Category Archives: Expungement
Grand Jury vs Jury: Indictment and Defense
Grand Jury vs Jury: An overview of Grand Jury Proceedings from a criminal defense lawyer’s standpoint. There are two kinds of juries in Texas: “petit juries” and “grand juries.” In criminal cases, a “petit jury” is selected to serve in a particular trial to decide on the defendant’s guilt or innocence. A “grand jury” never…
Diversion Programs in Texas
In Texas, both the state and federal systems of criminal justice offer opportunities for individuals to be “diverted” from the standard route of conviction, sentencing, and imprisonment into any one of a number of alternatives. Collectively, these are called “diversion programs.” They are voluntary: the state cannot force anyone to participate in them. What is…
Criminal Defense Take on 2019 Expunction Policy Reforms by Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot
Across the country, district attorneys are building what is becoming known as their own criminal justice reform movement. Given that the top prosecutor in his or her respective jurisdiction gets to make the call in what cases get prosecuted – and what sentences are sought in those cases – there’s a tremendous amount of power…
Got Marijuana? What You Need to Know About the Dallas “Cite and Release” Rule
First things first, way too many people here in North Texas who have heard about Dallas’ new “Cite and Release” rule for marijuana possession totally misunderstand the rule. Please spread the word: DALLAS COUNTY HAS NOT DECRIMINALIZED MARIJUANA POSSESSION. Here’s what you need to know about marijuana possession in Dallas County today: The Criminal Charge…
FREE EXPUNGEMENT OR SEAL OF TEXAS CRIMINAL RECORDS (FORMS AND MORE) BECAUSE EVERYONE DESERVES A SECOND CHANCE
Criminal records can follow you the rest of your life, and while many will assert that’s how it should be, there are many instances where wiping someone’s slate clean is the fair thing to do — it’s not sneaky or wrong. In fact, expungement of criminal records has been approved and provided for by the…
