Andrewlegal's Blog

Basic Criminal Punishments for Texas Crimes July 9, 2010

Criminal Law in Texas encompasses the entire area of the law wherein if a person violates a criminal law or statute he may be subject to either a fine or jail or imprisonment or both fine and jail or fine and imprisonment. Criminal law includes any situitation wherein a person’s liberty is at stake of being lost completely, for example when a person is imprisoned for a serious crime, or one’s liberty is deprived to a lesser extent such as when a person receives probation as opposed to being sent to prison or jail. Thus even when a person is on probation, his liberty has been deprived to the extent that he may not leave the state of county without permission of the judge. Therefore, his liberty has been restricted in some way.  Criminal law also encompasses a situitation where a person may receive some type of punishment even if it is only a fine of some sort for a criminal act. Fines generally are associated with traffic offenses.

Criminal law has a broad range and is generally categorized according to the punishment one may receive for the law that is violated. The crime can be as minor as a traffic offense wherein the person may be fined for the misconduct.  Traffic offenses are criminal offenses under Texas law as there can be a punishment imposed for the infraction. Traffic offenses are punished by fine only.  One cannot receive a jail sentence as punishment for a traffic violation. However, because there is some type of punishment, albeit a fine only, a traffic offense is still considered a criminal offense under Texas law. Most traffic violations are classified as class C misdemeanors.

The next more serious criminal offenses are known as class B misdemeanors for which a person may receive up to 180 days in the county jail or a fine of up o $2,000.00 or both fine and jail time. Class A misdemeanors are those for which a person may receive a $4,000.00 fine and up to one year in the county jail and are the most serious of misdemeanors offenses for which a person may be convicted.  Class A misdemeanors include offenses for assault, theft of property of over $500.00 and many others.

A felony offense known as a state jail felony is the least serious of the felony offenses one might commit in Texas. It however, is much more serious than any of the misdemeanor offenses and carries a range of punishment of anywhere from 180 days in a state jail facility up to 2 years in a state jail and/or a $10,000.00 fine, or both.  The more serious offenses are felony offenses wherein one may receive 2 to 10 years in prison which is a third degree felony, 2- 20 years in prison which is a second degree felony, and 5 to 99 years or life in prison for a first degree felony, each of which also carries a fine of $10,000.00. Finally, a person who is convicted of a capital felony may receive either the death penalty or automatic life in prison without the possibility of parole.  The above is a basic overview of the ranges of punishment for the categories of criminal acts in Texas.