Truancy is a Class C misdemeanor in Texas

Skipping class is obviously something that students should be dissuaded against, but at what cost? Fort Bend County has recently entered the debate as to what extent truancy should be criminalized. This comes as a huge step for Fort Bend, which is the only other county in Texas besides Dallas that has a court dedicated exclusively to hearing truancy proceedings.

Truancy is a Class C misdemeanor in Texas, carrying fines and a criminal record that often tarnishes a student’s previously clean slate. Many people believe that the measures taken against truant students are more punitive than constructive. By giving kids a criminal record at a young age, more burdens are placed on students going forward in life. It can negatively affect future education and employment opportunities for students, which is counter-productive to the goals of public education.

Texas Chief Justice Nathan Hecht is of the opinion that the current system is too harsh on students. He recently raised his voice in the debate over truancy, questioning whether the act is truly criminal. He notes that often times it is the personal hardships and issues at home that cause students to miss school.

Some students deal with a range of personal issues, including illnesses, abuse, and family problems, and often have no support to guide them through their personal challenges. Hecht believes instead of criminalizing these students, decision-makers need to take more productive measures that help support the student’s academic and personal lives.

Fort Bend has already taken steps towards more productive methods in stopping truancy. The county has started campus-wide Attendance Intervention Team programs that meet with students and parents of truant children before any charges are filed. Fort Bend is also starting several initiatives to provide mental and emotional support for students dealing with personal issues.

“We’re not trying to criminalize anyone,” said Fort Bend Judge Ruby Shaw. “We want to see if there’s anything we can do before a complaint is filed.” Still, Fort Bend is one of the toughest districts in the state on truancy, and some decision-makers believe the current system is just fine.

“If I don’t have a way to coerce them back into school, then anything I tell them is just going to fall on deaf ears,” said Justice of the Peace Gary Janssen. “I’m just hoping that whatever comes out of it, that they don’t take the tools away from us that are working.”

Do: Ask if you’re free to go.

If a police officer stops you on the street, remember that you don’t have to answer any questions beyond your name and birth date. Ask the officer you’re talking to if you are free to go. If the officer says yes, calmly walk away. If the officer means you are not free to go, then you are being detained. This is not the same as being arrested, although it’s possible for an arrest to follow.

Don’t: Physically resist.

You can tell the officer, “I refuse to answer any questions,” or “I want to remain silent.” This is your most logical and safe way of resisting. Do not run away. Do not argue. Do not become overly angry. Never resist the arrest of another person. Be aware that the police are allowed to pat down the outside of your clothing only if they have reasonable suspicion. If you think they are going beyond this, tell them that you do not consent to a search. This will force the officer to have to legally justify any search he makes without your consent.

Do: Know your rights.

You have the right not to admit any police that has knocked on your front door. You have the right to withhold consent to a search of yourself, your car, or your home. You have the right to remain silent—no need for explanations or excuses. Save your defense for the court, because when they say that anything you say can be used against you in court, they mean it. If you’re being arrested, you have the right to know why. And you always have the right to a phone call.

Don’t: Make any decisions until you have talked to your lawyer.

If it feels necessary, you should refuse a polygraph, breathalyzer or other sobriety tests, or mental testing until you talk to your lawyer. If you’ve been arrested, assert your right to counsel and discuss any requests with your lawyer before doing or saying anything. Don’t ask family, friends, or any non-lawyers for legal advice, because it’s possible for them to appear at a future trial and repeat what you said. Don’t even talk to inmates or corrections officers about your case.

Study Gives First Concrete Estimate Of The Amount Of Americans With Felonies

In a country with overwhelming incarceration numbers, it’s no longer easy to point a finger at offenders. America is waking up to the fact that their fellow citizens are being trapped in a criminal justice system that aims not to return improved citizens to society, but grow a prison population that has already quadrupled since the 80’s.

A new study led by a University of Georgia sociologist set out to understand the scope of felony convictions in the U.S., and produced the first estimates of the felony population. This in itself is a difficult task, because the U.S. doesn’t keep a registry of data on Americans with felonies. Researchers had to base their findings on year-by-year data and utilize demographic methods to figure out a number for each state and year.

What they found is, unfortunately, not too surprising. As of 2010, 19 million people in the U.S. had a felony record. People with felony convictions make up 8 percent of the overall population, while 3 percent of the population have served time in prison. The most terrible part of their findings is the disproportionate percentages in regards to African-American males— of this demographic, 33 percent have felony convictions and 15 percent have served time in prison.

