Category Archives: Weapons Charges
Encryption and Law Enforcement Investigations: Police Access to Encrypted Data
Last month, Apple announced its new end-to-end encryption for data stored by its customers in iCloud, Apple’s cloud storage service. It’s being heralded as “police-proof” in the media. Read, “Apple Set to Launch New, Police-Proof, Full End-to-End Encryption,” written by the Associated Press and published in the Daily Sabah on December 9, 2022. Apple explains…
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Bail after Federal Arrest in Texas and The Bail Reform Act of 1984
Bail after an arrest by federal law enforcement is very different than when someone enters the state criminal justice system. Texas bail is allowed much more often than it is in federal court. It’s not that bail is not routinely considered a part of federal matters. News coverage is filled with federal bail stories. This…
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Jalisco New Generation Cartel Arrests in Texas: 2023
The amount of law enforcement effort at every level (state, federal, international) to try and combat the growing global business empire of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel is undeniably extreme and well-funded. From a criminal defense perspective, few governmental efforts in recent memory have had this zeal and scope. In 2023, we should expect a…
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Texas Domestic Violence Charges: the New 2022 Federal Gun Ban
The tragic shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on May 24, 2022, claimed the lives of nineteen children and two adults. For details, read the coverage series provided online by the Texas Tribune. Understandably this had a tremendous and shattering impact not only for the local community who suffered personal losses, but for…
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Weapons Charges in Texas: Gun Laws and Gun Crimes under Texas Law
Sometimes, just possessing a piece of property can get you arrested in Texas if it is an “illegal weapon” under the law. Of course just because something can be used as a weapon, that’s not enough to put you at risk of being charged with a crime here in Texas. There are many things that…
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Mandatory Minimum Penalties in Federal Sentencing
Congress Decides Your Prison Sentence with Certain Federal Crimes Our modern system of mandatory minimum sentencing in federal cases arguably began with the passage of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986. Congress enthusiastically targeted drug “kingpins” for explicit punishment, mandating that the federal judge must sentence these defendants, upon conviction, to imprisonment in a federal…
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Prosecutorial Misconduct in Twin Peaks: Waco DA Dismisses and AG Refuses to Prosecute
Two weeks ago, Waco Top Prosecutor Abel Reyna recused himself from the prosecution of two cases in the Twin Peaks shootout and successfully moved for dismissal of all charges against another 13 defendants. This happened on the same morning that there was a hearing scheduled on the corruption allegations filed against Reyna in his role…
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New Texas Criminal Laws 2017
The regular session of the 85th Texas Legislature ended on Memorial Day. Bills not passed by the lawmakers and signed into law by the governor are dead in the water. (Abbott vetoed 50 of them.) For the bills that did not become law: well, maybe next year. Governor Abbott has called for a special session…
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Guns, Gun Rights, Gun Ownership in Texas, and Weapons Arrests: Things To Know After Orlando
The Gun Control Debate: What You Should Know About Owning and Carrying a Gun in Texas Time has passed, and still the country is reeling about the tragedy in Orlando, Florida, where a single individual was able to quickly kill 50 people and injure as many more in a matter of minutes. Lots of people…
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New Texas Open Carry Law: Gun Arrests and Weapons Charges in 2016
It’s only a matter of days until Texans will be able to carry firearms in a holster on their belt: the new Texas Open Carry Law goes into effect on January 1, 2016. However, lots of folk are confused about what this law will and will not allow them to do. They aren’t the only…
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10 Questions to Ask Before you Hire a Dallas Criminal Defense Lawyer
Top 5 Mistakes in Defending a Texas Criminal Case
