FAQ

Your first step is to secure the services of an experienced TRIAL attorney.  By securing an experienced trial attorney you can begin to strategize your next steps and you can consider various options for you and your family.  The attorney you choose should have the ability to create various options for you and help you feel confident you are choosing the path that is best for you and your family.  When a person is accused of a crime, because of the stress and fear, the accused often forget they have options.  At Ramos Law, the accused always have options. We pride ourselves on defending our clients’ rights by (1) giving our clients as many as options as possible and (2) giving them the confidence to choose which path her or she wants take in handling their case.  If a client feels that their best option is to challenge the allegation in a jury trial, we have the criminal trial experience to defend your rights to the fullest.  If a client feels that their best options is to settle their case through agreeing to a lesser related offense, we have the knowledge and experience to protect your interests.

If a detective or an investigator informs you that you are the subject of a criminal investigation, then you need to secure immediate legal representation.  In many circumstances, a skilled criminal defense attorney can begin to draft a strategy to defend you against false or unsubstantiated allegations against you.  At Ramos Law, once a client secures our services, we will  respond to any investigator’s request in a manner that protects your interests and rights. We can then begin to build a strategy to counter any allegations that come your way.

DO NOT TALK TO THE DETECTIVE.  A skilled detective will invite you to talk and  to “give your side of the story.” The detective’s invitation will be friendly and disarming.   However, a skilled detective will not tell you that he or she has already concluded their investigation. In many instances, the detective has already formed an opinion about your guilt.  In many instances, the detective’s friendly invitation is a trap. You are merely the final piece in the detective’s puzzle. The detective hoping to lock you in a story.

DO NOT GIVE A STATEMENT. In Texas, the law says that a jury or a judge cannot fault you for refusing to give a statement to police.  In Texas, everyone has the right to remain silent at anytime.  And, if you chose to exercise your right to remain silent, no one is allowed to use your choice against you. Every detective is taught that he or she cannot make person give a statement. So, in many instances, many detectives use scare tactics to get you to give a statement.   The average person believes if he or she does not give their side of the story, a judge or a jury will think they have something to hide.  Many detectives prey upon this insecurity.   At Ramos Law, we make sure that our clients receive the full benefits of exercising their right to remain silent without fear of looking like they have something to hide.

YES.  In Texas, a detective can sit down with you and lie to your face you about the evidence they discovered. The detective usually lies about the evidence he or she discovered because (1) the detective does not have enough evidence against you to substantiate a case or (2) the detective wants to you confession to the crime.  In either circumstance, the you will provide statements that will lock you in to a story or force you to reveal embarrassing information (i.e. having an affair or engaging in some vice), that the detective will use against to you build their case.  At Ramos Law, we defend our clients against these tactics.

No. If you accept an invitation to meet with a detective with an understanding that you will be allowed to leave the police station, then the detective is not required to notify you of your legal rights.  Again, when a detective invites you to meet with him or her, the detective has already finished their investigation. An interview with you is the the last piece of the puzzle. As a career prosecutor, I have seen hundreds instances in which a detective invites the person to the station to give a statement, allows the person to leave, all the while knowing the person will be arrested with a warrant later in the day.  Don’t be enticed with a detective’s promise that he or she will allow you leave.  The detective has a plan that he or she will not reveal to you.  

No! As a career prosecutor, I was often grateful when a suspect in my case gave a statement to police.  As a prosecutor, I knew that I could use any statement from a suspect against them. Later in my career as a prosecutor, I taught classes to detectives on the best ways to get incriminating statements. The average person does not know that the most innocent responses can be used against them.  When the average person provides seemingly harmless information, such as a timeline of events, details about a particular conversation, or details about the a particular relationship, the detective or prosecutor will use your statements against you. Any statement you give to a detective will result in your making your lawyer’s job more difficult. At Ramos Law, we will learn about and your case so that we can speak for you and be your voice.

Yes.  As a prosecutor, I regularly listened to jail inmates talk to family and friends.  In many instances, these inmates ignored the advice of their lawyers and talked about their case to their family.  In Bexar County, the jail phones and video conferencing devices are equipped with third party eavesdropping devices.   I often listened to this conversations and obtained good information as I prosecuted their case.  Do not talk about your case with anyone accept your lawyer.

In Texas, there are three ways a person commits  murder. (1) A person commits murder if he or she intentionally and knowingly causes the death of individual.  (2) A person commits murder if he or she, while intending to cause serious bodily injury, commits an act clearly dangerous to human life that causes the death of an individual. (3). A person commits murder when, as he or she is committing a felony and in the course of committing the felony, he or she commits an act clearly dangerous to human life that causes the death of an individual.

In Texas, the offense of Murder is a First Degree Felony punishment between 5 years and 99 years in prison.

Yes. In Texas, the law allows for a person, when immediately necessary,  to use force to defend themselves against the lawfully deadly force of another person. If someone is using deadly force against you, you have the right to defendant yourself.  Sometimes defending yourself results in causing the death of your attacker. Additionally, in many instances, the law allows you to defend yourself if you reasonably believe that force was immediately necessary.  In many circumstances, law enforcement officials sometimes will receive incorrect information or jump to conclusions and not consider the self defense evidence. If you were being attacked or if you were reasonable in your beliefs that force was immediately necessary, then you could have a strong defense for causing the death of your attacker.  At Ramos Law, we have the prosecutorial experience and the trial experience to bring these factors in front of a judge or jury.  

In Texas, there are several different ways to commit the offense of sexual assault. Essentially , a person commits sexual assault if the person has sexual intercourse or sexual contact without the consent of the another person.  In proving a sexual assault occurred, the prosecutor has to prove a person had sexual intercourse without the consent of the other person. As a career prosecutor, I have reviewed and prosecuted thousands of allegations involving sexual assault and abuse.  And, I have learned that defining consent, especially in this during the Me Too movement can be very difficult.  Adult encounters combined with various sexual behavior between participating adults can make consent very difficult to define.  Investigators often simply rely on the alleged victim’s word to prove to lack of consent.  At Ramos Law, we protect our clients by directly targeting the difficult nature of defining consent. Can the prosecutor can establish a lack of consent by the alleged victim’s word alone?  Using various techniques, such phone data, digital messages, explicit photos of the alleged victim, rigorous cross examination.