The good news is, the fact that studies like this are taking place is a step in the right direction. Understanding the scope of the criminal justice system is challenging, but crucial. The steep rise in criminal punishment causes many to wonder why the country suffering a heavy social cost for mass incarceration, and something as simple as a scary statistic can inform efforts to change policy and understand the true price of hyper criminalization in America.

It’s no secret that the U.S. needs to fix its broken criminal justice system. Not only does our current system hyper-criminalize citizens, but it also makes it extremely difficult for them to bounce back and become productive members of society. Having an unclean record makes it difficult for people to get back on their feet, and unless they get an expungement, it’s a burden they have to carry with them their whole lives.

That’s where the REDEEM Act comes in. The REDEEM (Record Expungement Designed to Enhance Employment) Act strives to help people break the cycle of criminal activity and give them a second chance. Re-introduced by Senators Rand Paul, Cory Booker, and Elijah Cummings in April of 2017, the purpose of the REDEEM Act is to change the criminal justice system and expunge records after time served. In short, it would prevent non-violent crimes from disrupting people’s futures. This bipartisan bill would put into place seven major reforms that would help people who were convicted of non-violent crimes to more successfully re-enter society. The seven changes would:

1. Allow adults who have committed nonviolent crimes to petition to have their records sealed one year after completing their sentence.
2. Automatically seal (and, in some cases, expunge) the records of juveniles.
3. Incentivize states to raise the age of adult criminal responsibility to 18 years old.
4. Significantly restrict room confinement of juveniles.
5. Loft the lifetime SNAP and TANF bans on many nonviolent drug offenders.
6. Improve the accuracy of the FBI background check system.

Here’s why this bill is extremely important.

As of now, the widespread availability of one’s criminal history renders qualified individuals jobless. If this bill were to pass, it would make it easier for those people to get work, thus lowering the probability of convicted criminals to re-offend. This not only promotes public safety but lowers the cost of crime and unemployment across the country (a report from the Vera Institute recently revealed that if ten states cut their re-offending rates by just ten percent, taxpayers would save $470 million a year).

People make mistakes. We’re only human. It’s unreasonable to deny others the chance to do good with their lives; we can’t turn our back on fellow Americans who have paid their debt to society and are looking for a fresh start. The REDEEM Act would ease the barriers that hold back those looking to move past their criminal record. This bill would correct our misguided criminal justice policies, and be a step in the right direction for our federal system.

The current status of the bill is that it has been read twice to Senate, but not debated or voted on. As is, it probably won’t pass, because Republicans are going to argue that it makes the government look soft on crime. But even Conservatives have agreed that it is certainly a step in the right direction, so certain modifications could be made to help the bill pass.

If you want to do your part to see this bill through, write, call or tweet your Senator with your thoughts on the proposed changes.

It’s time to roll the dice in Texas. Casinos across the nation bring in billions of dollars in revenue annually by bringing in tourists and gamblers from all over the world. Gambling is a thriving business in several states. Texas, however, is not one of them.

States like Texas are getting the short end of the stick when it comes to gambling and casino revenues. Texas continues to see its residents travel outside the state in order to visit gaming destinations. What this means is that an increasing number of people who are earning money is Texas are spending it in other states. These states reap in the benefits while Texas bleeds money.

There are close to 20 states in the US who do not permit gambling or casinos, and Texas is on the list. Those who support gambling in Texas point to the lost revenues from gamblers who go to different states to visit casinos, instead of spending their money here in Texas. Supporters hope that gambling in Texas can become a stable source of income for local governments and municipalities.

Thanks to recent legislation proposed by Rep. Joe Deshotel, Texas may soon start looking a little more like Las Vegas.

Insurance companies currently phase massive deficits upwards of $100 million in the aftermath of disasters like Hurricane Ike and Katrina. Deshotel’s proposal states that earnings that result from casino activity in Texas should go towards funding the deficits faced by these insurance companies so that they are equipped to handle any crises.

This unprecedented move by Deshotel is not designed to make casinos a cash-cow for the state of Texas. Rather, Deshotel points to the massive financial difficulties being faced by insurance companies, such as the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA), and he is looking for ways to close their deficits to that they can operate effectively.

Under Deshotel’s proposed bill, the casinos would be placed in coastal regions of Texas, where residents are most affected by the damage caused by hurricanes and tropical storms.

“The plan is fairly simple. Full Las Vegas-style casinos will be permitted within a first-tier coastal county,” said Deshotel.

By bringing a source of revenue to coastal Texas communities, while also helping narrow the deficits faced by essential insurance companies, Deshotel hopes that his bill will introduce casinos to Texas in a manner that is mutually beneficial the community and all parties involved.

