Terroristic Threats Lawyer In Conroe, TX
The name suggests bombs and hostages, but a terroristic threat charge in Texas more often starts with a text sent in anger, a comment at work or words shouted across a driveway. This page covers the elements, the penalty levels, the defenses and the court process.
What Is A Terroristic Threat In Texas?
A terroristic threat under Texas Penal Code § 22.07 is a threat to commit an offense involving violence to a person or property, made with a listed intent such as placing someone in fear of imminent serious bodily injury or causing an emergency response. Levels run from a Class B misdemeanor to a third degree felony.
Understanding Texas Law
How Does Texas Law Define A Terroristic Threat?
A terroristic threat under Penal Code § 22.07 has two parts. The first is a threat to commit any offense involving violence to a person or property. The second is the intent behind it, and the statute lists six:
- To cause a reaction by an official or volunteer agency organized to deal with emergencies
- To place any person in fear of imminent serious bodily injury
- To prevent or interrupt the occupation or use of a building, room, place of assembly, workplace, aircraft, vehicle or other public place
- To impair or interrupt public communications, public transportation, public water, gas or power supply, or another public service
- To place the public or a substantial group of the public in fear of serious bodily injury
- To influence the conduct or activities of a branch or agency of the federal government, the state or a political subdivision
The intent decides the subsection, and the subsection decides the level.
Similar words can lead to very different charges. Telling a coworker you will hurt them tomorrow differs from texting a school that something will happen at a game. The first may not be a threat of imminent harm at all. The second can be charged as a threat aimed at interrupting a public place or alarming a group of the public.
Nothing in § 22.07 requires that the threat was carried out or that the person could carry it out. The word imminent matters, because harm at some vague later time is not harm about to happen.
Penalties And Consequences
What Are The Penalties For A Terroristic Threat In Texas?
A threat aimed at one person is a misdemeanor unless the person is a known peace officer or judge. The felony subsections move the case to the district courts. These are statutory limits, not predictions.
Up to a $2,000 fine.
Up to a $4,000 fine.
Fine of up to $10,000.
- Fear of imminent serious injury, base
- Class B misdemeanor. Up to 180 days in county jail and a fine of up to $2,000.
- Family or household member, or public servant
- Class A misdemeanor. Up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $4,000.
- Known peace officer or judge, § 22.07(c-1)
- State jail felony. 180 days to two years in a state jail and a fine of up to $10,000.
- Emergency response
- Class B misdemeanor.
- Interrupting a building or public place
- Class A misdemeanor. State jail felony when the owner's pecuniary loss is $1,500 or more.
- Public services, the public, or government
- Third degree felony. Two to ten years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
- Family violence finding
- A threat against a family or household member can carry a finding in the judgment, with the firearm and record effects described on the family violence page.
The same event can also lead to an assault or another charge, each with its own range.
Real Questions
What Do People Ask About Terroristic Threats In Texas?
Where is the line between a threat and a joke?
Can a threat toward a school or workplace be charged?
Does a threat have to be spoken in person?
What if the person did not believe the threat?
Does a threat charge bring a protective order?
Possible Defenses
How Can A Terroristic Threat Charge Be Defended?
In most threat cases there is no physical evidence at all. The case is a set of words and their setting, so the exact words matter more than anyone's summary. A text thread, voicemail or post can be the whole file, and an attorney reviews the complete record, not only the excerpt in the report. No result can be promised.
A threat rarely arrives alone. With physical contact against a family member the state can add an assault and the family violence consequences.
The charge can change with a weapon in the picture.
A threat made while holding a weapon can be charged as aggravated assault instead, because an assault by threat plus an exhibited deadly weapon meets § 22.02.
A threat that clears a school or a public event is charged under the subsections aimed at places and services, which run as high as a third degree felony.
The Whole Thread
Is the record complete, or only a screenshot of one line?
Imminence
Was the harm described about to happen, or set at some vague later time?
Intent
Do the words and conduct show a listed intent, or frustration and exaggeration?
True Threat
Is the speech a true threat, or protected speech under the First Amendment?
Authorship
Can the state prove who wrote or sent the message?
