Posted on July 07,2020 in Uncategorized

Police officers investigating a car crash in Bryan, Texas, found 72-year-old Robert Ray in a state of impairment. The surprise wasn't that Mr. Ray was drinking, but that this was his 17th DWI conviction. The judge considered Mr. Ray a risk to the community and sentenced him to 15 years in prison.

Although Mr. Ray did not harm himself or others, some incidents lead to fatalities. In February, a Texas man with multiple DWI charges made a wrong turn while driving drunk. His actions caused a collision that killed the 20-year-old man in the other car. The perpetrator is now facing a murder charge.

San Antonio tops the nation in DWI arrests. Between 2003 – 2012, over 13,100 Texans lost their lives due to a drunk driving incident. The reality is that many drivers are repeat DWI offenders, and their actions impact their lives and the lives of others.

Multiple DWI offenses are relatively common, but some can cause lengthy prison convictions or even life sentences. One example is the sentencing of Round Rock resident Bobby Stovall to life in prison after his 9th DWI conviction.

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 Posted on July 07,2020 in Uncategorized

In addition to strict penalties and long-term consequences even for a first offense, DWI defendants in Texas now apparently have a new and imminent threat to contend with, one that has nothing to do with the law: a potentially deadly virus.

As the Texas Tribune reports, 73-year-old James Allen Smith of Bastrop was only scheduled to serve six months in a Huntsville prison as part of a drug/alcohol rehabilitation program after he pled guilty to a DWI charge in January. By June 11, he was dead.

Smith is just one among an astonishing number of inmates to die from coronavirus in the Texas prison system. With at least 84 inmate fatalities and counting, Texas currently ranks second-highest in the nation for COVID-19 prison deaths as the disease continues to spread across the state. Some of the victims were days away from release.

Texas is not alone. COVID infections in prisons across the U.S. are skyrocketing, typically at a rate 2.5 times greater than that of the general population. For drivers convicted of DWI, this issue presents a much more imminent danger than just license suspension or jail time. Even a short time behind bars can result in potentially lethal exposure to the disease.

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 Posted on July 07,2020 in Uncategorized

What began as a night of merrymaking for a young father of four turned into a deadly altercation that led to his death near a Wendy's drive-thru.

On June 12^th, CCT camera footage shows police officer Garret Rolfe shooting Rayshard Brooks 3 times as he tries to flee arrest. Mr. Brooks did not pass a field sobriety test and admitted to having a drink while celebrating his daughter's birthday.

The footage shows Mr. Brooks cooperating with the officers for at least 40 minutes before the incident. During handcuffing, Mr. Brooks tries to run away after taking a taser away from the officers.

Officer Devin Brosnan stands on Mr. Brook's shoulder after the shooting and allegedly kicks him while down. For two minutes, neither officer attempts to give Mr. Brooks medical aid.

Mr. Brooks died from excessive bleeding and internal organ damage during treatment at a local hospital.

He was 27 years old.

Unjustifiable Deadly Force

The officers maintain that Rayshard Brooks was using the taser on them while running away. In Texas, assault against a police officer is a serious charge. However, there needs to be proof beyond a reasonable doubt that the assault took place.

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 Posted on July 07,2020 in Uncategorized

Texas bars may be closed again due to the recent surge in COVID-19 cases, but that didn't stop some Texans from making the mistake of getting behind the wheel while intoxicated over the July 4 holiday. In Harris County alone, 29 drivers were arrested over the holiday weekend and charged with DWI-essentially double the number of DWI arrests in the county compared to last year.

July 4 DWI-By the Numbers

Across the nation, the Fourth of July is statistically the most dangerous time of year for drunk driving accidents and fatalities-so much so that the entire month of July sees more drunk driving fatalities than any other month of the year. Let's look at a few specifics:

• Over the July 4^th weekend of 2018, 193 people died in traffic accidents, with more than 40 percent of those fatalities attributable to alcohol.
• Between 2010-2017, the Fourth of July holiday saw a total of 1192 DWI-related deaths, for an average of 42.5 DUI fatalities per day.

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 Posted on June 06,2020 in Uncategorized

The state utilities police officers that they proffer as expert witness, when in fact they are just police officers with police training. That training does not in and of itself make them expert witnesses. The manner in which they testify in court and the verbiage they are trained to use makes them sound like they have more expertise than they actually have. Board certified DWI lawyers know how to easily challenge and defeat these state "expert witnesses". Use of legitimate expert witnesses can also be helpful to the defense in certain Texas driving while intoxicated trials. In fact, there are some circumstances where the right expert witness could be the difference between an acquittal and a conviction.

