Felony arrests need to be taken seriously because people found guilty of aggravated robbery will typically spend significant time in jail. Texas does not charge anyone with simple armed robbery; if someone commits a robbery while brandishing a weapon they will receive a charge of aggravated robbery.
It is important to not be fooled by the wording because this is a first-degree felony. It is the same charge as armed robbery but the perpetrator does not need to have a weapon to be found guilty. Receiving these charges means that a specific scenario took place during a robbery.
- The victim was threatened with a deadly weapon. It could be any weapon with the ability to cause severe injury or death.
- The victim received a serious bodily injury even without a weapon being present.
- Actions were taken that led the victim to believe they may be severely injured or killed during the robbery.
- Whenever the victim of the event is over the age of 65.
- If the victim is someone suffering from a physical, mental or developmental disability.
Basic robbery charges are second-degree crimes that could lead to serious penalties of up to 20 years in prison. However, the punishment for first-degree crimes of this type is much more severe. Convictions could result in fines as high as $10,000 and a sentence of as much as 99 years in a state prison. Self-representation is dangerous when incarceration is threatened. Even someone with a clean criminal record prior to the arrest needs to hire legal help.
Law firms such as Vinas and Graham are criminal defense attorneys that help people fight against first-degree felony charges. There are many possible scenarios where the person arrested is not to blame. It may be a case of mistaken identity or the person charged may have actually been defending their own property and not attempting to steal anything. A defense attorney will protect their client from the moment they accept the case. They help their clients to understand the charges and will do everything legally allowed to get charges lowered, reduce any punishment or to have the case dropped and their client cleared of all charges. Contact a law firm immediately after an arrest and before speaking to anyone about the case.
