Assault Lawyer In Conroe, TX
An assault case often grows out of a few seconds that nobody recorded and two people who remember them differently. The charge can be a fine-only citation, a year in the county jail, or a felony, and this page covers what the state must prove, the penalties, the defenses and the court process.
What Is Assault In Texas?
Under Texas Penal Code § 22.01, a person commits assault by intentionally, knowingly or recklessly causing bodily injury, by intentionally or knowingly threatening someone with imminent bodily injury, or by intentionally or knowingly causing offensive physical contact. Causing bodily injury is a Class A misdemeanor. A threat or offensive contact is a Class C misdemeanor.
Understanding Texas Law
How Does Texas Law Define Assault?
Penal Code § 22.01 reads like a single offense, but it describes three different acts. The complaint or information names one of them, and that choice sets the level, the range and the court.
- Causing bodily injury, intentionally, knowingly or recklessly. Class A misdemeanor.
- Threatening imminent bodily injury, intentionally or knowingly, including a threat to a spouse. Class C misdemeanor.
- Offensive or provocative contact, intentionally or knowingly, when the person knew or should reasonably have believed the other would take it that way. Class C misdemeanor.
The injury version reaches further than the other two, down to recklessness. That means being aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk and consciously disregarding it. An arm thrown out during a heated argument that catches someone in the face can be charged this way even though no one meant to hit anyone.
What the state must prove beyond a reasonable doubt for a bodily injury charge:
- Bodily injury to another person resulted from the accused's act
- The accused acted with intent, knowledge or recklessness
- The act took place in Montgomery County, where the case is filed
Bodily injury under Penal Code § 1.07 means physical pain, illness, or any impairment of physical condition. Pain is enough, and pain is shown by what a witness says they felt. A sore shoulder or a reddened wrist can meet the definition.
That is why these files rest on a handful of sources: the 911 call, the officer's report, body camera footage, scene photographs and each person's statement. Each can be tested, and none proves more than it shows.
Penalties And Consequences
What Are The Penalties For Assault In Texas?
The base levels are misdemeanors. Added facts in § 22.01 can turn the same act into a felony, which moves the case to a different court. These are the limits the statute allows, not a prediction for any one case.
Up to a $4,000 fine.
Fine only, no jail.
Fine of up to $10,000.
- Bodily injury, § 22.01(a)(1)
- Class A misdemeanor. Up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $4,000.
- Threat or offensive contact
- Class C misdemeanor. A fine of up to $500 with no jail. Offensive contact against a person 65 or older, or a disabled person, is raised to a Class A.
- Public servant on duty
- Third degree felony under § 22.01(b)(1). Two to ten years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
- Peace officer or judge
- Second degree felony under § 22.01(b-2). Two to twenty years.
- Family violence
- Third degree felony with a qualifying prior, or when breathing or circulation was impeded. Second degree when both are present.
- Probation
- For a misdemeanor, a judge can order community supervision or deferred adjudication in place of some or all of the jail time. The court decides in each case.
- Record
- A conviction is a criminal record, even at the Class C level.
An assault with a serious injury or a deadly weapon is not charged as a misdemeanor. It is charged as aggravated assault, a felony.
Real Questions
What Do People Ask About Assault In Texas?
Can I be charged if I never touched the other person?
What if the other person swung first?
Can a charge be filed with no photographs or witnesses?
Does a family relationship make it a felony?
Can an assault arrest be cleared from my record?
Possible Defenses
How Can An Assault Charge Be Defended?
Chapter 9 of the Penal Code treats force as justified when a person reasonably believes it is immediately necessary to protect against another person's use or attempted use of unlawful force. The same chapter covers force used to protect a third person. Once the evidence raises the issue, the state must disprove it beyond a reasonable doubt.
An attorney reads each source in the file against the others and looks for gaps. No result can be promised.
Recordings and records can cut either way.
Doorbell footage, phone video, text messages, 911 audio and medical records can confirm or contradict what was written at the scene. Some contact is also consented to, as in a sport both people agreed to play. Statements given to officers can be checked for how and when they were taken.
When the two people are related, live together, share a child or dated, the case is prosecuted as family violence. When a weapon was involved or the injury was serious, it becomes aggravated assault.
First Contact
What was said and done just before, and who made the first physical contact?
Self-Defense
Did the person reasonably believe force was immediately necessary against unlawful force?
The Claimed Injury
Do photographs or a medical record match the pain or injury described?
Mental State
Was the contact intentional, knowing or reckless, or an accident?
Matching Accounts
Do the 911 call, the scene statements and the report agree with each other?
The Video
What do body camera, doorbell and phone recordings show, and what do they leave out?
Local Process
What Happens After An Assault Arrest In Montgomery County?
Booking, bond and discovery follow Texas law. Which building hears the case, and who prosecutes it, depend on the level of the charge in Montgomery County.
Magistrate And Bond
After booking, a magistrate explains the charge and sets bond. Code of Criminal Procedure article 15.17 sets the timing. Conditions can include no contact with the complaining witness.
The Charging Instrument
A Class A assault proceeds on a complaint and information that state which version the prosecutor alleges. A felony goes to a grand jury first.
Evidence And Settings
The defense can request reports, video and recordings under article 39.14. The case is then set for hearings, negotiation or trial.
- Where it is filed
- A Class A assault is filed in one of the Montgomery County Courts at Law and prosecuted by Montgomery County District Attorney's Office.
