Disorderly Conduct Defense Attorney in Houston, Texas
Can you tell us about a memorable disorderly conduct case you handled?
Can you tell us about a memorable disorderly conduct case you handled?
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So there are lots of ways to commit disorderly conduct in Texas but the one that happens most often to our clients is something called displaying a firearm in a public place in a manner calculated to alarm. And lots of times that’s easy it’s brandishing a firearm, you see someone waving it around, clearly an act of disorderly conduct. But we had a very interesting case that we had to take to trial in which our client was carrying a rifle in a sling on his back pointed at the ground. In fact, he had fast food in his hands at the time so there’s no sort of action to get to the firearm.
But he happened to carry it through a mall. He was carrying it through a mall because he worked there and had a firearms accessory store and was hoping to display some of those accessories on that rifle. But there were people who were alarmed and they called the police and police arrived and said, “Look, I’m sorry, a mall is just not the place for this and you’ve committed disorderly conduct.” And that was the state’s theory of the case was you can never do this and not alarm people. Fortunately, the jury actually disagreed given the facts, given that he wasn’t reaching for the gun, he wasn’t being aggressive. I mean if you weren’t looking at him from the back you wouldn’t even know it was there. Luckily, they came back and said there’s no way that he calculated to alarm in that circumstance and found him not guilty.
Houston, TX criminal defense attorney Emily William Taylor shares the story of a memorable disorderly conduct case she handled. She explains that there are many ways to commit disorderly conduct in Texas, but the charge that most often arises for her clients is displaying a firearm in a public place in a manner calculated to alarm. In many cases, this is straightforward—someone brandishing a firearm in a threatening way clearly constitutes disorderly conduct.
However, she recalls a particularly interesting trial where her client had a rifle slung on his back, pointed at the ground, while carrying fast food in his hands. He was walking through a mall because he worked there and wanted to display some firearm accessories on the rifle. Although his actions were completely non-threatening, some shoppers were alarmed and called the police. When officers arrived, they cited him for disorderly conduct, arguing that carrying a firearm in a mall could never avoid alarming people.
She points out that, in this case, the jury carefully considered the circumstances. Her client had not reached for the gun, was not acting aggressively, and if someone hadn’t been looking closely, they might not have even noticed the rifle. Ultimately, the jury concluded that he had not intended to alarm anyone and found him not guilty, a decision she describes as a well-earned outcome given the facts.
