Fort Worth Felony Lawyer

A felony charge in Fort Worth puts everything on the line: your freedom, your record, your job, and your future. Felonies are the most serious crimes in Texas, and a conviction can mean years in prison and a permanent mark that follows you long after the case is over. If you or someone you love has been arrested for a felony in Tarrant County, the decisions you make in the first days matter.

Varghese Summersett defends felony cases in Fort Worth and across Tarrant County every day. Our team includes Board Certified criminal law specialists and former prosecutors who know how the district attorney builds these cases and where they break down. An accusation is not a conviction, and the strategy behind your defense often decides the outcome.

Texas divides crimes into misdemeanors and felonies. A misdemeanor is punishable by a fine or time in county jail. A felony is more serious and carries the possibility of time in a state prison run by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Texas sorts felonies into five levels, from state jail felonies at the lower end to capital felonies at the top.

The level of the charge controls the punishment range, whether probation is even available, and how the case is handled in court. Knowing exactly what you are charged with, and why, is the first step in building a defense.

The Texas Penal Code sets the punishment range for each felony level. These are the ranges a judge or jury can consider on a conviction.

Prior convictions can raise these ranges. A repeat or habitual offender can face a punishment range far above the base level for the current charge, which is why your record matters as much as the new allegation.

A state jail felony is the lowest felony level and is served in a state jail facility rather than prison, with day-for-day time and no parole. Common examples include certain drug possession amounts and some theft offenses. In the right circumstances, a state jail felony can sometimes be reduced to a misdemeanor, which is one of the outcomes we work toward when the facts allow.

At the other end are what many still call 3G offenses, now found in Article 42A of the Code of Criminal Procedure. These are the most serious felonies, including murder, aggravated robbery, aggravated sexual assault, and injury to a child. For a 3G offense, a judge cannot grant judge-ordered probation, and a person sent to prison must serve at least half of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole. The stakes could not be higher, and these cases demand an aggressive, detailed defense.

A felony case in Fort Worth follows a different path than a misdemeanor. After an arrest, you are taken before a magistrate who sets bond and informs you of the charges. Felony cases are handled in the Tim Curry Criminal Justice Center and the Tarrant County district courts.

Unlike a misdemeanor, a felony must be presented to a grand jury. The grand jury decides whether there is enough evidence to formally charge you through an indictment. This is a critical stage. A well-prepared presentation to the grand jury can result in a no-bill, which ends the case before it ever reaches a trial court. After indictment, the case moves through pretrial hearings, motions, and negotiations, and then to a plea or a jury trial.

After a felony arrest, a magistrate sets a bond so you can be released while your case is pending. Bond can be a cash bond, a surety bond through a bail bondsman, or in some cases a personal bond that does not require money up front. The amount depends on the charge, your criminal history, and whether the court sees you as a flight risk or a danger to the community.

Bonds also come with conditions, such as no-contact orders, GPS monitoring, or alcohol and drug testing. We can ask the court to lower a bond set too high or to modify conditions that are keeping you from work or family.

Every felony case is different, but strong defenses often come from the same places. When police stopped, searched, or arrested you without a lawful basis, a motion to suppress can throw out the evidence that came from it. When the State relies on a single witness or shaky forensic work, that evidence can be challenged and undermined. Self-defense, lack of intent, mistaken identity, and a flawed investigation are all defenses we have used to win dismissals and reductions.

The earlier we get involved, the more we can do. Sometimes the most important work happens before an indictment, when we can present evidence to prosecutors or the grand jury that changes the direction of the case.

A felony conviction reaches far beyond a sentence. Beyond prison time and fines, a felony record can cost you the right to own a firearm, limit your right to vote while you are serving the sentence, and appear on background checks for jobs, housing, and professional licenses for the rest of your life. For non-citizens, a felony can lead to removal from the country. These consequences are the reason it is worth fighting for the best possible outcome instead of accepting the first offer.

Our Fort Worth felony team handles the full range of felony cases in Tarrant County, including:

• Aggravated assault
• Arson
• Kidnapping and aggravated kidnapping
• Engaging in organized crime
• Tampering with evidence
• Manslaughter
• 3G offenses
• Felony DWI