What’s the Difference Between a Misdemeanor and a Felony in Texas?

M.J. discharged all of her credit card debt and the IRS back taxes through the Chapter 7 and adversarial proceeding.

M.J. had over $85,000 in unsecured debt from caring for a sick family member as well as over $10,000 in back taxes. The IRS argued that the tax return was not timely filed, but we proved to the court that it was.

In re: M.J.

Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child case dismissed after rejecting the D.A.’s final offer of 40-Years in prison.

Our client was accused of repeatedly raping his pre-teen daughter and was facing life in prison if he was convicted. Prior to hiring us, his bond was revoked for going near a school zone and the State of Texas indicated they never wanted him to see the light of day again. His family came to us for help. After several aggressive moves, we got all of the charges dismissed.

T.A.H.

kept her house and was able to discharge all of her credit card debt in the Chapter 13 bankruptcy.

E.A. was posted for foreclosure on 3/1/16. We filed a Chapter 13 on February 29, 2016 and were able to stop the foreclosure and save her home. She is currently paying her mortgage arrears through a Chapter 13 case.

In re: E.A.

Felony Assault by Choking/Impeding Breath case “No-Billed” by the Grand Jury and the charge was dropped.

Police arrived at the scene after neighbors called the Frisco police complaining that there was a domestic disturbance next door. They found broken china and dishes all over the floor downstairs. The fiancé was screaming and crying hysterically with red marks all over her neck and chest. Our client had locked himself in the upstairs bathroom where the police located him. With guns drawn, the police arrested our client who posted bond and made a beeline for our office. We submitted a packet to the D.A. and within about a month, the charges were dismissed and he avoided not only 10 years in prison but also a lifetime of regret and misery.

A.B.

We proved to the U.S. Trustee that this family passed the 2nd half of the two-part Means Test and were eligible to file a Chapter 7. In short, they saved tens of thousands of dollars by choosing our trial lawyers to represent them.

This family of three had $60,000 in unsecured debt and needed to get out from under it quickly so they could start saving for retirement and their child’s college education. They met with several other bankruptcy attorneys before meeting with us. Every other firm told them that they made too much money to file Chapter 7. Thus, the other firms’ attorney fees for a Chapter 13 would be at least triple what it would be for a Chapter 7. The family made $110,000 a year. According to the IRS’s guidelines, the income for a family of three to pass the first half of the Means Test is just under $60,000.

In re: R.G. & S.G.

Close to 40 State and FBI investigations for Mortgage Fraud (each carrying 99 year prison sentences). EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THE CHARGES DISMISSED!

Aggressive State and FBI investigations were conducted for several years on our client for a multi-million dollar conspiracy. Convinced that she was going to spend the rest of her life in federal prison or the state Pen, she turned to us for help. And help we did. Not only did she not spend one second in prison, all the federal charges and state charges against her were completely dismissed. Despite being caught red-handed, and despite confessing to the authorities, her criminal record is clean as a whistle.

K.D.T.

T.D. got her car back, saved a lot of money in interest, and discharged her unsecured debts.

Client’s vehicle was repossessed on 4/19/16. We filed T.D.’s Chapter 13 case on 4/22/16. We were able to recover the vehicle and pay off the balance through a Chapter 13 case at a much lower interest rate.

In re: T.D.

The Barbie and Ken Divorce. We got “Ken’s” assault-family violence charges dismissed and prevented “Barbie” from stealing his kids.

This affluent and very attractive couple had a toxic relationship. On more than one night, “Barbie” called the police and said that he assaulted her. “Ken” hired another criminal attorney who represented him for months throughout the pendency of their divorce. That attorney advised “Ken” to plead the case out and go on probation. Had Ken taken that horrible advice, his “family violence” admission would have deprived him full access to his children and subjected him to substantial alimony obligations. Ken fired that law firm, hired us, and in one single appearance in Court Mr. Pelley convinced the State to dismiss the case.

B.P.

The H’s beat cancer, discharged the ridiculous medical bills that were not covered by the insurance company they had paid religiously for years, and got rid of their rental house nightmare.

Mrs. H. went through several courageous bouts with cancer and fought through many rounds of chemotherapy. This resilient couple had $160,000 in medical debt and a rental house they could neither sell nor afford to maintain. Right before we were going to file, Mrs. H’s cancer came back. She did not quit fighting. So, we postponed filing until she beat it again and included the newly generated medical debt in her Chapter 7 filing.

