Success in Intoxication Manslaughter Case Before Fort Worth Court of Appeals: Patterson v. State of Texas

The Fort Worth Court of Appeals (panel of Justices Walker, Gabriel, and Sudderth) has issued its opinion in an appeal of an intoxication manslaughter case coming out of Cooke County, Texas.  Michael Lowe was not on board for the criminal DWI / manslaughter trial court proceedings; he began representing the defendant, Steve Patterson, afterwards in the appellate process where the Court of Appeals based in Fort Worth was asked to review what happened in the courtroom.

During the appellate process, the court of review considers the “points of error” that are presented to them by the appellant’s counsel as errors in the application of law, or mistakes in the admission of evidence, during the criminal trial.  (For more on the Texas criminal appellate process, read our web resources on appeals and expungement.)

The 2nd Court of Appeals for the State of Texas serves the counties of Archer, Clay, Cooke, Denton, Hood, Jack, Montague, Parker, Tarrant, Wichita, Wise, and Young.

Here, the Court of Appeals agreed with all points made in Mr. Lowe’s briefing.

The case has been returned to the trial court for a new trial regarding sentencing of Mr. Patterson.  That new trial date has yet to be scheduled. The notice, the judgment, and the opinion are all available for review at the court’s web site and in the Michael Lowe Digital Library.

Here is the Opinion in Patterson v. State of Texas: