Being charged with any type of crime is incredibly frightening. When you’re charged with something as serious as intoxication manslaughter, this is even more concerning. It’s important to know exactly what this crime is and what elements the prosecutor has to prove in court so you can be prepared and know what to expect.
What Is Manslaughter?
In Texas, manslaughter is defined as recklessly causing the death of another person. In order to be found guilty of this in court, the prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that your actions were reckless, and those reckless actions led to the death of another person.
It’s important to realize that they absolutely do not have to prove that you intended for the person to die. Further, you don’t even have to be aware that your actions caused someone’s death in order to be charged with and convicted of this crime.
What Is Intoxication Manslaughter?
According to the Texas Penal Code, a person commits the crime of intoxication manslaughter if they (1) operate a motor vehicle in a public place, operate an aircraft, a watercraft, or an amusement ride, or assemble a mobile amusement ride; and (2) is intoxicated and by reason of that intoxication causes the death of another by accident or mistake.
As you can see, just like a standard manslaughter charge in Texas, intoxication manslaughter does not require any type of planning or intent to cause a person’s death. Intoxication in this context means not having the normal use of mental or physical faculties due to the consumption of too much alcohol or a controlled substance or having an alcohol concentration of 0.08.
If you decide to drive while intoxicated and end up crashing and killing someone, you’ll likely be charged with intoxication manslaughter.
Possible Penalties
If you are convicted of intoxication manslaughter, you can be sentenced to prison or jail for 2 to 20 years, as well as receive a fine of $10,000. It’s important to note that this is the sentence for causing the death of one person. If you’re involved in an accident, and more than one person dies, you could receive this same sentence multiple times for each person whose death you caused by driving while intoxicated.
Defenses
As explained above, it’s not enough to show that you didn’t intend for someone to die. The two primary defenses in this type of case include the following:
- You were not intoxicated
- Your intoxication was not the cause of the accident
Let Vinas & Graham, PLLC Help You Through Your Intoxication Manslaughter Charges
If you’ve been arrested, questioned, or you are under investigation by the police related to intoxication manslaughter, Vinas & Graham, PLLC can help. Once you have been targeted by the police in relation to a serious crime like this, the most important thing you can do is find an experienced criminal defense attorney who will fight their hardest for you. The attorneys at Vinas & Graham have over three decades of experience in criminal law.
Both Vinas and Graham are former Felony Chief Prosecutors and spent many years training police officers and prosecutors. This unique experience gives them a perspective that most criminal defense attorneys don’t have. Call the law firm of Vinas & Graham today at 713-229-9992 for a consultation or fill out the online contact form for a callback. You can also follow us on Facebook to learn more about our firm and other criminal law matters.