In re: J.H. & M.H.

CASE ULTIMATELY DISMISSED AND C.R. KEPT HIS RECORD CLEAN.

Charge: Aggravated Robbery With no mask on in broad daylight client went into a gas station with a pistol and held up the clerk for the cash that was in the safe and his face was caught on a crystal clear video surveillance camera feed. Although facing 99 years confinement, our attorney at an open plea hearing in front of the judge convinced the Court to give him deferred adjudication probation rather than sentencing him to prison.

State of Texas vs. C.R.

R.B. saved his car and saved a lot of money by hiring us.

R.B. could not stay current on his vehicle payments because of the high interest rate and it was up for repossession. We filed a Chapter 13 for him, put an end to the repossession efforts and he is currently repaying the vehicle loan through a Chapter 13 case at a much lower interest rate.

In re: R.B.

Two Delivery of a Controlled Substance in a School Zone cases dismissed after our Motions to Suppress were Granted.

Client had an extensive criminal history. He had everything riding on our Motions to Suppress and Brief in Support. He was looking at 40 years confinement unless Mr. Pelley won the Motion. He did. The court granted our Motion and he walked away a free man.

K.L.

We filed Chapter 7 for them both personally and for their business. They discharged nearly three million dollars in business and personal debt and got a fresh financial start.

This family owned a company that supplied medical equipment. Much of their business involved clients on Medicaid. When Medicaid put a moratorium on payments to providers in the area, their well-established business quickly fell apart.

In re: W.L. & P.L.

Habitual felony offender who was not eligible for probation faced a minimum of 25 years in prison and up to 99 years for assaulting 4 police officers if he was indicted. All cases were dismissed.

This client was up a creek and our defense team was the only paddle that saved him. He had two prior violent felony convictions and was arrested after 2 a.m. outside of a shady lake bar drunk and accused of beating up 4 cops. Given the fact that he was 6’2″ and 240 without an ounce of fat and had a violent criminal history, his outlook seemed futile to him and his family. Nevertheless, they hired Mr. Pelley and within 2 months all charges were dismissed.

C.S.

T.H.’s car was returned, he saved a lot of money by reducing his interest rate on the car, and he discharged all of his credit card debt.

T.H.’s vehicle was repossessed on May 13, 2016. We filed his Chapter 13 case six days later and we were able to recover the vehicle. T.H. is currently paying the vehicle note through a Chapter 13 Plan at a much lower interest rate and lower monthly payment.

In re: T.H.

Homicide case. She came to us immediately after she was charged with killing someone. Case dismissed.
 

T.O.

Thanks to our knowledge of an obscure exception to the Means Test, these clients were able to discharge all of their unsecured debts in a quick and easy Chapter 7 case.

These clients had a tremendous amount of credit card debt. However, because of their income they failed the first half of the two-part Means Test. Nevertheless, we proved that they qualified for an exception to the B22 income requirement as disabled veterans. We showed the U.S. attorney this couple met all three of the prongs for this exception.

In re: A.J. & J.J.

1st Degree Felony Motion to Adjudicate for Delivery of a Controlled Substance >200 Grams. Case Dismissed.

This client violated his probation on multiple occasions. He was facing 99 years confinement as a result of those violations. He had a warrant out for his arrest when he came in to hire us. The very first time that we appeared in Court on that active warrant we convinced the Judge to withdraw the warrant. That same morning, the Motion to Adjudicate was withdrawn, and our client’s probation was continued. No prison time. Not even any jail time.

S.M.

J.W. got rid of the garnishment from her judgment and was able to reduce her monthly budget and discharge all of her unsecured debts.

Client had a garnishment action against her from a Judgment and a high interest vehicle note. Client filed a Chapter 13 bankruptcy to stop the garnishment and repay the vehicle note through a Chapter 13 bankruptcy at a lower interest rate and lower the monthly payments on her car.

In re: J.W.

The State of Missouri prosecuted this person for felony theft. She originally hired an attorney in Missouri who charged her over $20,000 in attorney fees, drug out her case for over a year, and recommended that she accept the D.A.’s offer of 6 years in prison. She fired him. She hired us. Our attorney got her case dismissed in one single appearance in Court.

