Understanding the Crime of Aggravated Theft
On the evening of October 16th, 2017, the police in Texas arrested two suspects for the criminal offense of aggravated theft. The target of theft was a Samsung S-7 mobile phone where the thieves were armed with knives. The police investigators on the raised suspicions and through the evidence that was provided did identify and arrest the named suspects through the help of a surveillance footage. They were grounded on the suspicions of the criminal offense. The prosecutor interviewed the procedures on the two suspects and imposed a police custody.
There are many cases of aggravated thief that are reported day in day out. At times we just call it theft, robbery or burglary. At the end of the end, this remains a felony.
How do you know it’s a felony?
A theft of property is considered aggravated if accompanied by the following aggravating factors;
- Use of a weapon in the commission of the crime and to be specific, deadly weapons.
- Threats or intimidation relating to the crime.
- If it is a gang or crime related theft.
- Where it is a theft of a high-value asset or property or
- It’s a theft of police or government property
This kind of theft is very serious in the judicial system. It bears serious consequences. A defendant who is found guilty of aggravated theft is sentenced to at least one year in prison alongside fines and also a permanent felony record. Being convicted of aggravated theft affects permanently or even temporarily your individual legal rights. It affects your;
- Voting rights,
- Driving privileges,
- Rights to serve on any jury and even
- Gun ownership rights.
After you have been arrested on the grounds of Aggravated Theft, does it mean you can’t do anything? This is the point where you immediately hire a criminal defense attorney. These have the experience and legal knowledge on how they will deal with such cases. They understand the seriousness of your cases and will know where to dispute and where not to.
Depending on other evidence presented before a court of law, the criminal defense attorney will advise you on how you are supposed to plead. It is a scenario where you can easily find yourself on the wrong side of the law. A criminal defense attorney is the only real friend that you can trust in such a time. They have won similar cases and you might be the lucky one this time especially where you defense attorney has good relations with the jury.
Depending on how the aggravated theft has been categorized, there are possible defenses. It is possible that the defendant was intoxicated or at the time of the crime he/she was not of sound mind. It is also possible that the defense of duress was used in the case where the defendant was forced or even threatened to commit the crime. You are likely to walk free or with minimal penalties if you happen to provide proof of intoxication or duress.
The type of defense which the criminal defense attorney will use will, however, depend on the crime itself. It will also depend on the circumstances that led the defendant into committing the crime. It is therefore very important to source for intelligent and qualified criminal defense lawyers who will understand every aspect of your case.
As much as the aggravated robbery has very serious consequences. It is also very difficult to defend in a court of law. You can only be sentenced after you plead guilty or when you have been identified as the robber. Most experienced criminal defense attorneys will attempt to challenge the identification process. They discredit the eyewitness testimony as inaccurate. Most other similar cases fail to succeed due to lack of enough evidence that ought to link the crime perpetrator to the crime itself. These cases also frequently get in the direction that the defendant believes they were the rightful owner of the property and theirs was simply an act of retrieving it. It is therefore very important to hire a criminal defense attorney lest you find yourself a victim.
Houston Domestic Violence Cases & Texas Law
Cases of domestic violence in Texas has been on the rise since 2011 (Texas Sees Increase in Domestic Violence Reports , 2017). The statistics in the state Department of Public Safety show that about 214000 people in Texas have been victims of domestic violence.
Domestic Violence: Misdemeanor or Felony Offense?
Misdemeanors and felonies are criminal offenses that are punished differently. A misdemeanor charge is sentenced up to a year, and the offender is not necessarily taken to a maximum security prison, while a felony is punishable by more than a year in prison. A felony is a more serious offense than a misdemeanor. If you’re charged with a felony offense in Harris County, you’ll need the best Houston criminal justice lawyer you can find to give you a fighting chance at avoiding what’s sure to be a lengthy jail sentence.
With that said, you might be wondering whether domestic violence is a misdemeanor or a felony offense. But first, you should understand what domestic violence entails to comprehend where domestic violence falls in entirely.
Domestic violence refers to any abuse inducted upon a family member or a spouse. Domestic violence can be characterized as both a misdemeanor or a felony; it depends on the extent of damage that results from the offense. A misdemeanor domestic violence typically comprises of verbal abuse and minor assault battery. Unfortunately, if you are convicted more than twice with a misdemeanor domestic violence, it can prelude to a felony domestic violence.
A felony domestic violence as mentioned above is more critical. This offense can result in possible do-time in prison, be fined heavily and even get a restraining order against you. The following is a short list of events or outcomes that can lead a domestic violence offense to be categorized as a felony:
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- The occurrence of serious violent altercations that can cause severe injuries or even ultimately death.
