Sugar Land Fort Bend County Texas Criminal Lawyer Jim Sullivan Fights Felony Cases

Houston Criminal Defense Lawyer Jim Sullivan has a proven record in getting serious felony cases no billed (dismissed) by the Grand Jury.  

When a person is accused of a felony offense, there may be the possibility of his defense attorney winning his felony case at the Grand Jury level.  Depending on the facts and circumstances of the case, this may or may not be a viable option, so it is important to talk to an experienced criminal defense attorney.  By utilizing this strategy, the accused in effect has two opportunities to win his case before a jury:

1. Grand Jury and, if indicted,
2. Jury Trial

If the Grand Jury votes that probable cause (i.e. a probability) does not exist to believe that the accused committed the offense, the case is no billed (dismissed).  If the Grand Jury votes that probable cause does exist, then the case is true billed (indicted).  If a case is no billed, the accused has the immediate legal right to seek an expunction of his criminal record.  If a case is indicted, then the accused may have to have a Jury Trial in order to get the best result.   A Jury Trial is more expensive and involves much more time and legal work.

Because prosecutors generally seek to present felony cases to the Grand Jury between the first and second court setting, it is extremely important to hire a defense attorney right away.  Unless a defense attorney requests that the prosecutor hold the case from the Grand Jury in order to prepare a defense packet, the prosecutor will seek an indictment from the Grand Jury soon after the felony charge is filed.

Once an accused is indicted, this option is no longer available.  Therefore, time is of the essence in retaining a knowledgeable defense attorney.

Since 1994, Houston Criminal Lawyer Jim Sullivan has worked to get countless felony cases no billed by the Grand Jury.  These felony cases include Sexual Assault of a Child, Attempted Murder, Aggravated Robbery, Aggravated Assault of a Public Servant, Aggravated Assault, Injury to a Child, Forgery and Burglary of a Habitation among others.  The graph below lists just the 20+ felony cases that have been no billed since November 2008.

This strategy is underutilized by other attorneys. Some lawyers do not understand the process or how to construct a persuasive defense packet.  Jim Sullivan knows lawyers who have practiced criminal law for over 20 years but have never fought a felony at the grand jury level.  Other attorneys do not do so because they know that they can charge much more money to go to trial.   Court-appointed lawyers are paid by each court appearance that make, so the longer the case lasts the more money they make.  Therefore, very few are willing to do this.  Jim Sullivan cares about his clients and wants to get them the best result in as short amount of time as possible while charging a reasonable fee, so he considers this option on all of his felony cases.

Range of punishment for felonies include: 1° Felony (5 yrs to Life in prison), 2° Felony (2-20 yrs in prison), 3° Felony (2-10 yrs in prison) and SJF (6 months to 2 yrs in state jail)

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PROVEN RESULTS: 

DATE	CASE #	CT #	TEXAS FELONY OFFENSE	ACTUAL RESULT
09/21/12	1356656	180TH	ASSAULT FAMILY  MEMBER BY IMPEDING BREATHING (3° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of choking his girlfriend during an argument)
08/17/12	1340646	184TH	INJURY TO A CHILD (1° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of breaking his infant son’s leg and 3 ribs.)
05/30/12	1336650	351ST	ASSAULT FAMILY  MEMBER BY IMPEDING BREATHING (3° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of choking his wife during an argument)
05/25/12	1341002	183RD	AGGRAVATED ASSAULT (2° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of intentionally trying to drive into and strike her girlfriend)
05/18/12	1338389	339TH	EVADING BY MOTOR VEHICLE (3° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of evading police in her car when she drove about ½  mile after the officer switched on his strobe lights)
04/19/12	1332791	185TH	SEXUAL ASSAULT OF A CHILD (2° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of having sex with 16 year old girl who falsely claimed she was 18)
12/07/11	1321679	184TH	BURGLARY OF A HABITATION (2° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused breaking into home while homeowner was home, however client had credible alibi witnesses at the time of the alleged burglary)
07/15/11	1302447	232ND	AGGRAVATED ASSAULT (2° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of intentionally driving into and striking the new girlfriend of her ex-boyfriend)
05/27/11	1302814	232nd	AGGRAVATED ASSAULT (2° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of hitting man in head with beer bottle outside a bar;  client claimed self-defense)
05/20/11	1291937	263RD	AGGRAVATED ASSAULT AGAINST PUBLIC SERVANT (1° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Police Officer shot at 4 unarmed teenagers in a truck and claimed that client pointed a gun at him)
01/06/11	1281977	174TH	AGGRAVATED ASSAULT (2° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of hitting other woman in head with metal pole)
01/05/11	1281428	174TH	ASSAULT FAMILY VIOLENCE 2nd OFFENDER (Felony Habitual)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of hitting wife multiple times after both had been drinking. Client faced 25 years to a lifetime in prison)
12/03/10	1283460	232nd	SEXUAL ASSAULT OF A CHILD (2° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of consensual sex with underage female)
10/21/10	1275771	180TH	AGGRAVATED ASSAULT (2° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of injuring another man, using knuckles)
09/23/10	1270564	176TH	AGGRAVATED ASSAULT (2° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client was accused of using a knife to threaten another man who the client accused of stealing his property from his apartment)
08/24/10	1264919	232ND	SEXUAL ASSAULT OF A CHILD (2° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of consensual sex with underage female)
04/08/10	1252585	262ND	FORGERY OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENT (3° FELONY)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of knowingly passing a counterfeit $100 bill at store)
02/24/10	1241754	177TH	AGGRAVATED SEXUAL ASSAULT CHILD (1° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of molesting his sister-in-law)
02/24/10	1241755	177TH	AGGRAVATED SEXUAL ASSAULT CHILD (1° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of molesting his sister-in-law)
11/23/09	1231727	179TH	SEXUAL ASSAULT OF A CHILD (2° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client accused of consensual sex with underage female)
05/20/09	1203539	337TH	AGGRAVATED ASSAULT (2° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY
11/13/08	1182231	179TH	BURGLARY OF A HABITATION WITH INTENT TO COMMIT ASSAULT (1° Felony)	NO BILLED BY GRAND JURY (Client was accused of breaking into an apartment and attacking the occupants after a drug deal went bad)