Austin Criminal Defense lawyer David Frank is based in Texas and has a reputation for being a tough and experienced criminal trial lawyer. In April of 2014 he challenged the Texas Mandatory DWI Blood Draw Statute in two test cases. The appellate courts agreed and found that the Mandatory Blood Draw Statute runs afoul of the Fourth Amendment. In November 2014 he helped lead a State-Wide effort against a SOAH rule change. That effort led to a simpler process to subpoena witnesses for ALR Hearings. He is the Past President of the Criminal Defense Lawyers Association and currently serves on the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association Strike Force Committee.
The Austin American Statesman published an article on February 5 about bail bond reform in Texas describing the two bills that would apply an “Automated Pretrial Risk Assessment” to deciding who should be released from jail on Personal Recognizance Bond and who should not. In Austin we have been using an evidence based approach for… Read more
Here is a Probation Disposition and Derivation Table for the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure dealing with Probation. TCCP Article 42.12 was recodified in TCCP Chapter 42A. The nonsubstanative changes to the TCCP were made in 2015. Austin DWI lawyer DISPOSITION TABLE DERIVATION TABLE TCCP ART.42.12 2015 TCCP ART. 42A 2015 TCCP ART. 42A TCCP… Read more
Austin DWI lawyer Standardized Field Sobriety Tests or SFSTs are frequently admitted in Driving While Intoxicated trials. Even when law enforcement improperly administers the tests, judges admit the tests and allow juries to decide how much weight to give them. Law enforcement officers must be qualified to testify which means certified by The National Highway Traffic… Read more
Austin DWI Lawyer In 1991 in Geesa v. State, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals accepted the federal jury charge instruction of Proof Beyond a Reasonable Doubt, namely, that reasonable doubt “is the kind of doubt that would make a reasonable person hesitate to act in the most important of his own affairs.” Trial courts… Read more
A Federal Judge said this week that a Massachusetts man facing a jail sentence could not be denied access to treatment for his opioid addiction believing that such a refusal violated the Americans with Disabilities Act and was cruel and unusual punishment. Here in Travis County, Defendants can be denied medication in jail or be deemed… Read more
Austin Criminal Defense Lawyer The County Commissioners Court and the District Attorney’s Office want to change the way indigent defendants are represented in Travis County. See, Travis County Weighs a Defender’s Office, Austin American Statesman, October 17, 2018. This new approach is based on a Report entitled Review of Drug Possession Case Dispositions 2016-2017 and… Read more
Shaken Baby Syndrome or Abusive Head Trauma is a severe condition that can cause death or serious bodily injury in very young children. The condition causes blood to flow under the skull and creates bruising, swelling and bleeding. We handled a case for a client who was accused of harming a child in her care… Read more
On January 16, I wrote about McCoy v. Louisiana a case where defense counsel argued that his client was “crazy”. This was a triple homicide where the evidence for guilt was overwhelming. The defendant, Robert McCoy, nonetheless maintained his innocence and instructed his lawyer not to concede guilt. Convinced of his client’s guilt and perhaps… Read more
Franks v. Delaware – Material Omissions v. Misstatements? In Franks v. Delaware, 438 U.S. 154 (1978), the Supreme Court held that a defendant may challenge the validity of a search warrant affidavit and is entitled to an evidentiary hearing if the veracity challenge is supported by a specific offer of proof. The challenge must allege… Read more
Austin dwi Lawyer Yesterday, the Court of Appeals told the defendant he was wrong for requesting a jury instruction that could have helped him. Blithely ignoring its own reasoning, the Court provided a separate jury instruction, that could only have helped the State. There appears to be little even-handedness in this opinion and it telegraphs… Read more