Conditional Words
Was the statement conditional or sarcastic, and does it still meet the statute?
Local Process
What Happens After A Terroristic Threat Arrest In Montgomery County?
Bond, charging and discovery follow Texas law everywhere. The court, the prosecutor and the jail are particular to Montgomery County.
Booking And The Magistrate
After arrest a person is booked and brought before a magistrate, who sets bond and conditions under article 15.17.
Charging
A misdemeanor proceeds on a complaint and information. A felony goes to a grand jury for indictment.
Evidence And Court
The defense can request messages, recordings and reports under article 39.14. The case is then set for hearings, negotiation or trial.
- Where it is filed
- A misdemeanor 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, prosecuted by the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office.
- 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.
Next Steps
What Should You Do After A Terroristic Threat Charge?
These steps are general information, not advice for any one person.
Delete Nothing
Deleting messages can create new problems. Keep the full thread and tell your attorney.
Do Not Message The Other Person
Contact can violate bond conditions and add evidence.
Save The Context
Keep what was said before and after the words at issue.
List Who Saw Or Heard It
Names of people present can show tone and setting.
Do Not Post About It
Explaining or apologizing online can be used as evidence.
Mark Court Dates
A missed setting can create a warrant and a bond problem.
Speak with a lawyer before you explain the words to police or post about them. Depending on the facts, a threat charge can bring a family violence finding or a felony level. Mitchell Law Firm offers a confidential conversation about a terroristic threat charge in Montgomery County.
Official Texas Sources
Read The Law Behind This Page
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 22: Terroristic threat and related offenses
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 12: Punishment ranges
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 6: Culpable mental states
- Texas Family Code Chapter 71: Family violence definitions
- 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
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
A threat charge can stand alone or be filed next to an assault or family violence charge from the same event. See the full Assault Crimes defense overview for Conroe.
Assault
One statute, three kinds of accusation, and a range that runs from a fine-only ticket to a felony.
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.
Common Questions
Terroristic Threat Questions People In Conroe Ask
Is a terroristic threat a felony in Conroe, TX?
The level under Texas Penal Code § 22.07 depends on the intent alleged and the target. A threat meant to place a person in fear of imminent serious bodily injury is a Class B misdemeanor at the base level. Threats aimed at public services, at the public or a substantial group of it, or at influencing government conduct are third degree felonies, with two to ten years in prison.
Can a text message be a terroristic threat in Montgomery County?
Section 22.07 does not restrict how a threat is communicated, so a text, a direct message, an email or a social media post can support a charge. The state must still prove the words were a threat to commit an offense involving violence, made with one of the listed intents. The full thread and its context are part of the evidence.
What is the penalty for threatening a family member in Conroe, TX?
A threat against a family or household member meant to place them in fear of imminent serious bodily injury is a Class A misdemeanor, with up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $4,000. It is filed in one of the Montgomery County Courts at Law, and the court can enter a family violence finding in the judgment, which carries consequences of its own.
Does the person have to mean it for a terroristic threat charge in Montgomery County?
The statute does not require proof that the person meant to carry the threat out or had the means to do it. It requires proof that the threat was made with one of the listed intents, such as placing someone in fear of imminent serious bodily injury. The First Amendment protects speech that is not a true threat, and that line is drawn on the facts.
Is threatening a police officer in Conroe, TX a felony?
Under § 22.07(c-1), a threat meant to place a person in fear of imminent serious bodily injury is a state jail felony when the person making it knows the target is a peace officer or judge. The range is 180 days to two years in a state jail and a fine of up to $10,000. A threat against another public servant is a Class A misdemeanor.
Can a joke or an angry remark be charged as a terroristic threat in Conroe, TX?
A remark is charged only if the state claims it was a threat made with a listed intent. Tone, setting, the relationship and what was said before and after all bear on whether the words were a threat or an exaggeration. The state must prove intent beyond a reasonable doubt, and the First Amendment limits what speech can be punished.
Mitchell Law Firm, PLLC
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A few sentences written or spoken in anger can become a criminal case. Calling early leaves more of the options on the table.
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