Getting a second chance in life can make a world of difference to an individual. This is especially true when we are talking about children and teens; individuals who are still emotionally developing and have their whole lives ahead of them. While there are several institutions in place to support these children, such as public education and awareness programs, teens are still facing severe legal challenges that hinder their future development.

In Texas, offenders who are as young as 17 years old are classified as adults in courts of law. This means that they face the same processes and penalties that adults endure during their legal proceedings. Because of this rule, 17-year-old teens are facing harsh penalties for their offenses. It also sticks these teens with a criminal record that will affect their lives years after the case is over.

Texas is especially strict when it comes to enforcing penalties against minors. Any juvenile who receives a Class C misdemeanor has their case tried in adult courts instead of juvenile courts. These misdemeanors are sometimes as small as chewing gum in class or talking too loudly, and students are forced to make court appearances in adult courts to resolve these legal issues.

Because these children are forced to go to adult courts for non-serious crimes, they are often not supplied with a lawyer, receive no legal counsel, and ultimately end up pleading guilty in adult courts.

“It’s incredibly rare to see a child without counsel plead not guilty,” said Deborah Fowler, executive director of the youth advocacy group Texas Appleseed.

The central question in this debate is whether or not teens in Texas are being punished too strictly for the offenses they commit. Certain serious offenses, of course, deserve strict punishments, regardless of the age of the offender. The goal of this debate is not to try to let teens off the hook, but rather to explore ways that are productive in helping teens rehabilitate and get their lives back on track.

The current punitive system against 17-year-olds has proven to do more harm than good. One police officer in Mississippi said that the police force spent so much time arresting students in school that they felt they were “just a taxi service.”

What’s worse is that as teens and students are getting arrested, they are being steered away from education and a family environment that can provide them with the support needed to help at-risk youth. Putting young children in jail cells and giving them a criminal record does not provide a supportive environment for teens. In fact, people who enter the legal system a young age end up becoming more prone to engaging in criminal activity later in life.

For many 17-year-olds who face prison time due to Texas’s laws on minors, an offense early in life can lead to a cycle of criminal activity in the future. Instead of getting the support and rehabilitation required for children at that stage of emotional development, teens who are placed in the legal system early in life lose several of the opportunities that were previously present to them.

Many 17-year-old offenders who were tried as adults echoed similar sentiments about Texas’s trial laws, and explained how the legal process they faced has affected their life in a major way.

“I felt like I was just a little kid compared to everybody else, and that I wasn’t fully mature,” said Johnny Truong, who was convicted for robbery at the age of 17. “There was no concern with rehabilitation.”

Texas is starting the discussion about changing its policies to be more lenient towards minors. Policy-makers and law enforcement officials are working to create better systems that keep minors out of the courtrooms and in schools.

For example, many sheriffs in Texas jails support the idea of raising the legal trial age to 18. According to a report by the Texas Legislature, it costs $366.88 per day to house a juvenile in a prison facility, compared to only $50.04 to house an adult. By raising the legal trial age, prisons avoid the costs incurred by the additional influx of younger offenders. Prisons and law enforcement officials are critical voices in influencing criminal justice policy in Texas.

Lawmakers are also starting to do their part in getting at-risk teens the support they need. More 17-year-olds are being placed in community-based programs were the focus is rehabilitation rather than punishment. As a result, Texas has seen its juvenile incarceration rates drop by nearly two-thirds since 2012, meaning fewer teens are entering the legal system.

These legal reforms are essential for minors. Teens who are still at a developmental age are being forced to pay the price for their childhood mistakes. That’s why it is important to be wary of your legal status in court, and to make sure your criminal record is clean with no red flags.

At EasyExpunctions.com, we provide our clients with a free background check so that they know exactly where they stand in terms of their legal issues. We also offer services to help get your record cleaned quickly, and effectively through our convenient online solutions. Teens make mistakes when growing up, and EasyExpunctions.com provides a second chance to offenders who are looking to clear their record.

While Texas is embroiled over the debate on shifting the legal adult age, 17-year-olds and minors are becoming victims of a system that does more harm for their futures than good.

“We need a paradigm shift to move from a punitive, sanction-based system [of discipline],” said Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, “to a restorative, responsibility-based system.”

Children today are educated in school and at home about the dangers of using drugs. There are several programs and campaigns in place designed to warn students about the consequences of drug use with substances like marijuana, heroin, and alcohol. However, there is an emerging market for drugs that parents and schools are still unaware of, and it is costing children their lives and their futures.

