Intoxication Assault Cases in Kaufman County

Most DWI cases are misdemeanors, there are a few types of DWI cases that are felony offenses and today are we going to look at one of those- Intoxication Assault. Intoxication assault is one of the only DWI charges that doesn't have "driving while intoxicated" in the title of the offense. It sounds like a drunk bar fight would qualify.

If you are being charged with intoxication assault call our defense team today for help. We have two former Kaufman County felony prosecutor who can help you. Consultations are free confidential.

Sec. 49.07. INTOXICATION ASSAULT. (a) A person commits an offense if the person, by accident or mistake:

(1) while operating an aircraft, watercraft, or amusement ride while intoxicated, or while operating a motor vehicle in a public place while intoxicated, by reason of that intoxication causes serious bodily injury to another; or

(2) as a result of assembling a mobile amusement ride while intoxicated causes serious bodily injury to another.

(b) In this section, "serious bodily injury" means injury that creates a substantial risk of death or that causes serious permanent disfigurement or protracted loss or impairment of the function of any bodily member or organ.

(c) Except as provided by Section 49.09, an offense under this section is a felony of the third degree.

As you have probably guessed we defense lawyers don't see many aircraft, watercraft or amusement park ride related intoxication assault cases. I'd say at least 99% of these cases in Kaufman County are vehicle related.

It is a very serious felony, a 3 ^rd degree felony with a possible sentence of 2-10 years in prison. Kaufman County prosecutors are especially aggressive in prosecuting these cases. No one likes a drunk driver who injures someone in a car accident. It's our job to help you through this process, but expect it to be very challenging. These cases can take a year or more to finalize.

Basically, an intoxication assault is a DWI case in which you cause an accident that causes a serious bodily injury. The 3 main issues in intoxication assault cases are

1. Can the State prove that the Defendant drove while intoxicated?
2. Can the State prove that the Defendant caused an injury because of his intoxication?
3. Is that injury a serious bodily injury?

I written at length about step 1, defending DWI cases. Every intoxication assault must be investigated first as a DWI, even though the typical arrest scenario is much different. For example, in a regular DWI case the driver is usually stopped for a traffic violation. In an intoxication assault, the officer never sees the suspect driving, instead he arrives on the seen after the driving is over. If there was a car accident the Defendant may not have performed field sobriety tests. Some officer, but not all, know that drivers who have been injured in an accident should not attempt field balancing tests. Still, less experienced or knowledgeable officers will force suspects, who may have just suffered a concussion or worse, to try to balance on one leg. It's no surprise that these injured suspects will struggle to perform balancing tests.

Car accident cases also have accident reports in which a DPS trooper will take a guess at how the accident happened and which driver was at fault. Remember, the State has to prove that your intoxication caused the accident. So if the other driver was at fault, you need a lawyer who has experience with accident reconstruction to help defend you. Our firm has an active car accident personal injury division and we have a lot of experience with car wrecks and accident reconstruction.

Finally, the injury has to be a serious bodily injury which means and injury that creates a substantial risk of death or that causes serious permanent disfigurement or protracted loss or impairment of the function of any bodily member or organ. That is a very fact specific element and one we can discuss at my office.