Felony Charges in Collin County

A felony charge in Collin County is a charge that carries prison time, and the first thing worth knowing is which rung of the ladder you are on. The degree named in the charging instrument sets the range, the court, and often how much room there is to resolve a case without a trial.

Kent Starr has practiced criminal defense in Texas since 1997 and handles felony cases in the Collin County district courts from his office in McKinney. This page sets out what each degree carries, how a felony case moves through indictment and the district courts, how bond works, and where probation stops being available. The consultation is free and confidential, and Kent takes it himself. Call (214) 982-1408.

The felony ladder in Texas

Texas sorts felonies by punishment range in Penal Code Chapter 12, and the range follows the degree:

• Capital murder — death or life in prison without parole.
• First-degree felony — 5 to 99 years or life, and a fine of up to $10,000.
• Second-degree felony — 2 to 20 years, and a fine of up to $10,000.
• Third-degree felony — 2 to 10 years, and a fine of up to $10,000.
• State jail felony — 180 days to 2 years in a state jail, and a fine of up to $10,000.

Two things about the bottom rung are worth saying plainly. A state jail felony is still a felony: it is prosecuted in a district court, it stays on a record, and it carries consequences that outlast the sentence. And under Penal Code section 12.35(c), a state jail case is punished as a third-degree felony if a deadly weapon was used or exhibited in the offense or in the immediate flight from it, or if the person has a prior final felony conviction under section 21.02 or an offense listed in Article 42A.054(a) of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

Which felony a set of facts becomes is a charging decision, and it is not always the only version the facts support. That is why the degree named on the indictment, the degree the evidence actually proves, and the degree the State is willing to resolve on are three different questions, and each one is worth examining.

Indictment and the grand jury

Texas requires an indictment to prosecute a felony. A grand jury of twelve members hears the State’s evidence and at least nine must agree before an indictment is returned. If they decline, the result is a no bill. A person can also waive indictment with the advice of counsel and consent in open court to be charged by information, though that is uncommon. The difference between the two routes, and what a defective indictment looks like, is covered in indictment versus information.

What matters practically is the window before the indictment. Once charges are formally filed, the case moves on a docket and the shape of it is largely set. Before that, a defense lawyer can sometimes put mitigating information, or legal problems with the case, in front of the District Attorney’s Office while the case is still being reviewed. There is no right to that audience, and it does not always change anything, but the opportunity exists and it closes. The post on the pre-indictment window in Texas walks through how it works.

The district courts of Collin County

Felony cases are heard in the district courts at the Russell A. Steindam Courts Building, 2100 Bloomdale Road in McKinney. The roster includes the 199th, 219th, 296th, 366th, 380th, 401st, 416th and 417th District Courts among others, with the 417th handling juvenile programs. The Collin County District Attorney’s Office prosecutes them.

Each court runs its docket differently, which is not something written down anywhere a defendant can find. Some judges want announcements early and in person; some move pretrial motions quickly and others let them sit. That matters at real decision points: when to set a motion, when to negotiate, when to ask for a trial setting. The sequence itself is consistent: announcement settings, then the State’s file, then pretrial motions, then either a resolution or a trial. The first settings are where the defense reads the State’s evidence line by line and finds what the case is actually made of.

Bond on a felony charge

After an arrest, a magistrate reviews the case, gives the statutory warnings, and sets bond, which Texas law requires to happen promptly and which for most arrests comes within the first day or two. Felony bonds are set higher than misdemeanor bonds, and felony cases often arrive with conditions attached: no contact with a complainant, curfews, reporting, or electronic monitoring.

Bond is worth contesting rather than accepting. A motion to reduce bond, supported by evidence of employment, ties to the community, and the person’s record, can change the amount or the conditions. So can pushing for a prompt magistration in the first place. Being out of custody is not only about comfort: it changes how a person can participate in their own defense and how much pressure they feel to accept a resolution they would otherwise refuse. The firm’s guide to bond and the Collin County jail covers the mechanics.

3G offenses, probation eligibility, and what a felony carries

Some felonies remove judge-ordered community supervision by statute. Article 42A.054 of the Code of Criminal Procedure holds that list. Aggravated robbery is on it at (a)(11). Burglary is on it only in the narrow situation described in (a)(12): where the case is punishable under Penal Code section 30.02(d) and was committed with intent to commit one of the listed sexual offenses. And if a deadly weapon was used or exhibited in the offense or the immediate flight from it, Article 42A.054(b) applies the same bar to the case at hand.

Those offenses carry their own parole consequences, which is why Texas lawyers call them 3G offenses. The label is worth understanding before any plea is discussed, because a case can look like a probation question and turn out to be a prison question the moment the offense on the indictment falls on that list.

Where the statute does allow it, Texas gives courts other tools. Deferred adjudication is available in eligible cases and can lead to a dismissal on successful completion, though it is not available for every offense and it is not automatic. For state jail felonies, Penal Code section 12.44 allows punishment at misdemeanor level under 12.44(a), or, with the prosecutor’s agreement, prosecution as a Class A misdemeanor outright under 12.44(b). Eligibility depends on the charge, the record, and the office handling the case, and nothing on this page is a prediction about any individual case.

Beyond the sentence, a felony conviction carries consequences that outlast it: firearm rights under federal law, employment and licensing questions, and a record that follows a person into housing and background checks. The firm’s post on criminal charges and professional licenses in Texas covers how licensing boards treat a criminal case.

How Kent works

Kent Starr is a solo lawyer. The person you meet at the consultation is the person who reads the State’s file, argues the bond motion, negotiates with the District Attorney’s Office, and tries the case if it comes to that. He works from his McKinney office, in the county where these cases are heard, and he takes every consultation himself.

Felony cases reward early work. The evidence that decides them is easiest to secure in the days right after an arrest: camera footage, phone records, what witnesses still remember, what was said in the first hours. The pre-indictment window is the only time the case can be addressed before it is formally filed.

The consultation is free and confidential, and you do not have to explain anything on the phone to arrange it. Call (214) 982-1408.

Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Every case is evaluated on its own facts.

ADVERTISEMENT. This site is attorney advertising. Kent Starr, Starr Law, P.C., 5900 South Lake Forest Drive, Suite 200, McKinney, Texas 75070, is responsible for the content of this website. Information provided here is general and is not legal advice; reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship.