Patience's a Virtue in Brazos County

The smile on my client's face made the long wait worth it. He'd been arrested in November 2008 and charged with 8 counts of aggravated robbery, one count of burglary, and assorted controlled substance charges. During each visit with my client I encouraged him to remain patient. We had investigated the facts of the serious robbery charges and determined there was little evidence to prove guilt, if any.

The nature of this case dovetailed well with my earlier post regarding the corroboration of accomplice testimony. Here my client was being held on the testimony of an accomplice. (which can be probable cause enough to indict and detain) However, with the help of my investigator we demonstrated the State had no corroboration. After we brought this to their attention, we went before the judge requesting a bond reduction. Although we failed to obtain the personal bond we sought, the judge did lower the bonds significantly. However, we continued to wait and wait for the prosecutor to perform their follow-up investigation and come to the same conclusion we had, no corroboration.

That was 9 months ago. Finally, our patience paid off when the State agreed they'd dismiss 8 counts of aggravated robbery and one county of burglary against my client. We resolved the remainder of the charges with a plea bargain for time-served, and my client couldn't be happier. He's going home very soon.

So the moral of the story is be prepared with a large dose of patience. A good criminal defense lawyer can help you understand the ins and outs of your particular situation. But most of the time it's the prosecutor that must come around and see the handwriting on the wall.