Possession Of Contraband In A Correctional Facility Lawyer In Beaumont, TX
An amount of a drug that would be a misdemeanor on the street becomes a felony once it crosses into a jail, because Penal Code § 38.11 does not scale by quantity. This page covers what the law prohibits, the penalties and how these charges are defended.
What Is Jail Contraband In Texas?
Penal Code § 38.11 makes it a felony to take a prohibited item into a correctional facility, give one to a person in custody, or possess one while confined. Covered items include drugs, alcohol, deadly weapons, money and cell phones. The base offense is a third degree felony, and the quantity of the item does not change it.
Source: Texas Penal Code Chapter 38, Obstructing Governmental Operation
Understanding Texas Law
How Does Texas Law Define Contraband In A Correctional Facility?
Penal Code § 38.11 makes it a felony to bring certain items into a correctional facility, to provide them to a person in custody, or, for a person confined there, to possess them. Under § 1.07, a correctional facility is any place designated for confining people who have been arrested, charged or convicted, from a city or county jail to a state prison or a contract facility.
The local picture is simple. Arrestees from every law enforcement agency in the county are booked into the county's jail system. A contraband case that begins at booking therefore begins in the county's jail system.
The statute does not care about quantity. A trace of a controlled substance is treated the same as a large amount.
The items covered by § 38.11 include:
- Alcoholic beverages, controlled substances and dangerous drugs
- A deadly weapon
- A cell phone or other wireless communications device, or a component of one
- Money, when provided to a person confined in the facility
The phone provisions go further than the rest. It is an offense to possess a device while confined, and also to acquire, provide or pay for one intending that someone in custody will use it.
Penalties And Consequences
What Are The Penalties For Jail Contraband In Texas?
The base level is set in § 38.11(g), and it is a felony. These are statutory limits, not predictions.
In the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
- Classification
- Third degree felony.
- Prison
- Two to ten years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
- Fine
- Up to $10,000.
- Facility employees
- The statute sets the same third degree level for every subsection. A facility officer or employee who is authorized to carry a weapon while on duty has an affirmative defense to the weapon offense.
- Related charge
- A Health and Safety Code possession charge can be filed for the same substance, so one arrest can produce two cases.
- Probation
- Whether supervision is possible depends on the offense, the record and the court. Violations are covered on their own page.
A felony conviction also brings lasting effects beyond the sentence, such as the loss of firearm rights and a permanent public record.
Real Questions
What Do People Ask About Jail Contraband In Texas?
I was arrested with a pill in my pocket. Can the jail add a second charge?
Does it matter if I spoke up before the search?
Is prescription medication treated the same way?
Can a visitor be charged for carrying something another person asked for?
Possible Defenses
How Can A Jail Contraband Charge Be Defended?
A § 38.11 charge that starts with an arrest depends on what happened before the person reached a cell. Was a search done at the scene? Was the person asked whether they had anything? Was the item found on the person, or in a holding area shared with others?
An attorney reviews booking video, search records and officer reports. No result can be promised.
The underlying charge keeps its own weight.
A contraband count is often paired with a drug possession charge for the same substance. How both end, whether by dismissal, reduction, a plea, deferred adjudication or trial, shapes the felony record as a whole.
For a person already under supervision, a contraband arrest can also be alleged as a new offense in a probation violation motion.
A Voluntary Act
Did the person choose to bring the item in, or was it already on them when they were taken in under arrest?
The Search
When was the person searched, and was that search lawful?
Possession And Control
Was the item on the person, or in a cell, vehicle or area others could reach?
Is It Covered
Is the item one the statute lists, and did a lab confirm the substance?
Knowledge And Intent
Can the state show the person knew about the item or meant it for someone in custody?
Handling Of The Item
Was the item stored and tested in a way that supports the charge?
Local Process
What Happens After A Jail Contraband Arrest In Jefferson County?
A contraband charge is a felony, so it goes through a grand jury. It is often filed together with the case that brought the person to the jail.
The Discovery
Staff or officers find the item at booking, in a search or during a visit. A report is written, and a suspected drug is sent for testing.