Recently, there has been a wave of new, synthetic drugs that have been sweeping the nation. These drugs often referred to as “Spice” or “K2”, are a synthetic form of marijuana. They are artificially made, contain dozens of harmful chemicals, and are not USDA approved. These chemicals are sprayed onto leaves, and users smoke these synthetic drugs like marijuana, giving them a sense of high and euphoria.

These drugs are legal for purchase and consumption in many states. There are several reasons consumers find these drugs appealing. The main reason is that synthetic drugs do not show up on drug tests, making it an attractive alternative for people who go through drug screenings. It is also widely available in many locations. You can even walk up to a gas station counter and buy packs of K2, Spice, or other synthetic drugs. Synthetic drugs are a very convenient choice for users, but the consequences simply are not worth it.

All drugs have incredibly negative side effects, but synthetic drugs are especially dangerous. In the last year alone, has been a rapid influx of people visiting the emergency room and hospital because of the effects of these synthetic drugs. One Dallas hospital reported 40 hospital visits within 48 hours for treatment of people suffering synthetic drug overdose.

“They think it’s safer and it’s not. It’s completely the opposite,” said Dr. Javier Cortinas. “If they are going to learn anything from this, they should learn that it’s not marijuana at all. It has effects completely different, and 50 to 100 times more powerful than marijuana.”

Many people believe that K2 and other synthetic drugs produce the same euphoric feeling as marijuana. However, the chemical composition of synthetic substances is what makes them uniquely dangerous. Ultimately, you have no idea what you are putting in your body because of the varying chemical compositions of these substances. Synthetic drug companies are able to avoid laws and regulations because they constantly tweak the chemicals they use in their products.

In fact, each individual bag may have different chemical compounds in it, making it impossible for a buyer to be responsible when purchasing these substances. This makes it even more difficult for law enforcement and the USDA to crack down on manufacturers who are constantly working on ways to evade legal regulations on their products.

“They don’t have the resources or tests available that allow them to test the items,” said Montgomery Country prosecutor Phil Grant about law enforcement’s inability to crack down on synthetic drug use.

Synthetic drug manufacturers claim that their products are not drugs, but rather research substances. They are sometimes labeled as potpourri on the packaging, making them seem harmless to the average consumer. Packages say things like herbal incense so that only drug users can identify the substance. In actuality, they are marketed and consumed as drugs. This deceptive marketing makes it tough for law enforcement to catch on the trend.

Synthetic drugs have claimed and ruined the lives of countless numbers of individuals. “Every day, every day, every day I regret it,“ said a Beaumont man, who has been using synthetic substances for nearly 5 years.

“Someone was able to kill my son for $10, and there was nothing we could do about it,” said Tyler Hobson, a father whose son passed away after consuming synthetic drugs.

It is clear that action needs to be taken in order to prevent this epidemic from claiming lives and tearing families apart. Texas has taken the first steps in preventing the consumption and distribution of these drugs by classifying possession as a Class C misdemeanor and banning the sales of synthetic drugs in stores.

Many critics question, however, if the true solution lies in stricter punitive measures against drug users. Matthew Simpson, the policy strategist at the American Civil Liberties Union, noted that placing a criminal charge on a teenager could jeopardize their future.

Instead, we need programs that educate children on the dangers of synthetic drugs and inform them of the consequences that drug use can lead to. With these dangerous, synthetic drugs, even using them one time can cause life-long consequences in terms of health and criminal record. It is much more productive to educate and prevent a teen from trying the drug in the first place.

There is no good reason to flee the scene of an accident. Ford drivers in Texas, leaving the scene of an accident instead of waiting and providing assistance will result in much harsher penalties for the driver.

If you flee the scene of an accident that only involves property damage, even something as small as $200 worth of damage to the car, you can be charged with a Class B misdemeanor resulting in a fine and up to 180 days in jail. Hitting a parked car in a parking garage, for example, can lead to jail time if the driver attempts to run away from the scene of the accident. By remaining at the scene instead of fleeing, drivers are fairly likely to endure fewer penalties and pay less in fines.

Where the law really gets strict is when an accident involves harm to a person’s body or health, especially if the hit-and-run results in a fatality. Recent legislation has increased the penalty for a hit-and-run fatality to equal the punishment of intoxicated manslaughter. This means drivers are charged for being intoxicated if they flee the scene of a fatality, regardless of whether they were intoxicated or not. Lawmakers hope that the increased severity of the punishment gives Texas drivers an incentive to stop and wait at the scene of the crime, providing necessary assistance until the authorities arrive.

