Posted on August 08, 2019 in Uncategorized

In January of 2019, a botched Houston drug raid led to the death of both homeowners and the injury of five officers in a chaotic shootout. Now, the officer that procured the warrant under suspicious circumstances faces felony murder charges.

Gerald Goines, the former Houston police officer that obtained the warrant that led to the raid, faces felony murder charges. He is currently free on $300,000 bond after pleading not guilty.

The Charges and Their Consequences

Goines was charged with murder under Texas's felony murder rule. According to Texas Penal Code § 19.02(b)(3), a person can be charged with murder if he:

commits or attempts to commit a felony, other than manslaughter, and in the course of and in furtherance of the commission or attempt, or in immediate flight from the commission or attempt, he commits or attempts to commit an act clearly dangerous to human life that causes the death of an individual.

According to prosecutors, Goines committed a felony by tampering with a warrant application. By lying about the existence of a confidential informant, prosecutors allege Goines created a dangerous situation that led to the death of both homeowners. Goines' former partner was also charged with tampering with a government record after allegedly providing false information after the shooting occurred.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on August 08, 2019 in Uncategorized

The law is full of unintended consequences. One of those unintended consequences for Texas lawmakers might lead to a steep drop in low-level marijuana possession cases. That outcome seems to go well beyond what Texas legislators had in mind when they passed House Bill 1325

What is House Bill 1325?

After years of pressure, the Texas legislature began to slowly move towards removing the ban on farming or manufacturing hemp products in the state. The bill also allows for the use of CBD oil that has less than 0.3% THC content. CBD is short for Cannabidiol, a compound extracted from the cannabis plant. While it does not have the intoxicating effect of marijuana, it is credited with a wide array of potential health benefits.

While legislators aired some minor concerns about the impact of House Bill 1325 and the ability to prosecute marijuana users, the bill ultimately passed the Texas Senate unanimously. The original bill was tweaked repeatedly, including allowing state inspectors to test random batches of hemp or CBD to ensure they were not above the 0.3% threshold. However, this new threshold has led to unexpected consequences in many of Texas' largest counties.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on August 08, 2019 in Uncategorized

A 17-year old Magnolia, Texas resident was charged on July 16, 2019, for the murder of Houston teenager Ryan Bates. The defendant, William Underwood, came to be known by the police through an alleged Snapchat video Underwood purportedly made at the crime scene. Now, the defendant has pleaded not guilty, arguing self-defense.

The Alleged Crime: Murder in Houston TX

The body of Bates was discovered by Harris County Sheriff's deputies near Highway 6 in the northwestern part of Harris County. Upon arriving, the deputies discovered Bates' body outside of an apartment complex on Park Point Drive. His body was discovered with multiple gunshot wounds.

Nearly a month passed before Underwood was arrested for murder. According to the police, the defendant filmed himself driving by the scene of the crime as officers processed the scene.

An eyewitness also identified Underwood. According to the witness, Underwood attempted to enter multiple parked vehicles armed with a Taser before entering the victim's car shortly before the shooting. The witness informed the police that she saw Underwood tase the victim repeatedly and then heard gunshots.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on August 08, 2019 in Uncategorized

Although the recent arrest of three intoxicated pilots in less than a week has generated headlines nationwide, the reality is that incidents related to intoxicated airline pilots are rare. In fact, out of the 117,000 American pilots tested for alcohol from 2010 through 2018, only 99 were above the legal limit according to the Washington Post.

But when a pilot tests above the legal limit, the consequences can be severe.

Just like with a DWI charge, state and federal law set a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limit for pilots. The state of Texas outlaws the operation of any airplane by an intoxicated pilot. According to the statute, intoxication is the lack of normal use of your mental or physical capacities due to the introduction of alcohol, drugs, or a combination of both.

The FAA has more specific guidelines for pilots and alcohol consumption. Federal Aviation Regulation § 91.17 bars a pilot from flying:

• Within 8 hours of having consumed alcohol;

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on August 08, 2019 in Uncategorized

On Tuesday, July 30, 2019, the Harris County Commissioners Court resolved a class-action lawsuit regarding the constitutionality of the county bail system by approving a historic settlement. The agreement is intended to solve what a federal judge referred to as the "irreparable harm" caused by the system. Houston criminal defense lawyer, Robert Fickman, referred to the antiquated and unlawful bond practice in Harris County as the "plea mill".

The vote formally approved the settlement agreement on behalf of the county, but it must still be approved by the court. Once implemented, the new bail system intends to dramatically lower pretrial incarceration rates for misdemeanor defendants.