- If it is a felony
- Heard in the district courts at the Montgomery County Criminal Justice Center on 207 W Phillips St, after a grand jury indictment. The Montgomery County District Attorney's Office prosecutes felonies.
- Who makes the arrest
- Conroe Police Department, Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, Texas DPS Highway Patrol, Montgomery County Constables, Precincts 1 through 5, Willis Police Department, Shenandoah Police Department, Oak Ridge North Police Department, Magnolia Police Department, Splendora Police Department, or Roman Forest Police Department.
- Where you are booked
- The Montgomery County Jail at 1 Criminal Justice Drive, run by the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office.
- If the case is appealed
- Appeals go to the Ninth Court of Appeals in Beaumont.
After the evidence review, a case can move toward dismissal, a reduction, a plea agreement, deferred adjudication where the court allows it, or trial. Which path is open depends on the evidence.
Next Steps
What Should You Do After An Assault Charge?
Bond conditions and early statements can shape the case. These steps are general information, not advice for any one person.
Read The Bond Conditions
Follow every no-contact or stay-away term, even when the other person reaches out first.
Keep Your Own Evidence
Save texts, call logs and photographs, and note who saw what happened.
Write A Private Timeline
Record the order of events while memory is fresh, and share it only with your attorney.
Stay Away From The Case Topic
Messages to the other person about the case can be used as evidence and can violate conditions.
Stay Off Social Media
Posts about the incident can be used by the state.
Mark Every Court Date
A missed setting can lead to a warrant and a bond problem.
Speak with a lawyer before you give a statement or take an offer. Even a Class C plea leaves a record, and a family violence finding narrows later record-clearing options. Mitchell Law Firm offers a confidential conversation about an assault charge in Montgomery County.
Official Texas Sources
Read The Law Behind This Page
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 22: Assault, aggravated assault and related offenses
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 1: Definitions of bodily injury and serious bodily injury
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 9: Justification, including self-defense and defense of a third person
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 12: Punishment ranges
- Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 15: Arrest and the magistrate warning
- Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 39: Discovery of the state's evidence
- Texas Family Code Chapter 71: Definitions of family violence
Who Handles Your Case
The Texas Lawyer Who Speaks Science
Attorney Brennon Mitchell isn't just a seasoned Conroe 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 Conroe, TX
Several of the charges below start as an ordinary assault and add one fact that changes the level. See the full Assault Crimes defense overview for Conroe.
Aggravated Assault
An assault plus serious bodily injury or a deadly weapon: a second degree felony, and first degree in situations the statute lists.
Vehicular Assault
Not an offense by that name in Texas. An injury crash is charged under one of four statutes, and the one chosen sets the range.
Deadly Conduct
Creating a risk of serious injury with no one needing to be hurt: a Class A misdemeanor, or a third degree felony when shots are fired.
Family Violence
An assault or threat between family, household members or dating partners, with protective orders, firearm limits and a finding that stays on the record.
Injury To A Child Or Elderly Person
A felony at every level, graded by the harm and the mental state, and chargeable for failing to act as well as for acting.
Kidnapping
Unlawful restraint, kidnapping and aggravated kidnapping: three levels of one idea, separated by intent, deadly force and purpose.
Terroristic Threats
A threat of violence made with a listed purpose: Class B at the base, and up to a third degree felony depending on the target and the intent.
Common Questions
Assault Questions People In Conroe Ask
What is the punishment for assault causing bodily injury in Conroe, TX?
Assault causing bodily injury is a Class A misdemeanor under Texas Penal Code § 22.01. Penal Code § 12.21 sets the range at up to one year in county jail, a fine of up to $4,000, or both. The law permits community supervision or deferred adjudication for the offense, and the court decides whether either is granted in the individual case.
Does there have to be a visible injury for an assault charge in Montgomery County?
Penal Code § 1.07 defines bodily injury as physical pain, illness, or any impairment of physical condition. The definition does not call for bruising, swelling or a photograph. Testimony that a grab or a shove caused pain can be offered to prove the element, and the judge or jury decides how much weight that testimony deserves against the rest of the evidence.
Can the person who called the police drop an assault case in Conroe, TX?
An assault case is filed in the name of the State of Texas, so the person who reported it is a witness and not a party. That person can tell the prosecutor they want the case dismissed, but the decision to proceed, reduce or dismiss belongs to the prosecuting office. A request not to prosecute is one factor the office is free to weigh.
What is a Class C assault in Montgomery County?
Class C assault covers two kinds of conduct under § 22.01(a)(2) and (a)(3): intentionally or knowingly threatening another person with imminent bodily injury, and intentionally or knowingly causing physical contact the person will regard as offensive or provocative. The punishment is a fine of up to $500 with no jail, but a conviction is still a criminal conviction that can appear on a background check.
When does an assault become a felony in Conroe, TX?
Section 22.01 lists the facts that raise an assault to a felony. Bodily injury to a public servant lawfully discharging an official duty is a third degree felony, and to a peace officer or judge it is a second degree felony. A family violence assault becomes a third degree felony with a qualifying prior conviction, or when the assault impeded normal breathing or blood circulation.
Do I have to prove self-defense in a Conroe, TX assault case?
A person raising self-defense must first put some evidence of it in front of the judge or jury. Once that is done, the state carries the burden of disproving it beyond a reasonable doubt. Whether the evidence is enough to raise the issue depends on the facts, including who used force first and how much force was used.
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