Houston Murder Defense Lawyer

Houston Criminal Lawyer Defending Against Murder Allegations

Texas classifies homicides in five distinct groups, based on the situations involved in the incident. Capital murder is the most serious of all homicide charges and can result in the death penalty. A murder may fall into this category if it was planned, victimized a person in a protected class or was commissioned during another serious crime. Protected classes of people are firefighters, police officers and children under six. There are a lot of crimes that count as "serious" including kidnapping, rape, prison escape, etc.

If a murder is not heinous enough to be a capital murder, it will be a first or second degree felony. The penalty for these crimes can be up to life imprisonment and $10,000 in fines. Manslaughter is a lesser charge involving the unintentional killing of another person. Intoxication occurs when a drunk driver kills someone. Both types of manslaughter are second or third degree felonies and can result in two to twenty years in prison. Criminally negligent homicide occurs when the suspect could have easily prevented the death, but failed to perform a basic duty that resulted in disaster. This crime is punishable by up to two years in jail and $10,000 in fines.

Have you been criminally charged with murder?

If you have been accused of a violent crime such as murder, you have some very serious decisions to make, the most important of which, is who will provide your criminal defense in Texas. Once you have a talented Houston criminal defense attorney on your team, making other decisions will be a lot easier. Your lawyer can help you decide if you should negotiate a plea bargain, if you can fight the admission of any evidence against you, if you can get the charges reduced and he or she can help investigate the crime to come up with more evidence in your favor.

In many situations, murder is punishable by death, so choosing the right criminal lawyer can be a life-saving decision, particularly considering that Texas performs executions at four times the rate of any other state. When you are accused of murder, you can be certain the prosecution has loads of evidence pointing towards your guilt. That is why it is so important to have a skilled attorney to help you fight evidence that was obtained illegally and obtain evidence in your favor. I, attorney Ned Barnett, vow to do everything in my power to help you fight these charges. I will investigate the murder scene and perform any necessary forensics.

If you have been accused of a murder, don't wait to get the representation you so desperately need. Contact a Houston murder defense lawyer from our offices today to schedule your free initial consultation.