Criminal Appeals & Writs of Habeas Corpus

At this very moment, there are countless innocent people in jails or prisons around the country. Such injustices can occur because of biased juries or ineffective trial counsel.

Regardless of the reason, if you or someone you care for has been wronged at the trial level you may want to take the necessary steps to strive for their justice and freedom

The following are two methods of attacking the trial court decision: Criminal Appeals and Writs

Criminal Appeals

Simply stated, a Criminal Appeal is a formal request to a higher court to reverse the verdict of a lower court. The Criminal Appeal can take the form of a direct challenge to the conviction of the lower court; or the Criminal Appeal may address the sentencing decision of the one handed out by the lower court.

In Texas, there are very strict deadlines for filing Criminal Appeals. For Criminal Appeals, the notice of appeal must be filed within thirty (30) days after the day the sentence is imposed or suspended in open court, or after the trial court enters an appealable order. Or, if a motion for new trial was timely filed with the court, the notice of appeal must be filed within ninety (90) days after the day the sentence was imposed or suspended in open court.

Once the deadline has been missed, the Court of Appeals is simply without jurisdiction to hear the Criminal Appeal, and has no power to do so. However, there may be grounds for a Writ of Habeas Corpus if a deadline was missed because of ineffective assistance of counsel. But there are certainly no guarantees, and it is not a good idea to test the system. In other words, it's best not to miss the deadline in the first place.

The constitution gives each of us the right to appeal and you should use that right when necessary. There are countless reasons why a verdict is in need of being overturned. For instance, a judge may erroneously allow evidence (such as a prior criminal allegation of the accused) to be introduced. This might cause the allegation to be the focus for the jury panel - and NOT the facts of the case. This scenario occurs on a regular basis and it usually has a detrimental impact on the outcome of the trial.

Oftentimes in a Criminal Appeal, the first thought is to employ the attorney who originally tried the case. While this sometimes might be the right decision, it usually is not. That is, it can be very beneficial to have a new set of eyes review the record, and perhaps bring forth unique ideas and a fresh argument.

Writs of Habeas Corpus

A Writ is a type of post-conviction review that occurs in limited circumstances and when a wrongly convicted person has exhausted their appeals process.

Writs can be "filed" when there are jurisdictional defects or violations of certain fundamental or constitutional rights.

Examples of cases where a writ may be invoked are: convictions that were obtained due to an involuntary plea, coerced confession, or ineffective assistance of counsel. These are just a few examples. Of course, there are more.

In short, Writs are a final attempt to instruct the government to stop the imprisonment of a wrongly convicted individual.

We encourage you to contact us to discuss whether you have a possible claim by way of Criminal Appeal or Writ of Habeas Corpus or an appeal. Please remember that time is critical in all post- conviction matters, and there are a multitude of deadlines. Therefore, if you truly want to seek a post-conviction appeal or writ, contact us or another qualified attorney at once.