TexasCHLforum.com

everything i have read says if you do end up having to shoot someone you should not talk to the police until you have consulted a lawyer. ok. being the squeaky clean person my background checks prove i am, i don't know a criminal defense attorney or anyone who has ever had need of one.
it would be good to have a data base of lawyers in different areas of the state
a person could call if that time comes. maybe there is a thread here but i haven't found it.
would like to hear what some of you know and think about this.

I agree...same situation for me, and would love to hear suggestions for good self defense savvy bulldog of a lawyer inthe Houston?galveston area...

-kd

We have a stickey for holster maker......maybe someone should start one for lawyers too. It would be very nice to have on hand.

The NRA has a list of 2A knowledgeable lawyers for all 50 states. It is the "Civil Rights Defense Fund" The phone number is (703)-267-1250. They also give money for defense for 2nd Amendment related situations if you qualify. I have this info on a laminated card in my wallet. They recommend a local lawyer for the statement to police which may be what the original poster was wanting.

I think a database is a good idea. I would hope it would be printable with local attorneys in each city. My main concern, when traveling, is not knowing a good lawyer in any given area. The TSRA doesn't offer any list or database so, in a shooting situation, I would be looking thru the yellow pages and that is not something I would want at that time. I have a local guy but, simply don't have the time to find someone for the areas I travel. I would be more confident in someone who knows "gun law". There are things that must be known to give an accurate statement as well as things that should not be volunteered. I don't think most general type attorneys will know these things.

Thank you for the post.

saj111 wrote:everything i have read says if you do end up having to shoot someone you should not talk to the police until you have consulted a lawyer. .

I think that is bad advice. If you don't give the police a basic understanding that you were attacked and defended yourself, they will have no choice but to arrest you and charge you. As evidenced by the several recent self-defense shootings, the victim told the police what happened and none were arrested.

I would not get into details about how many shots were fired, etc., but a basic statement like, "that man tried to (rob, shoot, stab, kill me) and I had to defend myself. I will press charges, " will help establish you as the victim and show that you have nothing to hide from the police. After basically describing what happened, you could decline to give a more detailed statement, telling the officer that you know he understands how serious this is, and you should probably calm down, gather yourself and talk to your attorney before making further statements.

All that said, having a name and phone number of a good criminal defense attorney is a good idea.

txinvestigator wrote:I think that is bad advice. If you don't give the police a basic understanding that you were attacked and defended yourself, they will have no choice but to arrest you and charge you. As evidenced by the several recent self-defense shootings, the victim told the police what happened and none were arrested.

I would not get into details about how many shots were fired, etc., but a basic statement like, "that man tried to (rob, shoot, stab, kill me) and I had to defend myself. I will press charges, " will help establish you as the victim and show that you have nothing to hide from the police. After basically describing what happened, you could decline to give a more detailed statement, telling the officer that you know he understands how serious this is, and you should probably calm down, gather yourself and talk to your attorney before making further statements.

All that said, having a name and phone number of a good criminal defense attorney is a good idea.

I believe that this is excellent advice from TXI.

I also would like to see a list, by city, generated.

txinvestigator wrote:If you don't give the police a basic understanding that you were attacked and defended yourself, they will have no choice but to arrest you and charge you.

I agree.

"He tried to kill me and I shot to stop him."
"I feel sick and I don't want to answer any more questions right now."

I might answer some other factual questions like whether I know the criminal.

BTW, self-defense is not about "gun law." I would think all criminal defense attorneys are familiar with justifications for use of deadly force, because it's a possible defense in every homicide.

You night need someone more knowledgeable about concealed carry if you were charged with criminal trespass or failing to conceal.

- Jim

txinvestigator wrote:

saj111 wrote:everything i have read says if you do end up having to shoot someone you should not talk to the police until you have consulted a lawyer. .

I think that is bad advice. If you don't give the police a basic understanding that you were attacked and defended yourself, they will have no choice but to arrest you and charge you. As evidenced by the several recent self-defense shootings, the victim told the police what happened and none were arrested.

I would not get into details about how many shots were fired, etc., but a basic statement like, "that man tried to (rob, shoot, stab, kill me) and I had to defend myself. I will press charges, " will help establish you as the victim and show that you have nothing to hide from the police. After basically describing what happened, you could decline to give a more detailed statement, telling the officer that you know he understands how serious this is, and you should probably calm down, gather yourself and talk to your attorney before making further statements.

