Robbery Defense Lawyer in Austin, TX

Theft becomes robbery under Texas law when an individual intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly injures another person to take their property or threatens bodily injury during a theft. If you are arrested or indicted on robbery charges in Texas, you face a second-degree felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Robbery with a deadly weapon or of an elderly or disabled person is aggravated robbery, a first-degree felony punishable by life in prison.

When facing robbery charges in Texas, you need a skilled criminal defense attorney to protect your rights and your freedom. The experienced Austin, TX, robbery defense attorneys at Minton, Bassett, Flores & Carsey, P.C., have the resources, knowledge, and determination to defend you and seek the most favorable outcome available to you. Call at (512) 476-4873 or contact us online today for a free initial legal consultation and evaluation of your legal options.

Why Hire a Lawyer After a Robbery Charge?

A person convicted of robbery in Texas will almost certainly do prison time. Prosecutors will be motivated to convict anyone charged with robbery and seek the harshest penalties law allows.

After you complete the sentence handed down for a robbery conviction, your record will state that you were convicted of robbery when a prospective employer, landlord, loan officer, college admissions officer, or anyone else conducts a background check on you. 

But a criminal defense attorney can take advantage of several possibilities to have robbery charges reduced or dismissed to defend you in court and obtain an acquittal at trial. You need a strong advocate on your side if you are facing robbery charges.

Why Choose Minton, Bassett, Flores & Carsey, P.C. For Your Robbery Defense?

At Minton, Bassett, Flores & Carsey, P.C., our defense lawyers understand the importance of providing a strong legal defense to anyone who has been charged with robbery or aggravated robbery. As your attorneys, we will develop a defense strategy tailored to the specific facts of your case. 

The attorneys at Minton, Bassett, Flores & Carsey have successfully represented Texans and Texas companies accused of robbery and other crimes in Austin and the surrounding areas for nearly 60 years. We are a mid-sized firm with a status that larger firms strive for. Our experienced team has received several prestigious awards and recognition for the work we’ve done for clients, including:

• Member of The Best Lawyers in America
• AV® rating from Martindale-Hubbell legal directory
• Rising Star by Texas Super Lawyers
• 10.0 Superb rating by Avvo

Our legal team focuses on providing the best possible representation for our clients. No two cases are exactly alike, so we take the time to understand each client’s situation and the details of the charges they face. When we prepare a defense strategy, we’ll be ready to go to trial if necessary but will seek to avoid court in most cases. Our initial objective will be to secure the best possible outcome for you by having the charges you face reduced or dropped.

How a Skilled Robbery Defense Lawyer Can Benefit Your Case

If you have been charged with robbery, you have the right to a robust legal defense, which means a legal advocate who will do everything allowed by law to obtain the most positive results for you. A prosecutor must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt to obtain a conviction. We will challenge the evidence presented by the prosecution at every turn in the case against you.

Our defense attorneys at Minton, Bassett, Flores & Carsey are skilled at identifying the weaknesses in the prosecution’s case. Your legal team will examine the charges and evidence against you and move promptly to have questionable evidence excluded from future proceedings.

There are provable acts of police or prosecutorial misconduct that could lead to charges being dropped if they exist in your case. They include:

• Illegal search and seizure
• Faulty suspect lineup
• False or unreliable witness testimony
• Faulty or fabricated testimony
• Flaws in forensic testing, particularly regarding DNA evidence
• Chain of custody issues with the handling of property alleged to have been stolen or a weapon alleged to have been used
• Bias based on your race, ethnicity, immigration status, gender, sexual orientation, age, or socio-economic status.

In some robbery cases, if the defendant makes restitution to the alleged victim, they may agree to drop charges. Our experienced criminal defense attorneys may be able to negotiate a plea bargain for a first-time or nonviolent offender and arrange lesser charges resulting in probation, a fine, and community service. Because our attorneys are well-known and respected in the Travis, Hays, and Williamson County courthouses, our attorney’s proposals for reducing robbery charges will receive fair consideration.

If a trial is necessary, we will move forward with the strongest possible defense for you. Robbery cases often focus on rightful ownership and the intention to inflict bodily harm. Sometimes there is evidence of an agreement to transfer ownership, such as an undocumented sale. In other cases, there may have been expressed or implied consent allowing the property to be borrowed.

We can also challenge the bodily harm aspect of robbery charges if the prosecution cannot demonstrate actual harm through medical records and other evidence and prove that you knowingly or intentionally caused the alleged harm.

Potential defenses to robbery charges at trial or to reduce charges include:

• An alibi establishing that you were somewhere else when the alleged robbery occurred  
• Lack of intent to permanently deprive the owner of the property in question
• Your legitimate claim of ownership of the property
• Inability to establish true ownership of the property
• Inability to establish your possession of the property
• Lack of bodily injury to the alleged victim
• Lack of intent or plausible threat to cause bodily injury 
• Entrapment or coercion by someone else for you to commit the alleged theft
• Mental impairment that prevented an understanding of the consequences of the defendant’s actions at the time of the alleged theft

The options available will depend on the specific robbery charges, the circumstances of the incident, and the strength of the prosecution’s case. As your defense attorneys, we will question evidence and testimony presented against you, present evidence that supports your defense, and work to raise reasonable doubt to prevent the jury from returning a guilty verdict. In all cases, we work to obtain the outcome most favorable to our client.

Understanding Aggravated Robbery in Texas

Texas law defines robbery as when, in the course of committing theft and with intent to obtain or maintain control of the property, a person:

• Intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causes bodily injury to another, or
• Intentionally or knowingly threatens or places another in fear of imminent bodily injury or death.

Robbery becomes aggravated robbery when a person:

• Causes serious bodily injury to another person while committing robbery against them, or
• Uses or exhibits a deadly weapon while robbing another person, or
• Causes bodily injury to another person or threatens or places another person in fear of imminent bodily injury or death, and the other person is: 65 years old or older, or Disabled.

Robbing an elderly or disabled person is charged as aggravated robbery. It should also be understood that, in most cases, the bar for putting an elderly or disabled person in fear of imminent injury or death is lower than what would be necessary to threaten a younger and/or healthier person.

What Are The Penalties for Robbery and Aggravated Robbery in Texas?

Robbery in Texas is charged as a second-degree felony, which is punishable by 2 to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000 upon conviction.

Aggravated robbery in Texas is charged as a first-degree felony, which is punishable by 5 to 99 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

A person who has been previously convicted of two separate felonies in Texas and is tried for any subsequent felony (except a state jail felony) shall be punished upon a third conviction by life in prison or 25 to 99 years in prison, Texas law says.

A person convicted of robbery who has a previous felony conviction (not including a state jail felony) shall be punished as if they were convicted of a first-degree felony – 5 to 99 years in prison, or life, and a fine of up to $10,000.

A person convicted of a first-degree felony such as aggravated robbery who has a previous felony conviction shall be punished by 15 to 99 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

Get Help from a Highly Experienced Texas Robbery Defense Attorney

Robbery and aggravated robbery are serious crimes that carry harsh punishments upon conviction in Texas. You should not face these charges without the assistance of an experienced defense attorney. The robbery defense lawyers of Minton, Bassett, Flores & Carsey, P.C., are dedicated to providing skilled criminal defense representation to clients charged with robbery and aggravated robbery in Austin, TX, and throughout Travis, Hays, and Williamson counties.

Our offices at 1100 Guadalupe Street, Austin, Texas, are open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. Contact us online today or phone (512) 960-3510 for your confidential consultation with an Austin theft defense attorney. We strive to respond within the hour or within 24 hours at the latest. Call now.