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Aggressive Criminal and DWI Defense in Denton County, Texas

Porch Pirates Are Going To Jail

Posted on June 26, 2019 by Law Offices of Tim Powers - Aggressive Criminal Defense in Denton, Texas

Package thieves and porch pirates beware: while already considered a felony for abducting US mail packages, FEDex and UPS are now fair game.

House Bill 37, one of the many bills made law by Governor Abbott in the recently concluded 86^th Legislative Session, will criminalize mail theft. Stealing any sealed item deemed “mail” (a letter, bag, package, or any article delivered by a mail carrier) will be a felony starting September 1^st. Penalties will range from a class-A misdemeanor to a third-degree felony, so punishments will be dealt accordingly. Thieves can land themselves in prison for six months or ten years, and fines will fluctuate between $4,000 to $10,000. Everything will depend on the amount of addresses stolen from. And don’t even think about taking from the elderly or disabled—punishments and penalties will be increased even further.

Unfortunately, this porch-picking practice is far too common. Amazon is reportedly a proponent of this new Texas law and is encouraging other states to follow suit.

Here’s to hoping that thieves will now think twice before nabbing their neighbor’s Amazon Prime order!

If you are seeking aggressive criminal representation by an experienced criminal defense attorney for your Denton County criminal case or arrest in Denton County, contact the offices of Tim Powers today. There is no charge or obligation for the initial consultation. 940.483.8000 Tim Powers is an attorney licensed to practice law by the Supreme Court of Texas. Nothing in this article is intended to be legal advice. For legal advice about any specific legal question you should directly consult an attorney. Criminal Defense Lawyers with Unparalleled Passion for Success Providing Quality Representation for your Denton, Lewisville, Flower Mound, Carrollton, Corinth, Highland Village Dallas, Plano, McKinney, Denton County, or Collin County criminal case.

DWI Surcharges and the Texas Legislature

Posted on June 24, 2019 by Law Offices of Tim Powers - Aggressive Criminal Defense in Denton, Texas

Governor Abbott repealed the much-hated Driver Responsibility Program Surcharges this legislative session and repealed Texas Transportation Code Section 708. This section provided for the collection of surcharges for license points, convictions for driving while license invalid, no insurance tickets etc. Further on September 1, 2019 the law requires the Department of Public Safety to reinstate licenses (with the appropriate fee paid of course) if the driver license was suspended ONLY for non-payment of Section 708 surcharges.

The repeal did NOT eliminate DWI surcharges and kept them as part of the law. The new Texas Transportation Code Section 709 reads (in relevant part) as follows:

Sec.709.001. TRAFFIC FINE FOR CONVICTION OF CERTAIN INTOXICATED DRIVER OFFENSES.

(a) In this section, “offense relating to the operating of a motor vehicle while intoxicated” has the meaning assigned by Section 49.09, Penal Code.

(b) … in addition to the fine prescribed for the specific offense, a person who has been finally convicted of an offense relating to the operating of a motor vehicle while intoxicated shall pay a fine of:

(1) $3,000 for the first conviction within a 36-month period;

(2) $4,500 for a second or subsequent conviction within a 36-month period; and

(3) $6,000 for a first or subsequent conviction if it is shown on the trial of the offense that an analysis of a specimen of the person’s blood, breath, or urine showed an alcohol concentration level of 0.15 or more at the time the analysis was performed.

The only real change to the DWI surcharges in Texas was that the prior law increased the higher surcharge for a BAC of .16 or above, and the Penal Code enhanced the offense to a Class A Misdemeanor with a BAC of .15 or above. The differences were confusing and didn’t make sense.

The bottom line is, if you have surcharges for anything but a DWI, the state will not be able to collect those after September 1, 2019.

If you have surcharges for a DWI conviction, they are still valid and will be collected by the state. Failure to pay the DWI surcharges will result in a suspension of all driving privileges in Texas until such time as they are paid, or a payment plan is entered with the Texas DPS.

For those that wish to review the version of the bill that was signed by the Governor, here is a link to the text: https://legiscan.com/TX/text/HB2048/id/2027484

Red Light Cameras Finally Leaving Denton For Good

Posted on June 21, 2019 by Law Offices of Tim Powers - Aggressive Criminal Defense in Denton, Texas

Have you fallen victim to the preying red-light cameras spread across town? Maybe you are one of the poor, unfortunate souls who was wronged by those pesky yellow lights that turned red in a mere matter of seconds. Or maybe you’ve been caught by the cameras that snap a picture on a yellow light as you race across the white line. No matter the reason, you were wronged; before you could blink, the light switched from ‘go’ to ‘slow’ to ‘you’re getting a fat $75 citation via snail mail in a few days’.

