Community and family ties are very important in the Eastern District of Texas Sherman Division. The judges give lots of weight to whether a third party custodian exists: i.e. a responsible family member or very close friend who can supervise the defendant and report any violations to the court. The…
At the detention hearing, the judge determines according to statute whether any “condition or combination of conditions set forth in subsection (c) of this section will reasonably assure the appearance of such person as required and the safety of any other person and the community.” 18 USC 3142(b). Basically, will…
Unlike in Texas state courts, where upon arrest a (normally) affordable surety bond amount is set by a magistrate, in Federal court in the Eastern District of Texas Sherman Division there is no “bail bond” procedure. Instead, when arrested for a federal offense, you are taken before a magistrate judge,…
The base offense level for a prohibited person in possession of a firearm is relatively low. Advisory Sentencing Guideline 2k2.1 calls for a base offense level of 14 if a person is prohibited by law from firearm possession, which along with a 3 point reduction for acceptance of responsibility yields…
The “prohibited person” statute under federal law, defining who can possess a firearm and who cannot, is pretty straight forward. You will be surprised to learn the many classes of people who cannot possess a firearm, not just convicted felons. If you meet one of these categories, it is a…
Mr. Hurd will have a tougher time in his detention hearing and his case because, by his own statements reported to the media, he is the man in charge of his conspiracy. The primo hombre, so to speak. The Federal sentencing scheme punishes this as a “leadership role,” which normally…
Wide receiver Sam Hurd, a well-liked player whose hard work earned him a roster spot on the Dallas Cowboys a few years ago, and eventually landed him a $5.1 million contract with the Chicago Bears, decided to risk it all by investing his money not in the fickle stock market…
How do you or a loved one end up in the Eastern District of Texas, particularly the Sherman division, sitting in the Fannin County Jail in Bonham, Texas on a drug conspiracy charge? Well, the Sherman Division (with courthouses in Sherman and Plano, Texas) is a choice forum for the…
Federal prosecutors use the power of “conspiracy” prosecutions to obtain convictions all over the United States without the burden of proving that an individual committed the actual, substantive crime. Many people finding themselves charged in kilogram or multi-kilogram conspiracies although they may have simply been innocent or a user (innocent…
As Rick James said, “cocaine’s a helluva drug.” Federal crack-cocaine defendants can tell you it is much more dangerous than even Rick knows. Crack-cocaine is the most harshly treated drug in the Federal criminal system. However, the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 modified the super-unjust 100-1 crack-to-powder ratio for Federal…