Fort Bend Felony Defense Trial Lawyer James Sullivan
has represented more than 3,000 clients in criminal and juvenile courts
in Fort Bend County Texas and surrounding counties. The following criminal and juvenile cases listed in alphabetical order are exceptional and should not be considered as typical. Certainly, each case is different. Similar results may not be obtained in your case and past performance is no guarantee of future results. Note that these are only examples of the cases Sullivan has handled.
1° = 1st Degree Felony, 2° = 2nd Degree Felony, 3° = 3rd Degree Felony, SJF = State Jail Felony
A = Class A Misdemeanor, B = Class B Misdemeanor
AGGRAVATED ROBBERY
Jim Sullivan represented a 25 year old man accused of 2 separate
armed robberies, including a home invasion across the street from the
South Houston Police Department. The chief of police and another police
officer testified in trial that they positively identified Jim’s client
as one of the three armed robbers who fled on foot from the scene. The
police initially suspected Jim’s client because his vehicle was left
behind at the scene. After the jury returned a not guilty verdict, the
prosecutor dismissed the second aggravated robbery. If convicted of
either robbery case, the accused faced 25 years to life in prison. Jim
then represented his client at a parole revocation hearing and his
client was kept on parole.
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
NEGLIGENT HOMICIDE
Jim Sullivan defended a 21 year old man accused of killing a young
man in a head-on car accident on Eldridge Parkway in northwest Houston.
The accused allegedly had traces of cocaine in his system, was driving
over the speed limit in the rain, on the wrong side of the road, and
with “bald” tires. The force of the impact caused the engine from one of
the cars to be ejected and thrown about 50 feet from the car.
Unfortunately, the sports car the decedent was driving did not have air
bags, and the driver was killed instantly when his head hit the steering
wheel.
The accused denied using drugs and testified he was on his way to
work for a local service station. The accused had auto insurance. Jim
hired a drug toxicologist expert who conducted his own lab tests and
questioned the validity of the blood tests conducted by the Houston
Police Lab. Photographs of the accused’s tires reflected that they had
sufficient tread and the inspection sticker was current on his car. Due
to the heavy rain, his car hydroplaned across lanes and struck the
decedent’s car head on. A witness testified he was going 5-10 miles
above the speed limit. To be guilty of negligent homicide, Jim argued to
the jury, requires gross negligence and not simple negligence. After
about 10 minutes of deliberation, the jury returned a not guilty
verdict.
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
AGGRAVATED SEXUAL ASSAULT OF A CHILD
Jim Sullivan represented a 40 year old man accused in two cases of
sexually assaulting his 6 year old daughter in Montgomery County. The
accusations arose one week after the accused contacted an attorney to
file for divorce. The outcry witness, the child’s mother, had threatened
her husband not to leave her or he would never see his children again.
By viewing the child’s videotaped interview from the Children’s
Assessment Center and carefully observing her demeanor, body language
and the manner in which she responded to the questions of the forensic
interviewer, Jim could tell that the child had been coached. Jim also
interviewed several witnesses who corroborated the motivation for the
mother to file false charges.
JURY TRIAL SETTING: BOTH CASES DISMISSED
BURGLARY OF A HABITATION
Jim Sullivan represented a 14 year old boy who–along with six
others–was accused of breaking into a home and stealing a safe
containing about $15,000 in cash. A police officer arrested his client,
took him to the police station and obtained a signed confession from
him. Jim’s client said the officer browbeat a false confession out of
him and that he was actually swimming at a YMCA at the time of the
burglary. In addition to his alibi witnesses, Jim also subpoenaed to
trial the five teenagers who had actually committed the crime and who
were already on probation.
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
ASSAULT
Jim Sullivan represented a large 13 year old boy accused of attacking
his behavioral adjustment teacher and seriously injuring her in the
hallway outside her classroom. The Houston Press covered the trial in an
article entitled “School Scam? Did a teacher fabricate a student assault to collect disability?”
After finding his client not guilty, the jury asked Jim how charges
could be filed against the teacher for perjury and insurance fraud.
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
POSSESSION OF A CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE
Jim Sullivan represented a 13 year old girl accused of possession
between 1-4 grams of cocaine. She was at an apartment with her boyfriend
and two other teenage couples. One of the couples got into a fight.
That girl called a friend who in turn called the police. When a police
officer arrived at the door, that couple jumped out the back window and
ran away. The officer entered the apartment without a warrant, claiming
he heard what he thought were the sounds of a body being dragged across
the floor. In a suppression hearing, Jim elicited from the officer that
he did not hear any such sounds at all. Hence, there was no valid
emergency to justify his warrantless search and seizure. The judge
granted Jim’s motion to suppress evidence of the possession.
SUPPRESSION HEARING: CASE DISMISSED
AGGRAVATED SEXUAL ASSAULT OF A CHILD
Jim Sullivan represented a 34 year old pregnant woman who–along with
her live-in boyfriend–was charged with sexually assaulting her 12 year
old daughter. The daughter was interviewed on two separate occasions at
the Children’s Assessment Center. In the first interview, the girl said
that her mother was involved, but in her second interview, she suggested
that her mother was not involved. Jim attended the trial of her
boyfriend who was represented by another attorney and was found guilty
by the jury. Jim was prepared to represent the mother at trial the
following week.
JURY TRIAL SETTING: FELONY CASES DISMISSED ON THIRD JURY TRIAL SETTING
AGGRAVATED SEXUAL ASSAULT OF A CHILD
Jim Sullivan represented a 19 year old man accused of repeatedly
molesting his 14 year old half- sister over a period of several years.
