Intoxication Manslaughter Penalties With A DUI Attorney in Houston Texas
No one ever intentionally commits intoxication manslaughter in the state of Texas. Everyone knows it’s a really bad idea to drive while intoxicated. And if the danger that you are posing to others, as well as yourself, isn’t bad enough already, Texas also imposes some fairly steep penalties for DUI. You can be fined $2,000 for a first DWI offense, along with your driver’s license being suspended for up to a year. However, if you are driving under the influence and end up committing intoxication manslaughter, and killing someone, then those consequences can be much more severe. You might receive a more favorable result if you have help from an experienced DUI attorney in Houston. Either way, it is absolutely critical that you thoroughly understand the intoxication manslaughter sentence in Texas.
Intoxication Manslaughter Defined
In Texas, intoxication manslaughter is a charge that an individual receives when they are believed to have caused a fatal auto accident while they were driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs when the crash occurred. Even when you were not at fault technically for the accident, you may still be arrested and receive an intoxication manslaughter charge. Before moving on to intoxication manslaughter penalties in the state of Texas, we want to first establish what the key differences are between homicide and manslaughter cases in a court of law. Murder usually requires that there be some kind of conscious action, premeditation or motive by the offender for killing their victim. On the other hand, manslaughter requires that the death of the victim resulted in the accused committing criminal negligence and that the death that resulted was not intentional. Criminal negligence in this context refers to behavior that is beyond reasonable and reckless and done with disregard for other people’s safety. In an intoxication manslaughter case, the criminal negligence would be driving while intoxicated, which would make the death a crime no matter what your intent was.
Intoxication Manslaughter Punishments And Sentences In Texas
Intoxication manslaughter sentences, of course, are a lot more severe compared to a regular DUI or DWI. Intoxication manslaughter in Texas is a second-degree felony. Second-degree felony convictions are punished by the State of Texas with a fine up to $10,000 and/or a 2-20 year prison sentence. In addition to jail time and fines, Texas law requires any individual who is convicted of the felony of intoxication manslaughter to serve a minimum of 240 hours worth of community service and also provides for the possibility of another 800 hours at the discretion of the state. However, if you have the right assistance, you might be able to beat your intoxication manslaughter charge.
How To Beat Intoxication Manslaughter Charges In Texas
In order to beat an intoxication manslaughter charge in the state of Texas, one of the most critical aspects is to prove that you driving while intoxicated wasn’t directly responsible for the individual’s death. That can be established at times through the use of hard evidence like eyewitness testimony or video footage. There are other times when your attorney will need to establish a reasonable doubt regarding the circumstances surrounding the accident. For example, if you had a couple of beers and drove home with a .08 blood alcohol concentration, and somebody ran a red light which caused you to hit their car while you were intoxicated, it would not have directly caused any subsequent injuries or deaths. Although you might be found guilty of a DWI charge still, in that case, the other individual is legally responsible for causing the accident, and their own death as well.
Time Of Driving Rules
A more complex way to beat an intoxication manslaughter charge is by using the Texas state “Time of Driving” rules in order to establish reasonable doubt whether you were actually intoxicated when the accident occurred. The prosecution in Texas is required to prove you actually were intoxicated when the accident occurred to convict you successfully on an intoxication manslaughter charge. The state uses extremely faulty science to provide this and may be questioned effectively in court. The reason why I know that is due to having used that approach myself in my largest case ever to beat four intoxication manslaughter counts.
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