Dallas Defense Lawyer for Child Injury Charges
Injury to a Child
Often commonly referred to as child abuse, police, prosecutors, and courts take injury to a child allegations very seriously. First, a conviction could lead to lengthy prison sentences, large financial penalties, and a permanent record. Furthermore, the damage to your reputation and career can negatively impact you and your family both in the present and future. Whether the allegation against you is flat-out false, was legitimate child discipline, or was an unfortunate mistake, it is absolutely vital to secure the best possible defense. Don’t put your life, family, and future in just anyone’s hands. When it seems like the world is against you, you need the best possible Dallas injury to a child attorney in your corner.
Dallas Injury to a Child Attorney Mike Howard
Above all, I strive to help my clients through difficult times with compassion and integrity. In Dallas innocent people can get accused, charged, and convicted when they don’t have a Dallas injury to a child attorney fighting for them. I believe in standing up for people facing criminal accusations and helping them navigate all that comes with being thrown into the criminal justice system.
Client-Centered
The cornerstone of my law practice is focusing on my clients as individuals. I start by taking the time to understand not just the facts of their case, but who they are and what they need. Because I know the criminal justice system can be intimidating, I explain the process, their rights, and their options. Client communication is extremely important to me, so I make sure my team and I do everything possible to quickly answer questions and return messages.
Willing to Fight
Most importantly, I am willing to fight a case in court. I have a track record of delivering fantastic results at trial. While not every client and case needs to go to trial, it can make a difference. When your Dallas family violence attorney has a reputation as a skillful trial lawyer who fights for their clients, however, it makes all the difference in the world.
Our Case Process
Listen & Understand
Open Communication
Fight for Justice
Injury to a Child Charges in Dallas
Injury to a Child (Texas Penal Code § 22.04) – a person commits child abuse if they intentionally, knowingly, recklessly, or with criminal negligence by act, or intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly by omission, causes a child:
- bodily injury;
- serious bodily injury; or
- serious mental deficiency, impairment, or injury.
A child means a person 14 years of age or younger.
Resources and Information
See our criminal defense resource center for more information on from Dallas assault lawyer Mike Howard on fundamental rights in a criminal case, definitions of culpable mental states (intentionally, knowingly, etc), defenses to prosecution, and more.
Injury to a Child Penalties & Consequences
Intentional or knowing injury to a child that causes bodily injury is a third-degree felony. This can result in 2-10 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine. If a person causes bodily injury to a child recklessly, the charge is a state jail felony. This can result in 6 months – 2 years in the state jail facility and up to a $10,000 fine.
Injury to a child that causes serious bodily injury or serious mental deficiency, impairment, or injury is a first-degree felony. This can result in 5-99 years or life in prison and up to a $10,000 fine. However, if the offense was committed recklessly, it is a second-degree felony. This can result in 2-20 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine.
Any of the above offenses (causing bodily injury, serious bodily injury, or mental deficiency, impairment, or injury) that is committed with criminal negligence is a state jail felony. This can result in 6 months – 2 years in the state jail facility and up to a $10,000 fine.
Defending Injury to a Child Charges in Dallas
First and foremost, the prosecutor must prove their allegation beyond a reasonable doubt. If the prosecutor cannot rule out each and every possible reasonable doubt, the presumption of innocence prevails. As a result, the court must find you not guilty. This means you don’t have to prove that you didn’t do it. You don’t have to prove anything!
The only way the prosecution wins is if the jury believes their story is the only reasonable way it could’ve happened. If they have any reasonable doubts that it actually happened, they must find you not guilty. If they reasonably think it could’ve happened another way, they must find you not guilty. This is the highest burden of proof in our justice system. When implemented by a skilled Dallas assault attorney, it can be a powerful weapon.
Choosing the Right Injury to a Child Attorney in Dallas
Searching for injury to a child attorneys in Dallas can be overwhelming. After all, you are choosing someone who will hold your life, your future, and your family’s future in their hands. You have to be comfortable with them and feel that you can trust the information and advice they give you. Attorneys are supposed to always work in their clients’ best interest. That shouldn’t just be meaningless talk.
First, talk to several lawyers to get a feel for them and their staff. Do they take the time necessary to get to know you, to listen to what’s important to you, and answer your questions? Second, do they show you that you matter to them as a person and not just as a fee? Further, beware of lawyers who put the hard sell on you or who make big promises. No attorney should ever make a guarantee about a case. Finally, absolutely avoid a lawyer who doesn’t communicate the scope of the work and their fee clearly in a written contract.
What Makes Mike Howard Different
Many attorneys take advantage of their clients’ ignorance of the criminal justice process. We take the opposite approach. A knowledgeable client is a happy client. Therefore, we provide a wealth of information in the way of articles about criminal offenses, blog posts, and videos for free on our website.
Visit Our YouTube Channel for informational videos and client testimonials.
Visit Our blog for posts on cases, defenses, and criminal law information.
A Proven Track Record
- State vs. ST – Injury to a Child Causing Serious Bodily Injury – Deferred Probation
- State vs. MT – Indecency with a Child – Not Guilty
- State vs. MJ – Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child – Not Guilty
- State vs. JC – Aggravated Sex Assault of a Child – Case Reduced and Given Deferred Adjudication Probation
- State vs. FW – Aggravated Sex Assault of a Child – Deferred Adjudication Probation