This law was able to pass with bipartisan support, which is uncommon for any bill that attempts to enhance penalties for crimes. The new penalties make sense for several reasons. One is that many people who flee the scene of accidents are people who are intoxicated. They had an incentive to flee because they would get in more trouble if they stayed behind.

“Before, when the penalty was less for leaving the scene, then there was like an incentive to leave if you were drunk,” said Amarillo Police Sergeant Brent Barbee. “And now, the penalty would be the same as if you’d been arrested for the intoxication manslaughter to start with.”

Another way this law is beneficial is that it makes sure that people hurt in an accident receive immediate help and assistance from other drivers. There is sometimes no one on the scene to call authorities for help. It may end up taking hours before a call for help is made, and that can mean the difference between life and death for those hurt in a crash.

These laws are designed to prevent tragedies that can be avoided and to incentivize drivers to be more careful and diligent on the road. It gives drivers a reason to stay at the scene instead of fleeing and makes them responsible for their actions. This responsibility can make a world of difference for the victims of hit-and-run car accidents.

“You can’t just say, ‘I thought it was a kid throwing rocks at my car’ and change your story to ‘I thought I hit a deer,’” said Laurie Griffin, a mother who lost her daughter in a hit-and-run car accident. “People need to know what’s going to happen if they don’t stop, and that’s from a mother that lost her daughter to complete nonsense.”

If you are involved in a car accident, here are the steps you should take immediately after while remaining on the scene.

1. Stop the vehicle as soon as you can in a safe manner that does not block traffic
2. Find the other drivers involved in the crash and exchange relevant information, including names, address, driver’s license number, insurance, vehicle registration, and phone numbers.
3. If anyone was injured in the accident, call 911 immediately and provide the victim with reasonable assistance until authorities arrive at the scene

Social media is blowing up fast, making people more interconnected than ever. People now leave behind a much larger online presence thanks to the information they post on social channels. Many people don’t think about social media as space where everything they say is kept on the permanent record and can potentially be used against them. I mean, it is kind of hard to see the consequences of posting hundreds of pictures of your cat or last night’s dinner online.

Law enforcement officials are starting to take advantage of the information that offenders leave behind on social media. It has allowed law enforcement to locate offenders who had outstanding warrants. One particularly interesting case happened in Virginia a few years ago. A 16-year-old boy who had disappeared while on probation for a larceny charge was still active on Facebook. His pictures helped law enforcement officials determine that he had joined a traveling circus and become a “carnie”. Officials found the circus tour schedule, went to the next stop on the tour, and promptly located and arrested the individual.

Even if your pictures are generally more mundane than those of a carnie in a traveling circus, social media is still a tool that law enforcement can use against you. An increasingly large number of people are being told that they have violated terms of their probation or parole because of something they posted online.

Often times, parole conditions are written with vague terms in order to give law enforcement more leeway in monitoring and enforcing penalties against parolees. Even something as small as flipping the bird in a picture posted online can result in a parole violation. That’s why I advise all my clients to make sure their online social presence is as clean and proper as possible, as it only serves to benefit them in the long run.

A Facebook status or tweet was written about law enforcement, even as a joke, can result in penalties or parole violation. Pictures of drinking, flipping the bird or being affiliated with gangs end up becoming tools that officials use to build a case against an individual. Even though the rules on what you can and can’t say on social media are still unclear, it is evident that your online presence carries real consequences.

Texas has more drunk driving deaths than any other state.That’s one statistic that Texans should not be proud of leading. In 2013, Texas had 3,382 deaths caused by drunk drivers, which was more than California, New York, and Florida.

DWI and DUI’s are taken very seriously in Texas courts. DUI’s had a conviction rate of about 72%, meaning 72% of people who went to court for DUI’s in Texas in 2013 ended up being convicted. This is important to keep in mind for any driver, as a conviction makes it much harder to clean your record after the case is over.

In Texas, a case that results in conviction is no longer eligible for expunction or non-disclosure. This significantly limits your options in cleaning your record once the case has left courts. The most important thing you can do to protect yourself from these charges is never to drink and drive and never get in a car with a drunk driver.

If you do get arrested for a drunk driving incident, make sure you know the results of your case. Even charges that lead to probation for DWI’s will usually still place a conviction on your record. Easy Expunctions can quickly find out how your drunk driving charges affected your criminal record. More importantly, we can then provide the right tools and services to clean your record and make information about your charges were hidden. Create a free account today, and see how Easy Expunctions can help you identify and remove your charges and offenses.