She was actually a Texas resident. She hired us and we got permission from the court to practice pro hac vice in Missouri for her case. Mr. Pelley made one (1) appearance in court just outside of St. Louis and within 2 weeks the felony charges were dismissed rather than her spending 6 years in prison.

W.M.

This family was thrilled with our firm for not only getting rid of $160,000 of unsecured debt, but also paying less than half of what they owed on their car to own it outright.

This family owed $160,000 in unsecured debt and $16,000 on their car at around 20% interest. They made almost $100,000 a year. That is over $30,000 more than what the Code says you pass the first half of the Means Test indicates for a Chapter 7. Mrs. C. lost her job shortly before filing, so their 6-month average “current monthly income” did not properly reflect their realistic income moving forward. After filing an affidavit of unemployment, we convinced the U.S. Trustee that this family was eligible for a Chapter 7 and we discharged all of their burdensome pre-existing unsecured debts. However, the beauty didn’t stop there: The car that they owed $16,000 on was only worth $8,000 and they were getting killed on the interest rates due to bad credit. We filed a Motion to Redeem and they paid only $8,000 for their car, which saved them over $10,000 over the life of the loan.

In re: J.J. & J.C.

Sexual Assault Case-Dismissed without indictment.

Our client had a crazy co-worker who said he put the moves on her and sexually assaulted her at work. Facing 20 years and a lifetime of registration as a sex offender, he sought our counsel. Within weeks of hiring our criminal defense team, we ended his nightmare and got him his life and kids back.

D.D.

A.N. got her car back and will discharge her credit card debt while lowering the monthly payments on the vehicle.

Her vehicle was repossessed on 3/21/16. A.N. filed an emergency Chapter 13 bankruptcy case on 3/24/16 and we were able to recover the vehicle for her. A.N. is currently paying the vehicle note through her Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Plan at a much lower interest rate and a much lower monthly payment.

In re: A.N.

Federal Investigation of Money Laundering by the F.B.I. – Closed without Indictment.

Mr. Pelley convinced the federal government that this client was the victim of a conspiracy to commit wire fraud for millions of dollars rather than the rest of the gang who had actual criminal culpability. Otherwise, she was looking down the wrong end of a 20-year barrel in a federal prison. She got her life back after our team got the FBI investigation dismissed.

F.W.

We hired a translator for this deaf couple who also went with us to meet with the 341 Trustee Meeting and they received a quick and painless discharge of all of their unsecured debts.

This couple had an enormous amount of unsecured debt. After visiting with several bankruptcy law firms, they were exasperated by the inability to communicate their financial questions and concerns. Then they reached out to us. The first lengthy meeting was conducted by passing notes back and forth. Then, we hired an ASL translator to accommodate these good people and make them feel as calm as possible.

In re: J.A. & M.A.

Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child charge – Dismissed.

This poor man was charged with this false allegation, jailed, and bond was set at $200,000. The family could not afford to make bond. So, they hired us to file a Writ of Habeas Corpus. At the hearing, Mr. Pelley got the bond reduced down an astonishing amount to $500 and within two weeks, he got the case dismissed.

D.J.K.

E.N. saved his house from going back to the bank and discharged his unsecured debts.

E.N. was posted for foreclosure on 3/1/16. We filed a Chapter 13 case on 2/25/16 and stopped the foreclosure. E.N. is currently paying the mortgage arrears through a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case.

In re: E.N.

Assault Family Violence–Choking/Impeding Breath.

Police arrived on the scene after the wife went nuts and called the cops and told them that her husband choked her. They showed up and arrested him (without paying any regard to his side of the story) for a 3rd Degree Felony. He posted bond and came to see us. The case was dismissed within weeks after we submitted a “packet” to the Grand Jury and got a “No-Bill.”

K.H.

We convinced the U.S. Trustee that this couple belonged in a Chapter 7 case despite making nearly double what the IRS’s guidelines says is typical for a family of two.

This elderly married couple had over $270,000 of debt from an extended illness. However, they made almost $100,000 as a family of two. The applicable family income to file a Chapter 7 is $57,000, so they clearly failed the first half of the Means Test. We worked with them to maximize their qualified expenses.

In re: W.M. & R.M.

First Degree Felony Assault by a Habitual Offender Facing 99 Years in the Pen! Dismissed.

