San Antonio Injury Attorney Blog

In our last blog entry, we discussed several aspects of San Antonio and greater Bexar County juvenile adjudication , the equivalent of an adult criminal trial. In a juvenile delinquency proceeding, a juvenile may only be convicted upon proof beyond a reasonable doubt.

A San Antonio juvenile defense lawyer will pay particular attention to the petition, which must state the specific time, place, and manner of the alleged criminal acts and the specific penal laws the juvenile is alleged to have violated. If a trial does not prove the specific acts of a petition, then an acquittal is in order.

Moreover, the simple testimony of an accomplice is not enough to convict a juvenile. There must be other evidence presented to connect the juvenile to the crime beyond the testimony of an accomplice. Nor will a juvenile's out of court statement be sufficient to prove an offense beyond a reasonable doubt. The same Texas Rules of Evidence that are applicable to San Antonio adult criminal defense are also applicable to the juvenile adjudication proceeding.

In the past few years, there has been an increasing problem with a "shadow" juvenile justice system in which municipal and justice courts have been prosecuting juvenile offenders in the adult criminal system. These courts are not bound by the dictates of the Texas Juvenile Justice Code. Most of the time, the municipal and justice courts deal with juveniles who have violated their school conduct policies. Special education juveniles are especially vulnerable in these types of non-juvenile court proceedings.

Even more disturbing is the fact that juveniles convicted in municipal and justice courts have criminal records. When the juvenile reaches adulthood, he cannot count on such records being automatically expunged or sealed. Unlike juvenile adjudications, juvenile convictions are public record unless there are affirmative steps taken to seal / expunge them. For juveniles convicted of Class C misdemeanors, juveniles may face jail if they do not pay their fines upon turning 17 under the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure.

In addition, there are serious ramifications to criminal convictions in municipal and justice courts. Today, convictions can prevent a juvenile from obtaining student loans or carrying a concealed handgun. In addition, convictions on Class C misdemeanors can be used to enhance subsequent arrests to felonies in alcohol offenses and family violence assaults.

Municipal and justice courts oversee four (4) types of offenses by juveniles: traffic offenses; fine only offenses; specific alcohol offenses; and truancy cases. These cases all demand the presence of a parent. When a juvenile has two (2) convictions in a municipal or justice court, the ensuing case must be transferred to juvenile court. The municipal / justice courts do have the discretion to transfer fineable only cases to juvenile court with the exception of traffic / tobacco cases.

A San Antonio juvenile criminal defense attorney will take great pains in working with special education juveniles to prepare documents reflecting disabilities from their school records. Such records are critical to raising competency to stand trial as well as responsibility for the alleged incident.

Criminal defense for San Antonio adults and juveniles requires an examination of specific mental states. The first major mental state is "Intentional" ie. Did the person have a conscious desire to engage in the conduct ? The second type of mental state is "Knowing" ie. Was the person aware that his conduct would reasonably cause the negative results ? The third type of mental state is "Reckless" ie. Did the person consciously disregard the risks they created by their conduct ? The final mental state is "Criminal Negligence" ie. Should the person have determined the risks involved with their conduct.

Different types of offenses require varying degrees of mental states to hold a person culpable criminally. A Bexar County / San Antonio criminal defense lawyer can be instrumental in educating you and your child on your options in juvenile court or the municipal / justice courts.

In our last blog entry on the differences between the Texas Juvenile and Adult Criminal Justice Systems , we touched base briefly on the fourth option available to the disposition of a juvenile case : Adjudication.

A San Antonio juvenile defense lawyer will always seek deferred prosecution for his clients but there are times the prosecutor and probation officer will not accept such a recommendation. In an adjudication, which is the equivalent of a criminal trial, it is absolutely essential that the juvenile appreciates the nature and potential consequences of an adjudication hearing. Under Section 54 of the Texas Family Code , a juvenile may not have been found to have engaged in delinquent conduct or conduct in need of supervision (CINS) without an adjudication hearing.

Adjudication will only be considered to have occurred after an evidentiary hearing. There are six (6) general ways the hearing will be conducted based on whether the juvenile is contesting the charges. If the client agrees, a San Antonio criminal defense lawyer will contest the charges and choose as to whether the trial should be conducted before a jury or as a bench trial before the judge. Where the juvenile decides not to contest the charges, there are four (4) possible ways to go depending on the local practice of the court: a stipulation of evidence, agreed statement of facts, judicial confession, or plea of true.

In uncontested adjudications, the juvenile may withdraw his plea if the plea was based on a plea agreement and the court entered disposition terms outside the plea agreement. See Section 54 of the Texas Juvenile Justice Code.

The court must give specific judicial admonishments (explanations of various rights and consequences) at both the beginning of every adjudication hearing and those dispositions involving a plea bargain agreement. The Texas Family Code requires the court to make specific judicial admonishments including an explanation of the allegations; the nature and consequences of the proceedings; the child's 5th amendment right against self-incrimination; the child's right to trial and cross-examination of witness; the child's right to an attorney; and the child's right to a jury trial.

The judge should especially admonish a juvenile of the admissibility of a juvenile adjudication in an adult criminal proceeding. A plea of "true" in a juvenile adjudication can be used in a subsequent criminal proceeding - the plea can be used to ultimately enhance an adult punishment.

The court shall also admonish a juvenile that it is not required to accept the plea bargain agreement between the juvenile and the prosecutor. If the court does not accept the agreement, the juvenile can withdraw the plea or stipulation of evidence.

Every juvenile has the right to a jury trial and that right is guaranteed by section 15 of the Texas Constitution . When your loved one is in trouble with the law, you absolutely need a Bexar County juvenile defense lawyer to protect your child's rights so that mistakes are not made that can have devastating consequences in an adult criminal proceeding.