In the same videotaped interview at the Children’s Assessment Center,
the half-sister also accused her uncle of raping her at his mobile home
while his wife was outside attending a party. Her physical exam came
back as normal. Through a thorough investigation, Jim was able to show
that the complainant had falsely accused at least one other teenager of
sexually assaulting her. Jim was also able to show clear bias and other
motivation for her false charges.
JURY TRIAL SETTING: CASE DISMISSED
SEXUAL ASSAULT
Jim Sullivan represented a 16 year old boy accused of raping a 17
year old girl at her home. After a lengthy investigation, Jim was able
to cast doubt on the credibility of his accuser in several ways,
including the fact that his client did attend football practice at the
time that his accuser claimed that he had followed her home and raped
her.
JURY TRIAL SETTING: CASE DISMISSED AT A PRE-TRIAL HEARING SETTING
AGGRAVATED SEXUAL ASSAULT OF A CHILD & INDECENCY WITH A CHILD
Jim Sullivan represented a 16 year old boy accused of molesting his
six year old half-sister. After a thorough investigation of the home
environment, Jim was able to show that–if the girl had been molested–the
stepfather, a convicted drug user, was the likely perpetrator.
JURY TRIAL SETTING: FELONY CASES REDUCED TO MISDEMEANOR ASSAULT
AGGRAVATED ASSAULT AGAINST A PUBLIC SERVANT (POLICE OFFICER)
Jim Sullivan represented a deranged woman who walked up to a police
officer in a grocery store and lunged at him with a butcher knife.
Fortunately, the officer was able to subdue and arrest her without
either of them being physically injured. It was soon learned that the
woman had a lengthy documented history of mental illness. In the first
hearing, Jim persuaded a jury to find his client incompetent to stand
trial with no substantial likelihood of regaining competency. His client
was then committed to a state hospital for treatment. In a later court
trial, Jim persuaded the court to find his client not guilty by reason
of insanity.
TRIAL SETTING: NOT GUILTY BY REASON OF INSANITY
INDECENCY WITH A CHILD
Jim Sullivan represented a 14 year old boy accused of touching a 13
year old girl in her genital area against her will behind the bleachers
in the school gymnasium. After interviewing several eyewitnesses and
taking photos of the scene, Jim was able to cast doubt on the girl’s
version of events.
JURY TRIAL SETTING: FELONY CASE REDUCED TO MISDEMEANOR ASSAULT
FELONY THEFT
Jim Sullivan represented a middle-aged businessman accused of felony
theft for allegedly fencing over $60,000 in stolen inventory from a
local business. Through an intensive investigation, Jim learned that the
co-defendant knowingly sold the inventory at a steep discount through
his client to a distributor who had to have known the inventory was
stolen. Jim was able to present his client as a naive broker who only
received $8,000 in what he thought was a legitimate fee from the
transaction. On the second trial setting, the State agreed to reduce the
charges to a misdemeanor, allow his client to receive deferred
adjudication probation so that he would not receive a conviction, and
allow his client to pay back only $8,000 in restitution.
JURY TRIAL SETTING: FELONY REDUCED TO MISDEMEANOR ON SECOND TRIAL SETTING
AGGRAVATED ASSAULT
Jim Sullivan represented a woman who was accused of biting off her
ex-boyfriend’s tongue. Through an investigation, Jim was able to show
that she probably acted in self-defense as he was attempting to rape her
while high on drugs.
JURY TRIAL SETTING: FELONY REDUCED TO MISDEMEANOR AT PRE-TRIAL SETTING
AGGRAVATED ASSAULT
Jim Sullivan represented a 40 year old woman who allegedly stabbed
her wheel-chair bound husband in the chest with a kitchen knife. The
woman had a long history of mental illness and allegedly had stabbed him
on a previous occasion. Through a lengthy investigation, Jim learned
that he had a lengthy crack cocaine addiction and had been brain-injured
in a prior car accident. Jim was prepared to present a compelling
justification argument of self-defense.
JURY TRIAL SETTING: FELONY REDUCED TO MISDEMEANOR AT PRE-TRIAL SETTING
ASSAULT AGAINST A POLICE OFFICER & EVADING BY MOTOR VEHICLE
Jim Sullivan represented a 16 year old boy who was accused of two
felony charges: Assault on a Police Officer for allegedly striking an
undercover police officer with his car and Evading by Motor Vehicle for
continuing to drive away. At the jury trial, Jim argued that his client
had just been jumped by two teens and was trying to drive away when a
guy walked up with a gun drawn that he believed was trying to car jack
him. The gun man was an undercover police officer who flashed his ID
card and identified himself. In his pain and confusion, his client
understandably did not believe him and drove off. The passenger side
mirror on his car struck the officer. After several hours of
deliberation, the jury could not reach a verdict. The State then agreed
to dismiss the felony assault charge, reduce the felony evading case to a
misdemeanor and let his client receive deferred prosecution so that he
would not receive a conviction.
VERDICT: HUNG JURY
ROBBERY (4 CASES)
Jim Sullivan represented a 40 year old man with a lengthy felony
criminal record dating back 15 years. His client had a severe drug
problem. He previously had served 8 years of a 25 year sentence as a
habitual felon for burglary of a habitation. Two days after being
released from prison on a drug case, he was arrested on four cases of
robbery and was suspected in at least four other cases. He allegedly
snatched purses from women causing minor injuries while driving his
father’s truck which, along with him, was later identified by witnesses.
Facing 25 to Life as a habitual felon for the second time, he opted for
trial. He had 10 years left on his parole.
JURY TRIAL SETTING: 10 YEARS TDC AFTER FACING 25 YEARS TO LIFE IN TDC
Our law firm defends clients charged with crimes in district courts and county criminal courts, including domestic violence or family violence, drug possession of drug delivery, violence crimes, and juvenile delinquency.
