Common Misdemeanor Defenses In Texas

Anyone who has been arrested for a misdemeanor offense in Texas needs to begin thinking about potential defense strategies. It is critical to understand that the best defense strategy or strategies for your case will depend upon the particular charges you are facing since all types of defense strategies will not be applicable to all kinds of misdemeanor criminal charges. Likewise, it will also be essential to tailor your defense strategy to the particular facts surrounding your arrest because many possible defenses are based on police conduct at the time of the alleged criminal offense and during or after the arrest.

Whether you are facing drug charges, assault charges, theft charges, DWI charges, or charges for another type of misdemeanor offense, one of our Temple misdemeanor criminal defense attorneys can assess your case for you today and help to determine the best defense strategy for your case. In the meantime, the following are possible defenses to a wide variety of misdemeanor charges in Texas.

You Have an Alibi 

If you can prove that you have an alibi for the offense—that you were somewhere else, for example, when the offense occurred—you may be able to get the charges against you dismissed.

You Acted in Self Defense 

For certain misdemeanor offenses that involve the use of physical force, including many different types of assaultive offenses under the Texas Penal Code, showing that you acted in self defense (or in defense of another person) may be the best defense in your case.

You Had Consent 

In theft offenses, you may be able to beat the charges you are facing or to have the charges against you dropped if you can show that you had consent to be in possession of the property that has resulted in the theft charges.

Entrapment 

In circumstances where a law enforcement officer convinced a person to commit a crime, it may be possible to raise the defense of entrapment. This defense is outlined in the Texas Penal Code, and it requires the defendant to show that she or he “engaged in the conduct charged because he was induced to do so by a law enforcement agent using persuasion or other means likely to cause persons to commit the offense.” To be clear, it is not enough for a police officer to make it possible to commit an offense and to suggest that a defendant might be able to commit the offense under the circumstances, but the defendant must be induced by the police.

Police Misconduct or Constitutional Violation Occurred 

There are many types of police errors or misconduct that can result in a defendant’s charges being dismissed, ranging from faulty use of a breathalyzer test in a DWI case or mishandling of a chemical test sample to a violation of a defendant’s rights against an unreasonable search under the Fourth Amendment.

Contact a Temple Criminal Defense Lawyer 

Were you arrested for a misdemeanor offense in Texas, or have you been charged with a misdemeanor offense? An aggressive Temple criminal defense attorney can speak with you today about your options. Contact The Law Office of Katie L. Gomez, PLLC for more information about developing a defense based on the misdemeanor charges you are facing.

Resource:

statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PE/htm/PE.22.htm