James Ray Alston

James Alston is a former Assistant United States Attorney and a former Harris County Assistant District Attorney. James Alston was a prosecutor for 12 years and was trained by the government to investigate and prosecute crimes in both state and federal courts. From Federal, white collar crimes such as mortgage fraud, healthcare fraud and internet sex crimes to State charges such as DWI, assault, drug charges and more - Houston Criminal Lawyer James Alston knows the means and methods prosecutors use to seek convictions and he applies this knowledge to fight against the system and maintain your freedom.

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Texas

Since 1993

Loyola University New Orleans

J.D. (1993) | psychology

1990 - 1993

Texas State Bar  # 00786974

Member

1993 - Current

Criminal Law

Texas State Bar

Q. Can a person be charge state and federal for the same charge

July 1, 2014

A: In order for a person to be charged at both the state and federal level they must have violated both sets of laws during the commission of their criminal act. This doesn't violate the 5th Amendment because this legal action falls under the dual sovereignty principle in which the sets of laws are seen as separate, hence the cases are as well. It should be noted though that an acquittal under the first set of laws doesn't mean a person still can't be charged under the other set.

In 2011 84% of violent crimes were assaults, and if the crime involved a weapon deemed illegal under federal there is no reason why charges at both the state and federal level shouldn't be expected. This means the defendant may have to serve both the state and federal sentences either concurrently or consecutively depending on the sentencing guidelines.

Source:

http://houstoncrimedefense.com/so-what-exactly-are-federal-crimes ... Read More