For a lot of people arrested for a first DWI in Harris County, the best realistic outcome is the pre-trial intervention program, usually called diversion. You finish a set of conditions and the State dismisses the case. No conviction, and you can have the arrest expunged. When it fits, it’s a good deal. For someone …
Texas makes it a crime to have an open container of alcohol in the passenger area of a vehicle on a public road. You don’t have to be drunk, and you don’t have to be driving. A sober passenger holding a half-finished beer in a parked car on the shoulder of the road can be …
Yes, you can be charged with DWI on an electric scooter in Texas. Ever since rental scooters showed up on every corner in Texas cities, people have asked us whether riding one home from the bar counts. There’s no scooter-specific DWI law, so the answer comes from the general DWI statute, and that statute is …
Mario Williams was the Texans’ first draft pick in the 2006 NFL draft. If you follow the draft you’ll remember that the Texans surprised the draft predictions by picking him over Reggie Bush, who speculators predicted would be their first pick. Mario Williams played for the Texans until 2011 when he then began playing defensive …
In Canada, one court has ruled that a citizen accused should be permitted access to the internet in order to contact a lawyer. After a citizen had been pulled over for DWI the officer read his “Charter” rights (Canada’s version of our “Miranda” warnings). Once in jail, the citizen testified that he didn’t see any …
A state grant is providing funds to put more officers on the streets this holiday season. The Houston-Galveston Area Council said $50,000 of a $295,000 grant will be used to put more officers on the streets through New Years Day. The officers will be trying to catch suspected drunk drivers. Be careful this holiday season! …
Last weekend, like every weekend, was a mandatory blood draw weekend in Houston, meaning that police could obtain a warrant to forcibly take your blood if they suspected you had been driving under the influence. This usually sparks a dramatic increase in DWI-related arrests over the Thanksgiving holidays, because people are traveling so much throughout …
Houston Police Officer Roy Marquez has been charged with DWI and Unlawful Carrying of a Weapon. Witnesses say Officer Marquez ran a red light at the intersection of Red Bluff and Beltway 8 Northbound Frontage Road and caused an accident. Officer Marquez, a HPD officer, refused to provide a sample of his breath or blood. …
