Criminal justice reform can be a hot topic among political activists. Yet this area of criminal law produced a moment of bipartisan agreement in Washington D.C. with the recent signing of the First Step Act into law. But it’s also an area that can be hard to define. Exactly what is criminal justice reform? It will mean different things to different people, but criminal justice … [Read more...]
Houston, Harris County Tops List Nationally for Human Trafficking
Houston, Texas holds a distinction that no city wants: the city tops the list for highest rates of human trafficking in the U.S. Experts believe that the close proximity to the U.S./Mexico border (a span of nearly 2,000 miles, which is among the most used international crossings in the world) is a strong contributing factor. Human trafficking statistics According to the U.S. … [Read more...]
Benefits of Hiring a Private Defense Attorney
If you find yourself in need of a criminal defense attorney, it’s important to make sure you hire an attorney that can help get you a favorable outcome. While some people might not have the option to hire a private attorney because of cost, there are distinct advantages to those who can afford it. The biggest advantage is that there’s much more demand for public defenders, so … [Read more...]
What a Criminal Charge Means for Your Daily Life
Being accused of criminal wrongdoing, let alone convicted of such, can be an ordeal. It's hard to fully understand, however, just how much even a single criminal charge can affect your life. Let's take a look at a hypothetical scenario involving a person we’ll call “Todd,” who has been charged with a crime. Charged, but not convicted First, let's be clear that this is the less … [Read more...]
Facing Conviction? Learn About Deferred Adjudication
When you’re facing a possible conviction, you may feel like you don’t have any options. But you do. One of those options is deferred adjudication. What is deferred adjudication? Deferred adjudication is a type of plea deal where you essentially avoid a trial and may also avoid conviction. Even if you enter a guilty plea or plead “no contest” to a charge, the judge “defers” … [Read more...]
Should Criminal Defendants Take a Plea Deal?
You’ve seen and heard it many times on those courtroom-centered TV shows: “We’ll take the plea deal.” “We’re NOT taking the plea deal!” It’s a common term, but you may not know what it is. What’s a plea deal? (Or plea bargain or plea agreement...) Either way, it involves a defendant pleading “guilty” to a lesser charge instead of going to trial and possibly getting a … [Read more...]
