Deadly Conduct Lawyer In Beaumont, TX
Deadly conduct is a charge about danger rather than injury. Nobody has to be struck, and the same incident can be a misdemeanor or a felony depending on which subsection the state files. This page covers both parts of the statute, the penalties, the defenses and the Jefferson County court process.
What Is Deadly Conduct In Texas?
Deadly conduct under Penal Code § 22.05 means recklessly placing another person in imminent danger of serious bodily injury, a Class A misdemeanor. Knowingly firing a gun at or toward people, or toward a habitation, building or vehicle, is a third degree felony. No one has to be injured for either version.
Understanding Texas Law
How Does Texas Law Define Deadly Conduct?
Section 22.05 of the Penal Code holds two separate offenses that share a name and little else.
Subsection (a), reckless conduct. Recklessly engaging in conduct that places another person in imminent danger of serious bodily injury. Reckless means aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk and consciously disregarding it. This is a Class A misdemeanor.
Subsection (b), discharging a firearm. Knowingly firing a gun at or in the direction of one or more people, or at or in the direction of a habitation, building or vehicle while reckless about whether anyone is inside. This is a third degree felony.
The offense is complete once the danger exists. No one has to be hit, hurt or even aware of it.
What the state must prove for the misdemeanor:
- The person engaged in some conduct, such as handling or pointing a firearm
- The person was reckless about the risk that conduct created
- Another person was placed in imminent danger of serious bodily injury
Subsection (c) presumes recklessness and danger when a person knowingly points a firearm at or in the direction of another, whether or not the person believed it was loaded. A presumption tells the jury what it may infer. It does not settle the matter, and the accused can offer evidence against it.
Justification under Chapter 9 stays available as a defense throughout.
Penalties And Consequences
What Are The Penalties For Deadly Conduct In Texas?
The subsection charged decides the court, the range and whether the case is a felony. These are statutory limits, not forecasts, and either level can carry firearm consequences that outlast the sentence.
Up to a $4,000 fine.
Third degree felony with a fine of up to $10,000.
- Reckless conduct, § 22.05(a)
- Class A misdemeanor. Up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $4,000.
- Discharge of a firearm, § 22.05(b)
- Third degree felony. Two to ten years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
- Firearms
- A felony conviction restricts firearm possession under Penal Code § 46.04 and bars it under federal law, 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1).
- Probation
- The law allows community supervision or deferred adjudication in some cases, and the court decides. Eligibility depends on the level and on any deadly weapon finding.
- Record
- A conviction is a public criminal record. A felony adds lasting effects on work, housing and firearms.
One evening can produce a misdemeanor on one version of the facts and a felony on another, so details such as where the barrel pointed or where a shot went carry weight.
Real Questions
What Do People Ask About Deadly Conduct In Texas?
How does deadly conduct compare with aggravated assault?
Does it matter if the gun was empty?
What if a shot was fired into the dirt or a field?
Is a firearm needed for every deadly conduct charge?
Possible Defenses
How Can Deadly Conduct Be Defended?
A deadly conduct case turns on what the person did, what the person knew and who was actually in danger. An attorney examines the physical evidence, the witness accounts and the statute's elements to see what the state can prove. No result can be promised.
Because the charge sits between the firearm offenses and aggravated assault, the same event can be filed several ways. A shot fired inside a town such as Port Arthur, Nederland, Port Neches, Groves, Nome, China, Bevil Oaks, Fannett, and Hamshire with no one in danger may be charged instead as discharging a firearm in a municipality, which has a different range.
Justification applies to any offense.
Under Penal Code § 9.02, justification is a defense to prosecution. Under § 9.04, producing a weapon to create apprehension that deadly force will be used, when force itself would be justified, is a threat of force and not the use of deadly force.
The proof may include the recovered firearm, shell casings, bullet paths, damage to a structure, and doorbell or phone video.
Where It Was Aimed
Was the firearm pointed or fired at a person, home, building or vehicle, or somewhere else?
Imminent Danger
Was anyone truly in danger, or were they far away or out of range?
Knowledge Of Occupancy
Did the person know, or recklessly ignore, that a structure might be occupied?
Recklessness
Was there conscious disregard of a known risk, or was it an accident?
Chapter 9 Justification
Did the person reasonably believe the threat or the force was justified?
Identification
Is the person accused the one who held or fired the firearm?
Local Process
What Happens After A Deadly Conduct Arrest In Jefferson County?
The steps below follow Texas law. Which court hears the case depends on whether the state files the misdemeanor or the felony.
Arrest And Bond
After booking, a magistrate sets bond and conditions. When a firearm was involved, conditions can address weapons.
Charging
A misdemeanor goes forward on a complaint and information. A felony is presented to a grand jury.
Evidence And Court
The defense can request the state's evidence under article 39.14, and the case is then set for hearings, negotiation or trial.
- Where it is filed
- A Class A case is filed in one of the Jefferson County Courts at Law. A felony is heard in the district courts at the Jefferson County Courthouse on 1085 Pearl Street after an indictment.
- Who prosecutes
- Felonies are prosecuted by the Jefferson County Criminal District Attorney's Office. Misdemeanors are handled by prosecutors in Jefferson County.
- Who makes the arrest
- Beaumont Police Department, Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, Texas DPS Highway Patrol, Port Arthur Police Department, Nederland Police Department, Port Neches Police Department, or Groves Police Department.
- Where you are booked
- Arrestees from every law enforcement agency in the county are booked into the county's jail system.
