Last December in Oneida County, New York, an armed man confronted a woman inside her home; although he escaped, the woman was able to grab hair from the man’s beard as he made his hasty escape.  After sending the hair sample in for testing, it came back as a match for , who was already in jail in another county on an unrelated charge.

Due to the high levels of accuracy and acceptance within the scientific community, DNA evidence has become increasingly relied upon by both prosecutors and defense attorneys in criminal proceedings to prove guilt or innocence.  Recent technological developments have allowed DNA testing to be conducted on relatively small amounts of DNA, making DNA evidence available in an increasing number of cases.

In this unusual instance, Leon Tennant’s beard hair match was enough to provide law enforcement with enough evidence to arrest him and charge him with First Degree Burlgary.  Burglary is defined as the unlawful entry into a home, business, or other structure with the intent to commit a crime inside (In Texas it is only an intent to commit a felony inside, and does not require that attempt was successful). Under New York Law, a first-degree burglary occurs when the building is a dwelling and the defendant is armed with a deadly weapon, causes injury, or displays what appears to be a firearm.A conviction for first-degree burglary in New York can result in up to 30 years in prison and a fine of $5,000, or double the defendant’s gain from the burglary. Tennant is currently being held without bail.

The lesson?  Don’t go doing any capers all grizzly-adams.  Clean shaven = clean getaway.

Locked up?  CALL LEGRANDE LAW!

If you are accused of BURGLARY or ANY CRIMINAL OFFENSE it is crucial that you have

an aggressive criminal defense attorney in your corner.  You need someone that will fight for your rights.

You need a tenacious lawyer that will put the state to their burden.

Contact attorney Tristan LeGrande IMMEDIATELY by calling 281-684-3500.

http://www.legrandelaw.com

http://www.houstondrugattorney.net

Houston Criminal defense attorney Tristan LeGrande

The Most obvious answer is of course, the metal bracelets are squeezed down tight onto your wrists and you take the long ride to one of the many local “bars & locks motels” around town.  BUT THEN WHAT?

Booking

First you will be booked into the jail.  This includes taking a booking photo, fingerprinting, and evaluating your mental state to see if you need specialized or segregated detention.  A final warrant check is done to see if you have any holds from other counties in Texas, felony out of state warrants, or Federal warrants.

Bond Out or Magistrate Presentment

Depending on many things (among them how crowded the jail is that night and what staff happen to be working), you will get to make the infamous one-phone-call.  At this point you want to call someone that will find you a bondsman, or a bondsman directly.  They make money off of people in your situation and they want your business, any number of them would be glad to assist you in getting out of the clink.

If you do not bond out, you will be presented before a magistrate, usually within 12 hours (although it can take somewhat longer due to the factors I listed earlier).  The magistrate will read the charges against you, the probable cause for your arrest, and detail the potential range of punishment.

Arraignment

After you bond out you will be given a court date.  Depending on the size of the county and the way that they handle their dockets (and, again, those factors I listed above), this will be anywhere from within a week to 6 weeks or so.

If you are charged with committing a Misdemeanor, your case will be presented to one of the District Attorneys of the County and if they accept the charges, you will be charged by Misdemeanor Information.

If you are charged with a Felony, your case will be presented to a Grand Jury that will decide if there is probable cause to believe the offense you are suspected of committing.  In some situations, your attorney may present a grand jury packet.  Basically this is information that your attorney wants the Grand Jury to review in deciding whether or not you will be charged with the crime.  In other situations, your attorney may waive indictment.

If you do not bond out, the same process occurs.  The only difference being that you will wait it out from within the jail.

Retaining Counsel

At your arraignment the court will read over the charges against you, inform you of the range of punishment, take your plea, and ask if you have retained an attorney.  This will be a repeat of what you have already heard if you did not bond out within the first day after you were arrested; the judge will again go over the same information the magistrate did at that time.