All that said, having a name and phone number of a good criminal defense attorney is a good idea.

I cover this in my Texas Self-Defense Law Seminar (formerly Deadly Force Seminar), all of my NRA PPIH and PPOH Courses, my CHL courses and anytime someone asks me whether they should talk or stay quiet. I won't make a blanket statement that everyone should talk regardless of their personality (ex. motor-mouth syndrome), but as a follow up to Txi's statement, the first-responding officer has to have something to put into his report and he/she has to have something to say the the ADA on-call.

Now, I'll shut up!

Chas.

Chas,

Not sure about the others, but my concerns on this issue is after we get past the "he was trying to kill me - he made me shoot him to stop him" statement, which I'll have given to the 911 operator 2 or 3 times before I even give my location, and repeated to the first officer on the scene.

At some point at the scene I would expect the LEO's are going to be looking for more detailed info, and I'll still be flustered enough that I won't be too careful how I say things. It's at that point that I'd like the right professional making sure I'm not creating problems for myself...someone to slap me in the back of the head and tell me that's enough, time to be quiet.

The question I think the OP and I are asking is how do we go about finding the right person to do that for us...I'm pretty sure the corporate lawyers I am aquianted (only lawyers I know) with aren't going to be much help...

-KD

http://concealedcarrylegal.com/

This firm has a good track record, and nowhere do they state that you shouldn't talk to Law Enforcement, they do stress not to get into a big discussion with the dispatcher, as your priority is to get Law Enforcement and Emergency Medical services to the scene as soon as possible...In cases where the use of deadly force has been utilized...

Just be prepared for the ride of your life...It won't be fun, or something to brag about either...

txinvestigator wrote:

saj111 wrote:everything i have read says if you do end up having to shoot someone you should not talk to the police until you have consulted a lawyer. .

I think that is bad advice. If you don't give the police a basic understanding that you were attacked and defended yourself, they will have no choice but to arrest you and charge you. As evidenced by the several recent self-defense shootings, the victim told the police what happened and none were arrested.

I would not get into details about how many shots were fired, etc., but a basic statement like, "that man tried to (rob, shoot, stab, kill me) and I had to defend myself. I will press charges, " will help establish you as the victim and show that you have nothing to hide from the police. After basically describing what happened, you could decline to give a more detailed statement, telling the officer that you know he understands how serious this is, and you should probably calm down, gather yourself and talk to your attorney before making further statements.

All that said, having a name and phone number of a good criminal defense attorney is a good idea.

+1

I'm with TXI on this one. Excellent advice.

If you totally clam up and refuse to say anything, the responding LEO's will be forced to take you for "the ride". Giving a BRIEF summation of events as TXI outlined is a much better approach.

And any LEO would understand that a reasonable person would be "flustered" to say the least after having been forced to defend themselves with lethal force. So expressing a need to calm yourself and seek out counsel before giving a more detailed account is perfectly in order.

Also agree to stick to basics with LEO. I asked my attorney if he would represent me in the unlikely event that I have to use my Kimber Ultra CDP II or KT 3AT BUG and he provided his home and cell number. He also said the local DA, ADAs, and LEOs support CDL.

Also recall in my last CHL renewal the instructor said you have 48 hours to make a formal statement and to take that time to review with your attorney. Any one else heard about having 48 hours to make a statement?

Shoot_First wrote:Also recall in my last CHL renewal the instructor said you have 48 hours to make a formal statement and to take that time to review with your attorney. Any one else heard about having 48 hours to make a statement?

That is not in the penal code nor the government code. I have not seen that in the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, either. Thay can charge you immediately, and ANY statement you make to the police will be "formal".

kdom wrote:Chas,

Not sure about the others, but my concerns on this issue is after we get past the "he was trying to kill me - he made me shoot him to stop him" statement, which I'll have given to the 911 operator 2 or 3 times before I even give my location, and repeated to the first officer on the scene.

At some point at the scene I would expect the LEO's are going to be looking for more detailed info, and I'll still be flustered enough that I won't be too careful how I say things. It's at that point that I'd like the right professional making sure I'm not creating problems for myself...someone to slap me in the back of the head and tell me that's enough, time to be quiet.

-KD

I have a suggestion about this, but I can't go into it in a public forum. I see you're in the area, so maybe you can come to one of my seminars, or meet me at the range sometime. We can visit about it then.

Chas.