The use of these experts should not be taken lightly. In many cases, calling these witnesses can be costly. What's more, not all expert witnesses will be useful in every DWI trial. To determine if expert testimony is right for your defense, speak with a Houston Board Certified DWI defense attorney right away. Below, we discuss three of the most common types of expert witnesses used during DWI trials.

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 Posted on June 06,2020 in Uncategorized

Arrests for Driving Under the Influence (DUI) and Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) have certainly decreased since Texans began staying home to stop the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, but not as much as you might expect.

In Houston's Harris County alone, there was a 45% drop in DWI cases through April, compared to the same period last year, and a 44% drop in cases just from March. Fort Bend, Montgomery, and Galveston counties also all reported significant decreases in DWI cases. But during a time when everyone is supposed to stay home, with bars and restaurants only recently reopening, and doing so at 25% capacity, it's surprising to see that so many Texas are still driving after drinking.

Liquor stores have been considered essential businesses throughout the shutdown and restaurants have been allowed to sell alcohol to-go, both of which have allowed people access to alcohol. But with fewer places open and thus fewer places for drinkers to go, many expected the number of DUI and DWI arrests to drop even more.

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 Posted on June 06,2020 in Uncategorized

Dallas residents were shocked in early May when police officer Senior Corporal Sean Paul Mock was arrested and booked into Dallas County jail on one count of driving while intoxicated. The kicker? He was on the job when he got caught.

Mock, aged 34, was taken into custody at about 2:15 a.m. while he was on duty and sitting in a parked squad car. He posted a $500 bond and was released. Officials have not released any additional information related to his arrest. He has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an internal investigation.

In Texas, someone can be found guilty of Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) if they are found operating a motor vehicle in a public place with a Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) of.08. Also, any individual who is found to not have full control of their mental or physical faculties due to the consumption of drugs or alcohol can be considered intoxicated, regardless of their BAC. It is not clear what Mock's BAC was at the time of his arrest.

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 Posted on June 06,2020 in Uncategorized

Thousands of people converged upon Galveston's beaches in mid-May, throwing caution and COVID precautions to the wind as they celebrated Go Topless Jeep Weekend on the Bolivar Peninsula's Crystal Beach.

And, though critics at first focused on the danger apparent in having so many people obeying so few pandemic safety precautions, by the end of the weekend the lack of social distancing was possibly the least serious outcome. That one weekend alone yielded at least 200 arrests and two gunshot victims.

The shootings occurred, according to police, after a fight broke out between a group of men with a group of women joining the melee before long. One man fired into the crowd, injuring two other men, who were airlifted to the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston for treatment.

The arrests were mostly alcohol and traffic-related. Nearly 200 people over the course of the weekend were arrested or assault, driving without wearing a seat belt, DWI, and public intoxication.

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 Posted on June 06,2020 in Uncategorized

Recently, a driver in Houston was arrested for DWI after crashing a vehicle into someone's home, damaging the house and leading to the arrest of the driver. Driving a vehicle into a house, building, sign, another vehicle, or other property is actually much more common than many people realize.

Every year, all around the United States, impaired motorists cost U.S. taxpayers an estimated $51 billion in drunk driving property damage. For this reason, numerous laws protect the rights of property owners and allow for people to recoup the damages incurred by another person's bad decisions.

If you are involved in an alcohol-related auto accident, you will be responsible for any property damage that was caused by the crash. This means you may face both criminal and civil charges for drunk driving. Not only could you go to jail and be hit with fines, but you will also very likely have to pay for any damages that were caused by your impairment. The good news is that your automobile insurance should cover the property damage (civil charges).

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 Posted on May 05,2020 in Uncategorized

An alleged drunk driver was involved in a major crash on May 24^th in Houston before fleeing the scene. After returning to the scene of the crash, the driver was arrested on felony counts of intoxication assault and failure to render aid.

The accident occurred at approximately 9:20 p.m. on Sunday, May 24^th in Southwest Harris County. According to police, 18-year-old Kevin Lozano was traveling southbound on Highway 6 near Pavilion Point. Lozano allegedly failed to yield the right-of-way, turning left across oncoming traffic. Lozano's Nissan Maxima was struck in the passenger side by another vehicle traveling the opposite direction.

Lozano then allegedly fled the scene of the accident before eventually returning. According to the police report, Lozano admitted returning to the accident scene after feeling guilty. Although the occupants of the other vehicle had minor injuries, both of Lozano's passengers required emergency aid.

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