Well, then we’ve got some good news for you: these cameras are no more. Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed House Bill 1631 on June 3, which prevents cities from renewing contracts with red-light camera vendors. Texas is not the first state to put this law into place; Maine, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, South Carolina, South Dakota, and West Virginia have already eradicated the red-light cameras.

Immediately after this bill became law, the city council of Denton got to work. Councilmembers voted unanimously to terminate the contract in place with Redflex Traffic System. Since then, some cameras and signs have already been taken down across the city.

While the point of the red-light cameras was to protect and save lives, they primarily ended up as a faulty instrument that made people angry. Why should one be charged a hefty fee when they never actually ran a red light? However, use of these cameras has been proven to reduce the total amount of fatal car crashes that are a consequence of running red lights. With that, I must caution you to simply use your brain! Green means ‘go’, and red means ‘stop’. Don’t put anyone else’s life on the line just because there is no longer a camera to catch your reckless driving.

“Shouldn’t Have To Do It, First Amendment Guarantees It.”

Posted on June 20, 2019 by Law Offices of Tim Powers - Aggressive Criminal Defense in Denton, Texas

“I’m about to sign a law that protects free speech on college campuses. Shouldn’t have to do it, First Amendment guarantees it. Now, it’s law in Texas,” stated Texas Governor Greg Abbott in a video that he recently posted to his Twitter feed.

On the evening of June 9, 2019, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed a bill that guaranteed and enforced the First Amendment rights of students on public college and university campuses. “Some colleges are banning free speech on college campuses,” Abbott explained.

This bill intends to eliminate “free speech zones”, or areas that have been designated for political expression. These spaces are often out-of-the-way and have certain requirements and restrictions that must be followed to use them. The outdoor areas of college campuses are now to be designated as traditional public forums.

But let’s ponder this. Isn’t every American already guaranteed their rights–especially those concerning the First Amendment?

Just in case you needed a refresher, the First Amendment included in the Bill of Rights of the United States Constitution is as follows:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

In simple terms, this amendment protects and enforces freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, and freedom to petition.

Yet there exists select corners of college campuses that are designated for the rights we were already guaranteed as Americans. Are students not able to publicly express their thoughts and opinions anywhere else on campus? Suppressing one’s power to speak their mind by confining them to a free speech zone sounds restricting and controlling at best. Of course, these “free speech zones” are soon to be a thing of the past–in Texas, at least. Texas public institutions have until August 1, 2020 to institute the changes that come with this new bill, and hopefully other states follow suit.

Governor Abbott Signs Bill, Increases Legal Age to Purchase Tobacco Products

Posted on June 10, 2019 by Law Offices of Tim Powers - Aggressive Criminal Defense in Denton, Texas

Tobacco is a plant whose leaves are dried and fermented for their use in tobacco products. This plant contains nicotine, a highly addictive substance which creates a dependency on tobacco products such as cigarettes, cigars, snuff, and more. In many states, one was required by law to be 18 or older to purchase any of the above–until now.

There is an increasing national push to raise the legal age of purchasing tobacco products. We are seeing a multitude of states raise the age from 18 to 21–an act which will, according to experts, significantly reduce the risk of nicotine addiction. Texas is now the fifteenth state to sign this law into effect, henceforth banning all cigarette, e-cigarette, and tobacco products from being purchased by anyone below the age of 21. This bill goes into effect on September 1, where anyone caught breaking the law will be fined up to $500 while facing a Class-C misdemeanor. As nicotine is actually more addictive than alcohol, the age increase makes sense.

Some more good news? Overall cigarette use has declined significantly among both the youth and adult populations of America. The bad news is that they have simply been replaced by e-cigarettes and JUULs.

This legislation comes at a time when the usage of e-cigarettes & vape products has skyrocketed across the country–an estimated 4.8 million teens used such products in 2018. While these devices are not strictly filled with tobacco, they do in fact contain nicotine–an ingredient which can lead very quickly and easily to addiction. Nicotine is among the top five most addictive substances in the world, coming in right after cocaine and heroin.

Why would so many teenagers and young adults opt to fall into the trap of nicotine addiciton? Well, JUUL products are arguably marketed towards children; from the fun-flavored “pods” that come in flavors like berry, mint, and mango, to their sleek and portable look which bears resemblance to a harmless USB drive, there are a myriad of qualities which appeal to younger crowds. Not to mention that vaping is now deemed a “trendy” and “cool” activity to partake in–just as smoking cigarettes was in the 1960s. Talk about peer pressure!

Will “hitting the JUUL” become a nationwide epidemic? Or has it reached that point already? Here’s to hoping that this 21+ ban on tobacco products will initiate some changes–here in Texas and around the United States.