out celebrating New Year’s Eve are trying to return home. More drunk driving fatalities happen on New Year’s Day than any other night of the year, likely due to the sheer volume of drunk drivers. While the cause of this might seem incredibly simple - a lot of people go out drinking to celebrate New Year’s Eve, so a lot of people are driving drunk - there are numerous other factors that contribute to the volume of drunk driving arrests and the deadliness of drunk driving accidents on this particular night. If you are charged with DWI or DWI with injury on New Year’s Day, you need an aggressive and well-qualified Houston, TX DWI attorney.

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 Posted on December 19, 2024 in Violent Crimes

The term "terroristic threat" sounds like it should be reserved for very serious things like credible bomb threats or threatening a school shooting and causing a long lockdown. However, it is very possible to find yourself being charged with terroristic threats after making a poorly-timed joke on the internet or posting a sarcastic comment that was taken out of context. The majority of people who are charged with terroristic threats never had the intention or even the tools to carry out the alleged threat. However, the state does not need to prove that you had any intention of carrying out the threat - only that you intended to cause fear or disruption. If you have been charged with making a terroristic threat, you need an experienced Houston, TX criminal defense attorney right away.

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 Posted on December 11, 2024 in DUI/DWI

Facing a felony charge for a DWI can be frightening. Driving while intoxicated is a serious charge that can come with steep penalties. But if you are already facing additional criminal charges, or if you are facing additional charges related to the felony DWI charge, the consequences can be even more severe. In addition to steeper penalties, you may also face reincarceration for violating the terms of your bail or bond. That is why you need an experienced Houston, TX DWI attorney like Doug Murphy representing you every step of the way.

DWI Charges in Texas

In Texas, the law broadly defines driving while intoxicated. You can face arrest for DWI if:

• You are operating a motor vehicle in public.
• You have a BAC over .08% or .04% if you hold a commercial driver's license.
• You no longer have the normal use of your physical or mental faculties.

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