Harris County Burglary of a Habitation Defense Attorney
Houston Texas Criminal Attorney James Sullivan has defended many memorable and colorful clients over the past 25 years. This is one of the those cases that stands out–the case of “Shoot me! Shoot me! Tase me! Tase me!”
Sullivan’s client was charged with two felony offenses–Burglary of a Habitation and Attempted Disarming of a Police Officer. The client went to his ex-girlfriend’s apartment in the early morning hours to talk to her. When she refused to open the door, he forced his way in. When she kept insisting that he leave, he went to the kitchen and grabbed a small steak knife. He threatened to kill himself and then began stabbing himself in the upper left chest and shoulder area, leaving small puncture wounds. When she still refused to cooperate, he told her that he would call 911 and that when the police arrived he would charge at them with the knife so they would shoot him. The police soon arrived. Fortunately, for him, he threw the knife down before charging at them, yelling “Shoot me! Shoot me! Tase me! Tase me!” The police officers did not comply with his demands. Instead, they tackled him to the floor. While on the floor, he tried to grab one of the officer’s weapons to shoot himself.
What explained his idiotic, insane behavior? You guessed it. He had spent the evening getting drunk at a local cantina.
In court, Sullivan argued that it was not a burglary of a habitation because his client did not enter the apartment to steal or to commit an assault against her. Instead, it was a trespass. Sullivan further argued that it was not an attempted disarming of a police officer because his client was not trying to take the weapon to harm the officer but to harm himself. Ultimately, his client pled to 30 days in the Harris county jail on a reduced charge of class A misdemeanor trespass to a habitation and the felony disarming case was dismissed.
Houston Criminal Defense Lawyers James Sullivan and Associates represent people charged with all kinds of crimes, including Burglary of a Habitation. If you need a criminal attorney to defend you, contact Attorney James Sullivan at (281) 546-6428 for a confidential consultation.
James Sullivan graduated from Baylor University in 1990 with a degree in Journalism, the ideal degree for investigating, discovering and telling winning stories in court. In 1993, Sullivan graduated from South Texas College of Law, which is nationally recognized as the top law school for trial advocacy.
James Sullivan later graduated from Gerry Spence’s Trial Lawyers College in Wyoming. Founded in 1994, it is the most selective and prestigious trial advocacy program in America. The methods taught at TLC are not taught anywhere else. The 1150 graduates form an extremely unique community of the most accomplished trial lawyers in the United States. Sullivan has a proven record of defending people from all walks of life, faiths and countries in courts throughout Texas.
