Waco Criminal Law Blog : Waco Criminal Lawyer & Attorney : Walter Reaves Law Firm : DWI, DUI, Drug Crimes, Appeals : Waco, McLennan County, Texas

You might think a DWI is a DWI no matter where you get it. To a certain extent that is right, but a post several weeks by Robert Guest started me thinking about  the differences in handling DWI cases among different counties. Robert was talking about DWI cases in Kaufman County, and Imuch of what he said applies to DWI case in McLennan County. Although I don't often travel outside McLennan County, I will occasionally go to Hill County, Falls County or Bosque County. And there are differences in the way DWI cases are handled.

If you get a DWI in McLennan County you can expect that you are going to either have to go trial or accept a plea - usually for probation. I know you can find all sorts of stuff on the internet from lawyers about getting charges reduced or dismissed. Generally that is nothing more than an attempt to get your money. Giving them the benefit of the doubt though, I know there are some counties where that is a realistic possibility. I have seen cases where someone has been able to get a DWI charge reduced - it used to be public intoxication, but the current trend seems to be reckless driving or obstruction. I can tell you that is not going to happen in McLennan County. That doesn't mean it never happens, but it's going to be an extremely unusual situation where that occurs.

The assistant District Attorneys in McLennan are competent, and don't mind trying cases. Most of them are fairly young, and the reason why they went to the DA's office was to get a chance to try cases. The thought that prosecutors don't want to try cases is a myth in most cases - they don't mind trying them, and certainly aren't going to bend over backwards to avoid doing so. Prosecutors in McLennan County try more than a few DWI cases - and they know what they are doing.


The biggest difference btween McLennan county and other counties is in discovery. Most counties now provide copies of the offense reports - and most importantly the video. There are some places that have gone to providing that information online - Tarrant County seems to be at the front on this - they have a system where local bar members can log in and get copies without leaving their office. In McLennan County your attorney has to physically go to the District Attorney's office and review the file and the video. Copies of the video will not be provided, so you  probably have to look at it several times. Because of the inability to obtain discovery many attorneys will request Administrative Law Hearings on the license suspension. DPS will send copies of the reports before the hearing, and a subpoena can be issued for the video. That must be done quickly - the ALR hearing must  be requested within 10 days after you are arrested.

In McLennan County DWI cases are processed like any other cases. They are filed in one of the two County Courts of Law. When you are released on  bond you will be given a date to appear in court. That date is basically an initial appearance. The purpose of the hearing is to find out if you are represented by lawyer, or if you are going to need appointed counsel. If you have hired a lawyer before the hearing date your lawyer will make an appearance for you, and you will not have to show up. You will be given a new court date, which will be approximately 60 days away. Before the next court you should have some idea of what you are going to do on your case - that is, whether you are going to enter a guilty plea or go to trial. If you decide to take the case to trial you will be given another date; this time for a pre-trial hearing. Any motions will be presented at the pre-trial hearing. Those motions could include a motion to suppress either attacking the initial stop or the tests performed.

In addition to hearing pre-trial motions the court will also a trial date. That is the date your case is scheduled for trial. In McLennan County DWI cases are no different from other misdemeanor cases - if you get a trial date your case will probably go. The docket is not so big that you have to wait for your case to move up the list.

Most of the time cases start on Monday. If the court is going to try more than one case you may start on Tuesday. The courts will rarely try more than two cases in a week. Pleas are done on Thursdays so the Court want to have trials finished before then.

The trial of DWI case is McLennan County is not much different than anywhere else. Most of the trials last no more than two days,and many are concluded within a day. As I said before the prosecutors here are competent, and know how to try cases. Since it's not a large county, the officers involved probably have testified before, so they know what to expect.

DWI cases are unique for several reasons. The most significant is that it is the only criminal offense established by an opinion. Whether or not someone is intoxicated is nothing more than an opinion, even when there are breath or blood test results. The second reason is the reliance on scientific evidence. Where a test is done, that is used to try and establish guilt. Other than blood tests though, the tests are not 100% accurate - breath tests rely on a series of assumptions that may or may not apply to the individual. In addition, there are a now a number of other tests whose reliability is questionable. What that all means is that you need a lawyer who understands those things, and can properly evaluate your case.

No matter county you are in, make sure you find a lawyer you can trust before you go into court.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

Bell County is hopping on the DWI bandwagon for New Years. According to a press release, if you are suspected of driving while intoxicated and refuse a breath test, they are going to obtain a warrant for your blood. Unfortunately, this is not something they just came up with on their own; many other jurisdictions have already implemented this policy. It may not be publicly announced, but it is becoming more common that a refusal to take the breath test is not going to be accepted.

This is being justified as tactic to get drunk drivers of the streets. If you think about that for even a few seconds, it is clear that is not the reason for doing this. It is nothing more than a tactic to obtain more convictions. The driver is already off the street; he has been arrested, and taken to jail. He/she is also off the streets, because their license is taken, and will be suspended for at least 180 days. The only reason to forcibly draw blood is to get more evidence for a conviction. They already have at least probable cause, or they wouldn't have arrested the person.

There's another problem I see with this proposal, which is how many drunk drivers get away while the police officer is taking someone to the hospital to have their blood drawn. They are off the streets for a longer period of time, during which time there are probably people driving under the influence.

I certainly don't advocate driving while intoxicated. Personally, I don't think you have any business driving after you have had anything to drink, even if you aren't legally intoxicated. I don't drink, so it's not something I'm worried about. But I am worried about forcing people to provide evidence to possibly convict them.

The legislature knew people would be hesitant to submit to breath tests, and tried to provide an incentive to take one; your license won't be suspended for as long. They also recognized that in some cases, such as accidents, blood tests should be mandated. They have never approved blood tests in all cases though - if so, the warnings need to be rewritten - do you want to give a breath test or blood or test - you are getting one of them.

I wonder if the new policy is going to include the warning that they are not going to take no for an answer. It doesn't seem fair to me to let someone refuse a test, make them take a blood test, and then suspend the license for the refusal. Even if the blood test was negative, your license could still be suspended for refusing the breath test. At least you should know what is going to happen if you refuse.

Please drink responsibly - not only during the new year celebrations, but all year. But be aware that if you are arrest, you may not really have the right to refuse to be tested.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

Almost everywhere except Texas the offense of driving while intoxicated is referred to as DUI. If you don't believe me, do a search for DWI attorney and then search for DUI attorney and see how many more hits you get.

If a potential client has done some research before coming in, they often ask what's the difference between DUI and DWI. It's a good question because Texas does have an offense of DUI, or driving while under the influence. That offense applies only to minors, and prevents minors from driving whenever they have had anything to drink, even if they are not under the influence. An adult can be "under the influence" and as long as they are not intoxicated, no crime has been committed.

Some people think DUI applies to someone who is under the influence of drugs, but that is not the case. The DWI statute defines intoxication as "the loss of the normal use of a person's mental or physical faculties" by reason of the introduction of alcohol, drugs, or a combination of the two.

Although the laws in most states are fairly similar, there are important distinctions. While the offense of DUI in one state may be the same as DWI in Texas, there may be important differences, especially in terms of penalties. While its helpful to be educated, there is no substitute for a consulting with a lawyer experienced in handling DWI cases in Texas.

This post published by a Waco DUI lawyer

• Email This
• Print
• Comments (1)
• Trackbacks
• Share Link