- Battery inflicted to a minor or a child.
- If a deadly weapon is involved; let’s say a firearm, hunting knife or brass knuckles.
- Inappropriate sexual acts
- Acts involving conduct of an inappropriate sexual nature
You should note that a felony domestic violence charge is hard to expunge from your records. However, after many years of good behavior, it can get obsolete.
Also, whether it’s a misdemeanor domestic violence or a felony domestic violence, you can never underestimate these charges. You should find yourself a good lawyer to get you through it.
Therefore, since there has been a drastic rise in domestic violence in Texas, the state take-on on the offense is very serious.
Top Causes of Houston Family Assaults & Domestic Violence Cases
The primary causes of domestic violence include:
- Physical abuse – mostly start off with drug abuse and alcohol
- Financial abuse – involves unemployment of one of the partners hence dependent on the other
iii. Psychological abuse – involves comments that lower self-esteem of your partner or family member.
- Emotional abuse – involves anger, jealousy and envy
- History of domestic violence in a family can be passed on. Young adults and children may get negative lessons from domestic abuse at home.
In case you sense any form of domestic abuse as aforementioned, you need to be careful so that you don’t become just another number in the statistics of domestic violence in Texas.
Houston Domestic Violence Cases & Texas Law
Private Investigators; Crucial In a Scientology Lawsuit
When talking about lawsuits it generally refers to a dispute or rather a claim that is usually brought to a law court for the purpose of adjudication. Private investigators like Gradoni & Associates play a very crucial role when it comes to investigating the details, or lack thereof, of certain aspects of lawsuits. The core role of these private investigators is to obtain information about some specific activities or people so that the information can be used probably in a court of law. In the following discussion we are going to look at a news event that is related to lawsuit and private investors.
There has been rigorous talks in the Internet about lawsuits in Texas. Some news has hit the headlines of most people on claims of lawsuits in relation to the scientology church that spent millions of money over a span of 24 years spying one man. The whole story was initiated by a man by the name David Miscavige. David who was scientology leader allegedly paid some private investigators around $500,000 so that they can keep vigil about one man by the name Pal Broeker. According to the story told to the investigator’s attorney general Pal Broeker was Miscavige’s rival over the control of a certain church in Texas.
Additionally, payments that were being made of the investigators came to a standstill at the beginning of this year resulting to complains from the two involved investigators. The two were Greg Arnold and Paul Marrick. The two sued David Miscavige for going against their promises of permanently employing them and making the payments. The interesting thing about the whole story is that the scientology fraternity didn’t give any response in as much the claims were concerned. This worshipping place is actually located in the city of Los Angeles, it claims to have millions of members. Information from one executive member of the church indicate that specific number of congregants were Forty thousand.
Struggle for Power
Davis Miscavige was born in the 1950’s by a fiction writer in the field of science by the name Ron Hubbard. Ron went to seclusion for some time but unfortunately he died in the year 1986. Ron had specified the family- Annie Broeker and Pat- to be his successors but after his death Miscavige instead replaced them in act struggle for power. Moreover, according to lawsuit, David Miscavige was seriously concerned about the named successor Pal Broeker who was a great threat to him in as much as power struggle was concerned since he had been forcefully ousted out of it. For that matter, the scientology church hired a couple of investigators so that they can keep vigil of Broeker within the strictest measures of secrecy.
Other people monitored
According to trusted sources, it is said that there were more people who were being monitored. The two were executives in some pharmaceutical firm and they were Mitch Daniels and Mike Rinder. Mitch Daniels was actually a very senior person who went to be a governor in India according to lawsuit. On the other hand Mike Rinder was chiefs’ spokesman who according to lawsuits abandoned the church in the year 2007. The two were part of the largely increasing number of congregants in the church although they seriously opposed Miscavige’s leadership.
Furthermore, while disputes related to lawsuits in most cases come to settlements, the south Texas seriously need some two people who are greatly involved in the fight for power case. It was believed that Broeker had gone missing for a long time from the general public and he is one of the most witnesses required to report in the Texas law court. Consequently, this may result to the deposition of Miscavige. The information at hand is that, all the involved victims were professionals who carried themselves in the right manner and even paid taxes on their incomes until the year 2008 when they paid cash to the two investigators resulting to greenbacks in the church accounts. The contracting information is that it was said that the church cannot hire private investigators since they do not work directly for the church but instead the scientology hired private investigators. The conclusion of the matter is that the church scientology David Miscavige had no information about the job done with the investigators.