Beware of Fake Bondsmen and Legal Service Scams: Tarrant County Man Sentenced for Impersonating a Lawyer

A Tarrant County man will spend the next decade in prison for pretending to be a lawyer and taking money from the families of Tarrant County Jail inmates. Ramond Davis Jr., 60, pleaded guilty after investigators with the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office determined he was not a licensed attorney and had targeted multiple victims. In Texas, falsely holding yourself out as a lawyer for economic benefit is a third-degree felony under Penal Code § 38.122, which carries 2 to 10 years. Davis received the maximum.

According to news reports, Davis contacted people held at the Tarrant County Jail, offered them legal services, then met with their families to collect payments of about $3,000 per case. The sheriff’s office described families who paid and got nothing. He used a false name on jail video calls, and coverage of the case reported that he targeted Spanish-speaking families in particular.

The case is worth your attention because the same playbook shows up in other counties, including this one. The Collin County Sheriff’s Office has publicly warned about scam calls demanding bail money from local families, and the moment these operations target is the moment your family is most vulnerable, the first days after an arrest.

How the Scam Works

Jail booking information is often public, and scammers use it. By the time they call, they may already know your loved one’s name, the charges, and the booking number. Accurate details make the call sound legitimate, but they do not prove who the caller is.

From there the pattern usually looks like this:

1. The scammer contacts the inmate directly, often through jail video calls or messages, or calls the family.
2. They claim to be a lawyer, a bondsman, or sometimes a court official.
3. They promise legal help or a fast release.
4. They collect payment from the family, usually through Cash App, Zelle, a wire transfer, or gift cards.
5. Then they disappear.

The pressure is the tell. Scammers insist you must pay within hours or your loved one stays locked up. Demands for immediate payment through an app or a wire are a warning sign every time. Verify the person and get written terms before any money moves.

How to Verify Before You Pay Anyone

These checks take a few minutes, and they are exactly what the scam depends on you skipping:

• Verify a bondsman with the county. Bail bondsmen in Texas are licensed county by county under Occupations Code Chapter 1704, and the county bail bond board keeps the official list of licensed sureties. A bondsman writing bonds at the Collin County jail must be licensed in Collin County. Ask for the county’s licensed-surety list, and ask for a physical office address you can visit.
• Verify a lawyer with the State Bar. Every licensed Texas attorney appears in the State Bar of Texas directory. If the person who called is not in it, you have your answer. A search there would have shown that Davis was not a lawyer.
• Call the jail yourself. Confirm your loved one’s status and the bond amount directly with the county before acting on anything a caller told you.

And get written terms before money moves: who is providing the service, what it costs, and where the payment goes. A legitimate bondsman or law office will not resist paperwork.

A Safer Way: Have a Lawyer Handle Bond and Defense Together

There is another practical protection here. The fewer strangers involved in getting someone out, the fewer chances a con artist has to step into the middle.

In Texas, a licensed attorney can post a bond for a client in many cases. That is how Kent Starr works: where the case allows it, one call starts the bond process and the defense together. There is a financial difference too. A traditional bail bond company typically charges a premium of around 10 percent of the bond amount, and that fee is not refunded even if the charges are later dismissed. When a lawyer posts the bond, the arrangement is in writing, and in many cases part of what you pay can be applied toward the legal defense. Ask how that works before you pay anyone, our office included. The Collin County jail and bond guide explains how magistration and bonds work step by step.

One more lesson straight from the Tarrant County case: Davis reached inmates directly, before their families had arranged anything. If someone contacts you or your loved one in jail promising a release, especially before a bond has even been set, treat it as suspicious until you have verified who they are. Release on bond in Texas happens a few ways: a cash bond paid to the county for the full amount, a surety bond through a bondsman licensed in that county, an attorney bond posted by the lawyer on the case, or a personal bond granted by a magistrate. Every one of those runs through people whose credentials you can check. A stranger who contacted you first and wants payment through an app is a warning sign, not a lifeline.

For the phone version of this scam, where callers demand bail money for a loved one who may not even be in custody, see our earlier guide on bail bond scams and how to protect your family.

Arrested in Collin County? Talk to a Lawyer First, and Verify Everyone

If your loved one has been arrested in McKinney or anywhere in Collin County, make your first call to a defense lawyer, not to a number that called you. Kent Starr has practiced criminal defense in Collin County and nearby North Texas counties since 1997. In many cases he can handle the bond and the defense together, the paperwork is in writing, and his law license is public record you can check with the State Bar before you pay anything. That last part is not a formality. As the Davis case shows, a check that takes minutes can save a family thousands.

The consultation is free and confidential, and Kent takes it himself: (214) 982-1408.

References

• Texas Penal Code § 38.122 (Falsely Holding Oneself Out as a Lawyer)
• Texas Penal Code § 38.123 (Unauthorized Practice of Law)
• Texas Occupations Code Chapter 1704 (Regulation of Bail Bond Sureties)
• State Bar of Texas: Find a Lawyer
• Fox 4 KDFW: Tarrant County man convicted of impersonating lawyer (Aug. 2026)
• CBS Texas: Man accused of posing as attorney to scam inmates’ families arrested in Tarrant County (Mar. 2026)