The first few days after an arrest
After an arrest in Texas, you must be taken before a magistrate within 48 hours. The magistrate tells you what you are accused of and explains your rights, including the right to hire a lawyer, the right to stay silent, and the right to have a lawyer with you if police or prosecutors question you (Code of Criminal Procedure article 15.17).
Those rights matter most in the first days, when people are most likely to say something that hurts them. Until you have talked with a lawyer:
- Do not talk about what happened with police, the other people involved, or anyone on a jail phone. Jail calls are often recorded.
- Follow every bond condition and any protective order exactly, even if the other person asks you to ignore it.
- Keep every paper you were given: the ticket or citation, bond papers, court notices and any notice about your license.
- Write down what happened while it is fresh. Who was there, where, and when.
- Stay off social media about the case. Posts and messages often end up as evidence.
You do not have to face the first court date alone. Call us at (806) 745-6100 and we will tell you what to expect.
How Texas grades criminal charges
The level of the charge sets the range of punishment the law allows. Many cases end well below the top of the range, and some end with no conviction at all, but it helps to know what you are facing.
| Level | Range the Law Allows |
|---|---|
| Class C misdemeanor | Fine up to $500, no jail |
| Class B misdemeanor | Up to 180 days in jail and a fine up to $2,000 |
| Class A misdemeanor | Up to one year in jail and a fine up to $4,000 |
| State jail felony | 180 days to two years in a state jail and a fine up to $10,000 |
| Third degree felony | 2 to 10 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000 |
DWI and DUI
A DWI arrest often happens to people who have never been in trouble before. It brings two cases at once: the criminal charge in court, and a separate case about your driver’s license. Both have deadlines.
Arrested for DWI? You may have only 15 days to save your license. If you refused a breath or blood test, or a test showed 0.08 or more, your license can be suspended. To challenge the suspension, the Department of Public Safety must receive your hearing request within 15 days after you get the notice (Transportation Code section 524.031 and section 724.041). Call us right away at (806) 745-6100.
What “intoxicated” means in Texas
You can be intoxicated in two ways under Texas law: by not having the normal use of your mental or physical faculties because of alcohol, a drug or another substance, or by having an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more (Penal Code section 49.01). So a DWI can be charged below 0.08, and it can be based on prescription medicine.
How serious is the charge?
- A first DWI is generally a Class B misdemeanor. It becomes a Class A misdemeanor if a test showed 0.15 or more (section 49.04).
- Driving while intoxicated with a passenger younger than 15 is a state jail felony (section 49.045).
- A second DWI is generally a Class A misdemeanor, and a third is generally a third degree felony (section 49.09).
DUI and alcohol cases for people under 21
In Texas, DUI usually means a driver under 21 with any detectable amount of alcohol, which is generally a Class C misdemeanor (Alcoholic Beverage Code section 106.041). Minor in possession and minor in consumption charges also apply to anyone under 21 (sections 106.04 and 106.05). These are small charges with lasting effects on school, jobs and a young person’s license, so they are worth taking seriously.
What we look at
- Whether the officer had a lawful reason to stop you
- How the field sobriety tests were given, and what the video shows
- How the breath or blood sample was taken, stored and tested
- Whether your rights were respected after the arrest
Drug charges
Texas grades drug possession by the type of drug and the amount. For many drugs the weight includes any filler mixed in, and small differences in weight can change a misdemeanor into a felony, so the lab results matter.
- Marijuana: two ounces or less is a Class B misdemeanor, more than two and up to four ounces is a Class A misdemeanor, and larger amounts are felonies (Health and Safety Code section 481.121).
- Penalty Group 1, which includes methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin (section 481.102): less than one gram is a state jail felony, and the level rises with the amount (section 481.115).
- Possessing drug paraphernalia is a Class C misdemeanor (section 481.125).
Charges for selling, delivering or intending to deliver are graded more harshly than simple possession.
What the state has to prove
For possession, the state has to prove you knowingly or intentionally possessed the substance (section 481.115(a)). Drugs found in a shared car or home do not automatically belong to everyone there. We also look closely at how the search happened, because evidence from an unlawful search can sometimes be kept out of the case.
Assault and family violence
Assault in Texas covers more than a fight. It includes causing bodily injury, threatening someone with imminent bodily injury, and touching someone in a way you know they will find offensive or provocative (Penal Code section 22.01). An assault causing bodily injury is generally a Class A misdemeanor. A threat or offensive contact is generally a Class C misdemeanor.
When the case involves family or a partner
Family violence includes acts between members of a family or household and dating violence (Family Code section 71.004). An assault against a family member, household member or dating partner can become a third degree felony if the person has a prior family violence conviction, or if the charge says breathing or blood flow was impeded by pressure on the throat or neck or by blocking the nose or mouth (section 22.01(b)(2)).