Grand Jury
The prosecutor presents the case to a grand jury, which decides whether to indict.
Evidence And Resolution
The defense asks for booking video, search records and lab results. The case can end in dismissal, a reduction, a plea or a trial.
- Where it is heard
- A grand jury, then the district courts at the Jefferson County Courthouse on 1085 Pearl Street, in the Jefferson County Courthouse at 1085 Pearl Street.
- Who prosecutes
- The Jefferson County Criminal District Attorney's Office.
- 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.
- Booking
- 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 Jail Contraband Charge?
These steps are general information, not advice for any one person.
Do Not Explain The Item
Remarks about where an item came from can be used against you.
Learn Every Charge
Find out whether a possession count was filed along with the § 38.11 count.
Keep The Booking Papers
Save the property receipt, bond papers and any inventory sheets.
Note Who Searched You
Names, times and places of each search can matter later.
Mention Any Supervision
A new felony can lead to a violation motion if you are on probation.
Skip Jail Calls About The Case
Calls from the jail are recorded and can be played in court.
A lawyer can review the booking and the search before any decision about a plea. Mitchell Law Firm offers a confidential conversation about contraband charges in Jefferson County, and serves the county from its Orange office.
Official Texas Sources
Read The Law Behind This Page
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 38: Contraband in a correctional facility under § 38.11
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 1: Definition of correctional facility in § 1.07
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 6: Voluntary act and culpable mental states
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 12: Punishment classes and ranges
- Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 481: Controlled substances
- 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 Topics
Other Criminal Charges Handled In Beaumont, TX
A contraband count is often filed beside the charge that led to the arrest. See the full criminal defense overview for Beaumont.
Other Criminal Charges
Property, weapons, and public order offenses that sit outside the main categories.
Probation And Sentencing
What a sentence can look like, and what happens when the terms of one are challenged.
Records And Defense
How a case can come off, or be shielded on, a record, and the defense tools the law provides.
Common Questions
Jail Contraband Questions People In Beaumont Ask
What is the charge for bringing drugs into a jail in Beaumont, TX?
Taking a controlled substance, dangerous drug or alcoholic beverage into a correctional facility, or providing one to a person in custody, is an offense under Penal Code § 38.11. It is a third degree felony, punishable by two to ten years in prison and a fine up to $10,000. The amount of the substance does not change the level.
Can contraband be charged if drugs were found on someone at booking in Jefferson County?
A person arrested while carrying a drug who is then taken into a jail can face a § 38.11 charge in addition to the possession charge. Texas requires a voluntary act for criminal responsibility, and whether entering a jail under arrest is voluntary has been argued in Texas appellate courts. The answer depends on the facts of the booking.
Is possessing a cell phone in jail a crime in Beaumont, TX?
Section 38.11 makes it an offense to possess a cell phone, another wireless communications device or a component of one while confined in a correctional facility. Providing one, or acquiring or paying for one with intent to make it available to a person in custody, is also covered. These offenses are third degree felonies.
Does the jail contraband statute reach visitors and staff in Jefferson County?
Section 38.11 applies to anyone who takes a prohibited item into a correctional facility or provides one to a person in custody, including visitors, relatives, contractors and employees. The statute sets the same third degree level for every subsection whoever is charged. A facility employee authorized to carry a weapon on duty has an affirmative defense to the weapon offense.
Where is a jail contraband case heard in Beaumont, TX?
A § 38.11 charge is a felony, so it goes to a Jefferson County grand jury and, if indicted, to a district court in the county courthouse on Pearl Street. The Criminal District Attorney's Office prosecutes it, often alongside the charge from the arrest that led to the booking.
What must the state prove in a jail contraband case in Beaumont, TX?
The state has to show the person was in a correctional facility or was providing an item to someone in one, that the item is covered by § 38.11, and that the person acted with the required mental state. For a person already in custody, it must also tie the item to that person and not to a shared cell or common area.
Mitchell Law Firm, PLLC
The Booking Record Matters
These cases are built on a short stretch of time between an arrest and a cell. Going through that record early keeps options open.
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