Judging delay is one area where analysis under the due diligence doctrine remains relevant. Under the due diligence doctrine, the court looks to whether “reasonable investigative efforts [were] made to apprehend the person sought.” Peacock, 77 S.W.3d at 288. Per Peacock, such a requirement “helps a court determine whether the…
But, despite the elimination of the common law due diligence “scheme,” the Court of Criminal Appeals has recognized in both pre-Garcia case law and post-Garcia case law that there exists a Constitutional speedy revocation hearing right even where claims of common law due diligence do not lie. The Court of…
A Defendant formally accused of violating probation also has the right to a speedy revocation hearing. In addition to statutory provisions addressing timeliness in motions to revoke, the Court of Criminal Appeals has historically recognized two sources of law which provide for the right to a speedy revocation hearing: (1)…
The reasons for the delay of a trial are important under the second prong, and the State will be required to put forward their reasons at a dismissal hearing. Right now, blood and drug results from the State laboratory are taking six months or so to process. A person sitting…
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals analyzes both speedy trial and speedy revocation motion matters under the factors set forth by the United States Supreme Court in Barker v. Wingo, 407 U.S. 514 (1972). These factors include: (1) the length of the delay, (2) the reasons for the delay, (3)…
Going back to the Constitution of the United States, American citizens are guaranteed a speedy and public trial. The public part is why a Court cannot bar you from entering to watch a trial unless you are a witness, but the speedy part has been developed over the years. I…
Section 7.02(b) states “If, in the attempt to carry out a conspiracy to commit one felony, another felony is committed by one of the conspirators, all conspirators are guilty of the felony actually committed, though having no intent to commit it, if the offense was committed in furtherance of the…
One of the most common misconceptions in the law is that one actually has to commit a crime themselves to face criminal charges. Better said, it is a misconception that a person must commit all the elements of an offense themselves to be convicted of a crime. However, old distinctions…
Not to be outdone by the wisdom of the Oklahoma Legislature, our braniacs in Austin last year enacted “aggravated” driving while intoxicated provisions similar to the Sooner state, whereby a first time offender now faces a year in jail if the person 1) commits the offense of driving while intoxicated,…
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…