Once a case is sent to the DA’s office by law enforcement, the prosecutor decides whether it goes forward, not the person who called the police. A finding of family violence can have lasting effects: it can rule out the possibility of expunging your record or obtaining a nondisclosure (Government Code section 411.074), and it can affect your rights with your children in a family law case. If you also have a divorce or custody matter, our family law team can work on both together.
Theft, burglary and robbery
Theft means unlawfully taking property with the intent to deprive the owner of it (Penal Code section 31.03). Shoplifting and taking money from an employer are common examples. The level of the charge depends mostly on value:
| Value of the Property | Usual Level |
|---|---|
| Less than $100 | Class C misdemeanor |
| $100 to less than $750 | Class B misdemeanor |
| $750 to less than $2,500 | Class A misdemeanor |
| $2,500 to less than $30,000 | State jail felony |
| $30,000 or more | Third degree felony or higher |
Burglary and robbery
Burglary of a vehicle is generally a Class A misdemeanor (section 30.04). Burglary of a home is generally a second degree felony (section 30.02). Robbery, which is theft involving injury or a threat of injury, is a second degree felony (section 29.02). These charges turn on details such as what someone intended and what actually happened, and those details are where a defense is built.
Juvenile cases
Texas juvenile courts handle cases for children who were at least 10 and younger than 17 at the time of the alleged conduct (Family Code section 51.02). From age 17, a new charge goes to adult court.
If your child is held in detention, the court must hold a detention hearing promptly, no later than the second working day after the child is taken into custody (Family Code section 54.01). Your child has the right to a lawyer at that hearing. If your child has been detained, call us at (806) 745-6100 so we can get involved before it.
Protecting your child’s future
Juvenile court works differently from adult court. Its stated purposes include treatment and rehabilitation and removing, where appropriate, the taint of criminality from children (Family Code section 51.01). The record does not have to follow your child forever, either. Many juvenile records are sealed automatically once the person turns 19, if there was no felony adjudication and no adult conviction that could carry jail time, and others can be sealed by application (sections 58.253 and 58.256). How the case is handled now affects what can be sealed later.
Expunctions and nondisclosure
An old arrest can still show up on a background check for a job, an apartment or a license. Texas has two ways to clear or hide a record, and which one fits depends on how your case ended.
Expunction: erasing the record
An expunction orders the records of an arrest destroyed. Once the order is final, you may generally deny the arrest happened (Code of Criminal Procedure article 55A.401). Since January 1, 2025, these rules are in chapter 55A of the Code of Criminal Procedure. You may be eligible if:
- You were tried and acquitted (article 55A.002).
- No charge was ever filed and a waiting period has passed: 180 days for a Class C misdemeanor, one year for a Class A or B misdemeanor, and three years for a felony, or sooner if the prosecutor certifies the records are not needed (article 55A.052).
- The charge was dismissed for certain reasons, such as completing a pretrial intervention program or a lack of probable cause (article 55A.053).
- The time limit for prosecuting the offense has run out (article 55A.054).
Expunction is generally not available if you were placed on court-ordered community supervision (probation) for the offense, other than for a Class C misdemeanor (article 55A.051).
Nondisclosure: sealing the record from the public
If you completed deferred adjudication, you may be able to get an order of nondisclosure. It stops criminal justice agencies from sharing the record with the public, and you generally do not have to mention the case on applications for jobs or licenses (Government Code section 411.0755). For most misdemeanors you can ask when the case is discharged and dismissed. Some misdemeanors, including assault, wait two years, and felonies wait five years (section 411.0725). Some first-time DWI cases can qualify under their own rules (sections 411.0726, 411.0731 and 411.0736). Family violence offenses and certain other offenses never qualify (section 411.074).
Eligibility turns on details in your record. Send us what you have and we will tell you which option, if any, fits.
Driver’s license problems
Losing your license can cost you your job. In West Texas, where most of us drive to work, school and the grocery store, it is often the part of a case people worry about most.
The license suspension hearing after a DWI arrest
If you failed or refused a breath or blood test, the suspension is handled separately from the criminal case, in front of an administrative law judge. Here is how the clock works:
- The Department of Public Safety must receive your hearing request within 15 days after you receive the notice. A mailed notice is treated as received five days after it was mailed (Transportation Code sections 524.031, 524.013 and 724.041).
- Without a hearing, the suspension starts on the 40th day after you receive the notice (sections 524.021 and 724.035).
- For an adult, a failed test generally means a 90 day suspension, or one year with a prior alcohol or drug enforcement contact in the past 10 years (section 524.022). A refusal generally means 180 days, or two years with a prior contact (section 724.035).
- Asking for a hearing puts the suspension on hold until the judge decides (sections 524.032(d) and 724.041(c)).
Tickets and other license issues
We also help with speeding and traffic tickets and with licenses suspended for other reasons. A ticket that seems small can add up, so it is worth a call before you simply pay it.
Other criminal cases
We do not limit the types of criminal cases we take. Whether it is a misdemeanor or a felony, call and tell us what happened.
- Felonies and misdemeanors
- Federal charges
- Public intoxication
- Probation violations
- Warrants and bond issues
