I Have Experience With Evasion Cases
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Not all allegations of evading arrest are against people who are attempting to escape police officers that may be making a lawful arrest. In some cases, the person who was arrested and accused of evading arrest was guilty of nothing more than ending an otherwise consensual encounter with law enforcement on their own terms.
Criminal Justice Attorney
Believe it or not, this is very often the case.
The way evasion arrests commonly occur in Houston; An over-zealous police officer treated the citizen as a subject, the citizen decided by his own freedom to end the encounter. The officer abuses his/her power in an effort to maintain the “upper hand” by using their arrest authority. The citizen is arrested and charged for evasion with a motor vehicle.
These types of illegal arrests happen in Houston all the time.
I’ve Represented People I Know
As a matter of fact, I’ve represented two personal friends that were charged in Houston/Harris County with evading arrest by motor vehicle. Each were charged with a third-degree felony (punishable by 2 to 10 years in prison and up to a 10,000 fine).
The Scholarly Businessman
One friend is a Harvard MBA graduate, owner of his own investment firm, enormously wealthy, and a law-abiding citizen in his 50s.
He’s never had a negative encounter with law enforcement until his arrest in Houston for evading arrest by motor vehicle. To sum up the arrest, he was driving to his office early one morning and was traveling through a school zone when, unbeknownst to him, a school crossing guard hand signaled him to pull over.
When he failed to stop and immediately exit his car at the behest of the crossing guard, law enforcement was dispatched quickly, resulting in my friend and client being surrounded by several police cars. And, in terms not uncertain, loudly told (with pistols drawn) to exit his vehicle and lay on the ground where he was subsequently manhandled by several males and one small, loud and extremely aggressive female patrol officer.
The Average Guy
Another friend of mine, also a middle-aged law-abiding citizen, was driving from Houston to Galveston late one night, radio blaring, and lost in his own thoughts when he noticed an emergency headlight in his rearview mirror. He too was accosted by several members of law enforcement, and roughly treated, while speaking to deaf ears as he attempted to explain his effort to pull over as soon as he was aware of the overhead police lights. He was jailed and hit with a large bail bond.
The original patrol car followed my friend, and client, for less than a couple miles.
I Successfully Handled the Evasion Cases
Both of these cases were dismissed after being set for trial. I believe that both of these individuals were arrested due to the lack of experience of the arresting officers. That, and an overzealous desire by the arresting officers to make an easy felony arrest in order to bolster their arrest numbers thus enhancing and hastening their career advancement potential. In private, I’ve had many discussions with Houston area defense lawyers echoing my same sentiments concerning frivolous evasion arrests.
While most police officers are mature adults, a lot of them aren’t and will overstep their bounds when it comes to civil rights.
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The Burden Of Proof Falls on The State of Texas in Evading Arrest Cases
In the court of law, The State of Texas has to prove you were aware of impending detainment by law enforcement and that you evaded arrest deliberately. In fact, the State of Texas has no case if the arrest, less evasion, was illegal in the first place.
Yes, the State of Texas has to prove that the originating intent to detain you would have resulted in a legitimate arrest, outside of any evasion of detention charge.
Houston criminal defense attorney Jack B. Carroll provides counsel for individuals charged with evading arrest. If you need professional legal counsel, call 713-228-4607 to set an appointment to discuss the matter.
Attorney Jack B. Carroll serves Harris County, Texas, and the entire Greater Houston region.