If you cannot afford an attorney, you will be appointed one immediately if you are still in jail on your arraignment date.  If you are on bond, the procedure for obtaining a court appointed lawyer varies from court to court.  Some Judges will ask you questions about your financial situation on the spot and assess whether they think you are truly indigent and in need of appointed representation.  Others will tell you they will reset your case, and want you to contact 4 or 5 attorneys and come back with their names, numbers, prices, and why you can’t afford it.  Still others will send you to fill out paperwork for appointed counsel immediately after you assert your need for appointed counsel.

Discovery

Once you have an attorney, your attorney will engage in the discovery process along with the District Attorney handling your case.  This a critical point in the process, and can include discovery requests, hiring investigators, reviewing evidence (including video or audio recordings), interviewing witnesses, and issuing subpoenas, etc.

Making a Deal or Going to Trial

After discovery is complete (or mostly complete), your attorney will bring any plea offers from the state to you, and the two of you will make the decision to accept a plea, or set the case for a trial by judge or by jury.

If you are charged with a crime –

YOU NEED HELP!

If you are accused of ANY CRIMINAL OFFENSE it is crucial to have

An aggressive criminal defense attorney in your corner.

You need someone that will fight for your rights.

You need a tenacious lawyer that will put the state to their burden.

Contact attorney Tristan LeGrande IMMEDIATELY by calling 281-684-3500.

http://www.legrandelaw.com

http://www.houstondrugattorney.net

Houston Criminal defense attorney Tristan LeGrande

The Ice Bucket Challenge imbecile may not have admitted to his crimes or explain his location, however, police the tipster was able to tell the police his location when he recognized the house in Morris’ video, giving police a location to stake out.

Twenty year old Jesean Morris was wanted on an outstanding warrant resulting from “absconding,” a violation of the conditions of his parole.  Morris was on parole for a felony conviction, and had failed to report his whereabouts to his parole officer (the legal definition is absconding).

In Nebraska failure to keep your parole officer advised of your whereabouts is a violation of parole.  This in turn ead to a warrant being issued for Morris’ arrest. In Texas it is not uncommon for a bench warrant to be issued if a parolee or probationer suddenly vanishes – just as was the case for bleary eyed Mr. Morris pictured here.

The facebook-flub took a turn for the worse for Desean when the police came to arrest him, by the time he made it to booking he was facing charges of resisting arrest, impersonating a police officer and assaulting a police officer.  Officers staked out his residence and simply waited for Morris to emerge. According to reports, he allegedly spat in one of the arresting officers’ faces, gave them a fake name and date of birth, adding assault, resisting arrest, and criminal impersonation to the growing list of his legal problems.

Something tells me he will be using his ALS donation money for bail, fines, or attorneys fees.

Have you been arrested for outstanding warrants?

Are you facing a Parole Violation?

If you are wanted for a Parole Violation Contact attorney Tristan LeGrande IMMEDIATELY by calling 281-684-3500

No matter what criminal offense the warrants concern, you don’t want them hanging over your head.

Contact Criminal Defense Attorney Tristan LeGrande

You need a tough defense lawyer in your corner.

http://www.houstondrugattorney.net

I guess this just drew attention because the mugshot is kind of humorous.  Are we happy that we jail people for public intoxication?  Houston actually has begun a new program called the “Houston Sobering Center.”  Instead of being taken to jail for public intoxication, those picked up by police for being hammered out in public they can spend the night at the center rather than being hauled off to jail, overflowing our already crowded jails and tying up the courts.

The center has recently seen an uptick in visitors, meaning more Houston police officers are giving those stopped for public intoxication a chance to dry out for a few hours at the sobriety center instead of hauling them off to jail. It frees police up from filling out paperwork to get back to patrolling the streets.

Since this has been a successful program that eases the overcrowding problem at our jails, is more humane, and leaves the police on the streets to arrest real criminals, why are these programs not being used more widely?

Arrested For Public Intoxication?

Arrested for a DWI?

If you’ve been accused of a criminal offense involving alcohol such as public intoxication, or you have been accused of a DWI, contact attorney Tristan LeGrande by calling 281-684-3500.