Have you been convicted of a crime in Dallas, TX, and need to appeal? Texas Defense Firm can fight for your rights—call (469) 772-9509 for a consultation with a Dallas criminal appeals lawyer.
Our legal team knows how trial errors, procedural mistakes, or newly discovered evidence can open the door to a second chance in Texas courts. A conviction doesn’t have to define your future. We know how to identify legal missteps, draft persuasive briefs, and challenge unfair verdicts.
Reach out today to discuss your case with an experienced Dallas criminal appeals lawyer.
Why Hire Texas Defense Firm if You’re Arrested?
When your future is on the line after an arrest in Dallas, TX, you need more than just any law firm. People throughout Texas choose Texas Defense Firm, because dedication and proven results set us apart.
Here’s why we are qualified to help:
- Our firm has more than 200 years of combined legal experience, giving us insight into how to handle even the most difficult cases.
- We were voted McKinney’s best law firm, and clients and the community trust us with their most difficult moments.
- When you’re facing charges, we know that questions and concerns come up at all hours of the day. We answer the phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to help you with your case.
- No two cases or clients are alike. We listen first, then build a plan around who you are and what you need.
When you’re facing charges in Dallas, working with an experienced criminal defense firm is a must. Contact our team when you’re ready to discuss your case with a Dallas criminal defense attorney.
Overview of Criminal Appeals in Texas
A criminal appeal in Texas gives you the right to ask a higher court to review your conviction or sentence if you believe mistakes were made during your trial. Instead of starting over with a new jury or new evidence, the Texas Court of Appeals looks at what happened in your original case – reading through transcripts, legal arguments, and the judge’s rulings.
The goal is to identify legal errors or unfair procedures that may have led to a wrongful conviction or an excessively harsh sentence, and to correct them if necessary.
Where Appeals Cases Go
In Texas, appeals for misdemeanors from county courts are typically handled by one of the state’s regional Courts of Appeals. For felony convictions and more serious misdemeanor cases, the appeal process can reach the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, which is the highest court for criminal cases in the state.
What Are the Penalties for Criminal Convictions in Dallas, Texas?
Facing a criminal conviction in Dallas, Texas, comes with consequences that can affect every aspect of your life. The severity of the penalty depends on the specific charge, your prior record, and other details.
Possible consequences include:
- Jail or prison time: You may serve time in the county jail for a misdemeanor conviction or be sent to state prison when convicted of serious crimes like felonies.
- Fines: Convictions often bring significant financial penalties, from a few hundred dollars for less-serious offenses to $10,000 or more for felonies.
- Probation: Instead of or in addition to jail time, you might be placed on probation. You’ll follow court-imposed rules, check in with an officer, complete community service, and face jail time for violating any terms.
- Additional requirements: Depending on the offense, you could be ordered into counseling, drug tests, DUI classes, sex offender registration, driver’s license restrictions, or pay restitution to victims.
- Collateral consequences: Criminal convictions may also affect immigration status, voting rights, gun ownership, or eligibility for certain professional licenses.
If you’re facing criminal charges in Dallas, getting effective legal representation is essential to minimize or avoid these penalties, which could be possible through an appeal.
Grounds for a Criminal Appeal
Appealing a criminal conviction in Texas isn’t as simple as being unhappy with the outcome of your trial. For a higher court to review and potentially overturn your conviction or sentence, your appeal must be grounded in serious legal mistakes that affected the fairness of your case.
Some of the most common grounds for an appeal include the following:
Problems with Evidence
Sometimes, evidence is used in your trial when it shouldn’t have been. For example, evidence that was obtained in violation of your rights through an unconstitutional search and seizure. Appeals based on this reason ask the higher court to review whether key evidence was wrongly admitted or suppressed.
If prosecutors relied on tainted evidence to secure a conviction, correcting this could result in a new trial or even a reversal of your conviction.
Prosecutor Misconduct
An appeal can also target unethical or illegal behavior by the prosecution that violated your right to a fair trial. Examples include a prosecutor withholding evidence that might have helped your defense (called a Brady violation), introducing inflammatory comments to the jury, or deliberately mischaracterizing facts.
Showing that a prosecutor crossed ethical or legal lines and that it made a real difference in the outcome can be grounds for overturning a conviction.
Ineffective Legal Representation
Defendants in Texas have a right to competent legal advocacy. If your lawyer failed to investigate major issues, missed deadlines, failed to challenge poor evidence, or otherwise performed far below the standards expected of defense attorneys, it may qualify as ineffective assistance of counsel.
These claims require showing that your attorney’s mistakes were not just strategic decisions and that they changed the outcome of your verdict or sentence.
Jury-Related Issues
Problems in how the jury was selected or how members behaved can also support an appeal. This could include allowing biased jurors to serve, improper communication between jurors and outside parties during deliberations, or evidence of jurors being intimidated.
These issues are serious because even small problems with the jury can undermine the validity of your conviction.
Sentencing Errors
Appeals don’t always challenge guilt or innocence—sometimes a legal mistake, miscalculation, or incorrect application of sentencing statutes occurs after a conviction. For example, if the judge sentenced you beyond what’s allowed by law, the sentence can be overturned or changed on appeal.
The best way to determine if you have an appeal in your case is to speak with a criminal appeals lawyer as soon as possible.
Steps in the Appeals Process
If you’re thinking about appealing a criminal conviction in Texas, it helps to know how the process works and what each step involves. Here’s what you can expect:
File a Notice of Appeal
This first step is time-sensitive and essential. You (or your lawyer) must officially tell the court you plan to appeal, usually within 30 days after your sentencing date. Missing this deadline almost always ends your right to appeal, so prompt action is critical.
Prepare an Appellate Brief
Once your appeal is initiated, your appeals attorney writes and files a detailed written argument, called an appellate brief, explaining the specific legal mistakes that occurred during your trial. This highlights why your conviction or sentence needs to be changed.
Oral Arguments
Sometimes, but not always, both the defense and the prosecution may be invited to present oral arguments in front of a panel of judges. Each side gets a limited amount of time to clarify points, answer questions, and expand on the written briefs.
Court Decision
Once the appellate judges have reviewed the briefs and arguments, they reach a decision, with several possible outcomes.
Affirm the Conviction
This means the appeals court decides that everything at your trial was done correctly, so your original conviction and sentence remain unchanged, and the case is finished. Reverse the Conviction. If the court finds a serious legal error, it can reverse your conviction.
This can result in your charges being thrown out entirely, or, most commonly, the case going back to the trial court for a new trial, with the identified mistakes corrected.
Modify the Sentence
In some instances, the appellate judges agree that your sentence was contrary to the law or too harsh, so they change your sentence, possibly reducing prison time or making other corrections, even if your guilty verdict stands.
Remand the Case for Further Action
Remanding means sending your case back to the trial court, usually with instructions. The lower court must then conduct hearings, recalculate the sentence, allow additional evidence, or address specific errors the appeals court found.
The appeals process can be complex and stressful, but it also gives you a powerful second chance when legal errors unfairly alter your case.
Schedule a Case Evaluation With Our Dallas Criminal Appeals Lawyer
The appeals process is incredibly confusing, with most people not understanding when you’re able to appeal a verdict and what happens if you’re successful. Whether you believe new evidence was overlooked or your rights were violated during trial in Dallas, Texas, quick, knowledgeable legal help is essential.
Contact Texas Defense Firm to schedule a consultation with a Dallas criminal appeals lawyer.
