Texas and Florida are the two U.S. states that can boast of well-deserved reputations of being “toughest on crime” in the nation. Unfortunately for a Harris County criminal defense lawyer, that also sometimes means that the legal system is tough on people who have been merely accused of crimes. Indeed, Texas places stringent limitations on the ability to plea-bargain a DWI charge, for example, and it leads the nation in capital punishment.
The occasion of being charged with a serious criminal offense is no time to save money by selecting a “bargain basement” criminal lawyer a few years out of law school, or a lawyer who specializes in another area of law. Retaining the services of an experienced and dedicated criminal attorney with intimate knowledge of the idiosyncrasies of the Harris County legal system could save you from a criminal record or even years behind bars.
The Importance of Perspective
A criminal case looks different from the eyes of a prosecutor than it does from the eyes of a defense attorney, and it looks different again through the eyes of a judge. A criminal defense lawyer needs to be able to “get into the prosecutor’s head” in order to predict and prepare for the various prosecution strategies and tactics he will face both in and out of court. He also needs to “get into the judge’s head” in order to present his defense in the most persuasive possible manner.
In his nearly twenty years of practice, Mario Madrid has sat on the judge’s bench (as a Municipal Judge) and at the prosecutor’s table (as an Assistant Prosecutor). This multi-dimensional perspective allows him to approach his client’s defense from different angles, to “think on his feet”, and to grasp nuances that other criminal defense lawyers simply miss.
The Importance of Specialization
To become a lawyer you need to graduate from law school and pass the Bar Exam. But being qualified to practice “law” is about as vague as being qualified to practice “science” – it is the knowledge that the specialist possesses that often makes the difference between brilliant representation and mediocre or even incompetent representation. Mario Madrid has been certified as a specialist in Criminal Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, an honor possessed by only about one out of every ten Texas criminal defense lawyers.
Just as you would want a heart specialist to perform open heart surgery on you, you would want a criminal law specialist to prepare and execute an effective criminal defense for you. Mr. Madrid’s clients can testify that his representation is aggressive, principled, streetwise, calculated and fearless.
Affordability
Even Harris County’s best criminal defense attorney will be useless to you if you cannot afford to retain his services. Mario Madrid understands the financial difficulties sometimes faced by his clients, and he is willing to work with you on the basis of your individual circumstances. His long experience in criminal defense allows him to estimate your total legal fees with a high degree of accuracy, and he is willing to work with you to set up an affordable payment plan for you so that you won’t have to sacrifice quality professional services just when you need them the most.
Taking Action
If you have been charged with a crime in Houston or elsewhere in Harris County, call Madrid Law, PLLC at 713-877-9400 for a consultation on your case. You won’t need to bring your wallet with you, because the initial consultation won’t cost you a dime. Now is the time to start fighting back.