- If the case is appealed
- the Ninth Court of Appeals in Beaumont.
Next Steps
What Should You Do After A Deadly Conduct Charge?
What follows is general information, not advice for any one person.
Do Not Talk About The Incident
What you say about where the firearm pointed can decide the level of the charge.
Leave The Firearm Alone
Follow any bond term about weapons, and ask before moving, selling or surrendering a gun.
Keep Video And Messages
Doorbell, phone and security footage may help show what happened.
List Who Was There
The names of people who saw the event can matter to a justification claim.
Track Court Dates
A missed setting can bring a warrant and trouble with the bond.
Stay Off Social Media
Posts about the event or about guns can be used as evidence.
Speak with a lawyer before agreeing to anything, because a felony conviction can end the right to possess firearms. Mitchell Law Firm offers a confidential conversation about a deadly conduct charge in Jefferson County.
Official Texas Sources
Read The Law Behind This Page
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 22: Deadly conduct and related offenses
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 6: Culpable mental states, including recklessness
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 9: Justification, including self-defense and threats of force
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 12: Punishment ranges
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 46: Weapons offenses and firearm restrictions
- Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 39: Discovery of the state's evidence
Who Handles Your Case
The Texas Lawyer Who Speaks Science
Attorney Brennon Mitchell isn't just a seasoned Beaumont trial lawyer. He's one of the few in Texas, and the entire country, to earn the prestigious title of an ACS-CHAL Forensic Lawyer-Scientist. That means he's gone beyond the courtroom and into the laboratory, receiving in-depth, hands-on training in forensic chromatography, the same kind of testing used by crime labs to try and convict Texans every day.
What does that mean for you?
It means when the state uses blood alcohol or drug testing to try to prove its case, Mr. Mitchell knows how to challenge it. He's trained to:
- Analyze lab results and spot faulty science
- Cross-examine forensic experts with precision
- Break down complex chemical evidence in plain language for juries
This is not the kind of background you find in most criminal defense attorneys, and it could make the difference between a conviction and a clean slate.
Brennon graduated from Texas A&M University School of Law and practices from offices in Orange and Conroe.
Client Reviews
What Clients Say About Brennon Mitchell
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case is different and is decided on its own facts.
Related Assault Charges
Other Assault Charges Handled In Beaumont, TX
Deadly conduct sits between the weapons offenses and aggravated assault, and it is often charged beside or instead of them. See the full Assault Crimes defense overview for Beaumont.
Assault
Three offenses share one statute, from a fine-only Class C to a felony when the facts or the person involved change.
Aggravated Assault
An assault plus serious bodily injury or a deadly weapon. A second degree felony, and first degree in a narrow set of cases.
Vehicular Assault
Not a Texas statute by that name. A crash that hurts someone is charged under a different law, and which one decides the range.
Family Violence
An assault between people in a family, household or dating relationship, with a protective order, firearm limits and a finding that stays on the record.
Injury To A Child, Elderly Or Disabled Person
A felony at every level, graded by the injury and the mental state, and chargeable for a failure to act as well as for an act.
Kidnapping
Unlawful restraint, kidnapping and aggravated kidnapping are three levels of one idea, from a Class A misdemeanor to a first degree felony.
Terroristic Threats
A threat of violence can be a crime without any contact. The level runs from a Class B misdemeanor to a third degree felony.
Common Questions
Deadly Conduct Questions People In Beaumont Ask
What is deadly conduct under Texas law in Beaumont, TX?
Penal Code § 22.05(a) makes it an offense to recklessly engage in conduct that places another person in imminent danger of serious bodily injury. A separate subsection covers knowingly firing a gun at or toward people, or toward a habitation, building or vehicle while reckless about whether anyone is inside.
Is pointing a gun at someone a crime in Jefferson County?
Section 22.05(c) presumes recklessness and danger when a person knowingly points a firearm at or in the direction of another, whether or not the person thought it was loaded. That lets the state file Class A deadly conduct. The presumption can be challenged, and justification under Chapter 9 remains a defense.
What is the penalty for deadly conduct in Beaumont, TX?
The reckless version is a Class A misdemeanor, with up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $4,000. Knowingly firing a gun at people, or at an occupied or possibly occupied habitation, building or vehicle, is a third degree felony with two to ten years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
Is firing a gun into the air deadly conduct in Jefferson County?
The felony version requires a shot at or in the direction of people, a habitation, a building or a vehicle. A shot fired upward can still be filed as the reckless misdemeanor if someone was placed in imminent danger. Inside a city it may also be charged as the separate offense of discharging a firearm in a municipality.
Does the state have to prove I meant to hurt someone for deadly conduct in Beaumont, TX?
An intent to hurt is not an element of the misdemeanor. The state has to prove recklessness, which means awareness of a substantial and unjustifiable risk that was consciously disregarded, and that someone was put in imminent danger. The felony requires a knowing discharge, plus recklessness about whether a structure or vehicle was occupied.
Can self-defense apply to deadly conduct in Beaumont, TX?
Penal Code § 9.02 makes justification a defense to prosecution for an offense. Under § 9.04, producing a weapon to create apprehension that deadly force will be used, when force itself would be justified, is treated as a threat of force rather than as deadly force. When the evidence raises justification, the state must disprove it.
Mitchell Law Firm, PLLC
Your Freedom Is Our Fight
One deadly conduct arrest can be filed as a misdemeanor or a felony on the same facts. The earlier you call, the more choices stay open.
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