This client would not have been eligible for probation if he convicted at trial. He would have to serve a minimum of 25 years in prison. He hired us. We pressed the State for a dismissal and that is exactly what we got.

J.E.

M.M. was not only able to stop the I.R.S. from charging him post-petition penalties and interest, he was also able to discharge his older IRS debts and pay the recent ones back at 0%.

M.M. had several years of IRS debt. He was able to repay the IRS debt through a Chapter 13 bankruptcy and stop all levy actions.

In re: M.M.

Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child.

His wife kidnapped his kids and the daughter made a false allegation that he molested her so that she could live with her mom. The wife filed for divorce and kidnapped the children. We not only got the charges dismissed, but also got his son back from the ex-wife.

B.D.R.

We helped K.D. file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Ultimately, all of her unsecured debts were discharged and we helped her recover thousands of dollars from the flooring company.

Our elderly client was left with tens of thousands in unsecured debt after being scammed by a flooring company that sued her and levied her bank accounts.

In re: K.D.

Assault Bodily Injury that left the complaining witness in the ER room. At trial, the jury returned a verdict of “Not Guilty.”

Our client was a trained killing machine that proudly served in the U.S. Marines. At trial, the State’s victim essentially testified that our client beat him to a bloody pulp. He also admitted to agreeing to the fight and after our team explained the “mutual combat” defense to the jury, they acquitted him.

B.H.

D.H. saved a lot of money on her car through the Chapter 13 bankruptcy because she was able to buy it for the amount it was actually worth, rather than the amount she owed at 4% interest. Plus, she put a permanent end to her payday loans and credit card debt.

D.H.’s car was up for repossession. She also had multiple payday loans that were draining her bank account. We filed her Chapter 13 case on 5/24/16 and were able to stop the repossession and stop all collections/garnishments from the payday loans out of the bank account.

In re: D.H.

CASE DROPPED.

Charges: Felony D.W.I. 3RD OR MORE IN COLLIN COUNTY. Client was under investigation for D.W.I. 3rd or more in Collin County, Texas and hired our firm right after his arrest. We quickly conducted our own investigation and provided it to the Collin County District Attorney’s office prior to the Grand Jury meeting. The case was refused, and all charges dropped.

State of Texas vs. C.A.

We put C.B.’s ex-husband in his place and got her back on her feet.

This divorced single mother was left with a mortgage she could not afford. Her ex-husband took the mortgage payment out of her alimony every month, leaving her without enough money to buy food or gas. We filed her Chapter 7 case, discharged all of her debt (including the huge abandoned house mortgage) and helped her receive the full alimony payments.

In re: C.B.

CASE DISMISSED.

Charge: Assault Causes Bodily Injury—Family Violence.

State of Texas vs. S.C.

JURY RETURNED A VERDICT OF NOT GUILTY.

Charge: D.W.I. At trial, the jury watched the roadside video showing J.C. falling down getting out of the car at nearly 2 a.m. J.C. could not walk a straight line during the Walk and Turn test, could not stand on one leg without stumbling and was clearly having a difficult time stating exactly where he had been that night.

State of Texas vs. J.H.

CASE DISMISSED.

Charge: 3rd Degree Felony Assault by Choking

State of Texas vs. M.S.

ALL 4 CASES DISMISSED.

Charges: 3 separate cases of Assault Causes Bodily Injury-Family Violence and 1 Case of Interference with an Emergency Phone Call

State of Texas vs. M.J.

FOUND NOT GUILTY AT TRIAL.

Charge: Assault-Family Violence

State of Texas vs. S.O.

FOUND NOT GUILTY AT TRIAL.

Charge: Assault Causes Bodily Injury-Family Violence

State of Texas vs. S.W.

CASE DISMISSED.

Charge: Theft-Client was not a U.S. Citizen, and faced deportation if convicted.

State of Texas vs. A.Y.

CASES DISMISSED.

Charge: Burglary of a Habitation Client was caught and admitted to police that he was the primary actor in a series of burglaries of local dignitaries’ homes. Client was facing 20 years confinement on each charge.

State of Texas vs. C.M.

CASES DISMISSED.

Charge: Felony Theft by Check over $200,000. Client was accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from numerous Las Vegas casinos. A Texas resident, he hired our firm. The Las Vegas casinos threatened to pursue substantial prison time.

State of Nevada vs. A.I.