Litigation regarding the bond system in Harris County has been ongoing for years. In 2017, a federal judge struck down the system as unconstitutional. In the decision, the judge found that the county violated the United States Constitution by disproportionately jailing indigent residents before trial compared to wealthy residents facing identical charges.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on May 05, 2019 in Uncategorized

A private company has announced that it has come up with a way to detect THC, the active and hallucinogenic component in marijuana, on someone's breath. The development could be a game-changer for charges of driving while intoxicated (DWI) that involve marijuana in Houston and beyond. However, if handled poorly, it could also make an already difficult field of law even more challenging and unfair.

Company Claims to Have Developed a "Marijuana Breathalyzer"

The company is Hound Labs. It has claimed to have developed a portable device that tests a DWI suspect's breath for both alcohol and marijuana.

According to its website, the mobile testing device it has created can detect minute amounts of THC on a DWI suspect's breath – all the way down to 1 picogram of THC or a trillionth of a gram. Doing so would provide law enforcement with an "objective" way of determining whether someone is under the influence of marijuana or not.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on April 04, 2019 in Uncategorized

Several of our recent blog posts have covered the upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case, State v. Mitchell. The case deals with DWI law and the six exceptions to the warrant requirement and will likely build on the last DWI case that made it to the Supreme Court, Birchfield v. North Dakota, which showcased how implied consent laws have gotten out of hand.

Mitchell provides an excellent opportunity to rein in those implied consent laws and limit how police use consent searches to get around your Fourth Amendment rights.

Implied Consent Laws and Your Rights

Implied consent laws are statutes that attach a string to your right to drive. That string says that, by driving, you consent to a chemical test for your blood alcohol content (BAC) whenever a police officer requests you to perform one.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on April 04, 2019 in Uncategorized

A serious car crash in Houston could have been caused by driving while intoxicated (DWI). The case, however, highlights how unfair Texas' laws of intoxication assault and intoxication manslaughter can be.

Child in Serious Condition After Suspected DWI Crash

The crash happened just before midnight on Thursday, April 11.

According to the initial reports, an SUV with two children in the vehicle – one aged 12, the other 3 – slowed down on Highway 249 near Beltway 8. A trailing car with two young women in their 20s slammed into the back of the SUV.

The 12-year-old, who was in the front seat and was not wearing a seatbelt, was rushed to the hospital in serious condition.

Police said that the driver of the trailing vehicle showed signs of intoxication.

Felony Charges of Intoxication Assault and Intoxication Manslaughter

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on April 04, 2019 in Uncategorized

Robert Kraft, the owner of Kraft Foods and the New England Patriots football team, was recently arrested in Florida and charged with solicitation. Now, his defense attorneys are fighting to exclude a potentially incriminating video of him at the massage parlor. Their arguments, however, are surprisingly strong and have to do with Mr. Kraft's Fourth Amendment rights.

Patriots Owner Arrested and Charged with Solicitation

Mr. Kraft was arrested in February 2019, in Florida. He was accused of being one of the numerous people who frequented a massage parlor in Jupiter, Florida, and paid for sexual acts.

Rather than accept a plea deal that would have required him to admit that he would have been guilty, had the case gone to trial, Mr. Kraft and his defense lawyers filed a motion to exclude an important piece of the prosecutor's case – the surveillance video that showed him at the parlor.

Motion to Exclude Evidence Based on "Sneak-and-Peek" Warrant

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on April 04, 2019 in Uncategorized

A pair of developments in the solicitation case against New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft highlights how far prosecutors are willing to go to create a conviction.

Kraft's Lawyers File Motion to Exclude Video Evidence

We covered the setup for the new developments in an earlier blog: Defense attorneys for Mr. Kraft filed a motion to exclude video evidence from trial, claiming that it was obtained in a search that violated Mr. Kraft's Fourth Amendment rights. That search had been performed pursuant to a "sneak-and-peek" search warrant, which is usually reserved for felony-level offenses, not misdemeanors like the solicitation charge against Mr. Kraft.

Prosecutors Try Leaking Video to the Public

Undeterred by the motion, prosecutors at the district attorney's office said that they would release footage of Mr. Kraft and the 24 other men who were charged with solicitation to the public. Prosecutors claimed that the release would be for a pending case against the owners of the massage parlor but would depict Mr. Kraft anyway. They also claimed that they were compelled to release the footage under Florida's expansive public records law.

Continue Reading ››