DWI with firearm in your vehicle?

[Shooter McGavin]

First off, I apologize if this has been addressed already. I did use the search function but was unable to find anything directly related to my question, nor was google-fu much help. Due to a coworker's recent experience I've been pondering how the law relates to one who is stopped and arrested for DWI and has a firearm in their vehicle. From what I've read thus far, the laws in relation to DWI can be very open to interpretation as far as "intoxicated" is concerned.
Long story short (his side of the story) a coworker was stopped and arrested for DWI, he had a pistol in his center console. Once the officer discovered he had a firearm in the vehicle, his charge went from misdemeanor to felony. Unlawfully carry of a weapon or something to that effect, was what he said.
I believe I read somewhere that it is unlawful to be in possession of a firearm while committing any crime above a class-c misdemeanor, so that would explain it I guess?
Can anyone offer some insight to this? Thank ya much!

 

[Saltyag2010]

Gotta quit drinking and driving. Me being 21 this one time and a huge smart ass got pulled over by a dps officer that I recognized because he went to school with my dad and I went to school with his kids. He asked if I had been drinking. I hadn't drank for 4 hours because my buddy (who was supposed to be dd) got wasted. I told him I had been drinking. I did ok on the sobriety tests but I was wearing flip flops and probably could have done better. When he said I was going to jail I said I wanted to blow. I blew into his breathalyzer on the side of the fm road and it was .002. I figured I could go home but he took me to jail anyway because "it didn't matter". I went to the jail where I blew into a breathalyzer that looked straight out of the 70s with wood trim and all and I blew a .000.

I still had to stay the night and I still had to get a lawyer and at the pretrial arraignment I decided to take the courts probation terms vs face trial and spend more time and cash.
The system doesn't work 100% or else it wouldn't be the gov

 

[txinvestigator]

Most of that is off base, so I will try to help.

A first offense DWI with no accident or injury is a class B Misdemeanor or class A. It only becomes a felony if there is a passenger under 15 in the vehicle.

If the person has a CHL, then he could be convicted of Unlawful Carry of a Handgun by a license holder. That is a misdemeanor as well

If he does not have a CHL, then being guilty of DWI opens him up to be charged with Unlawful Carry a Weapon, still a misdemeanor.

There is no specific law that makes it a felony to be in possession of a firearm while committing another crime, except those committed in gun free school zones. But that is not a separate offense, it is only an enhanced penalty for the initial offense.

Laws regarding intoxication are not really open for interpretation. There is a ton of case law regarding intoxication offense

.

 

[Shooter McGavin]

Ok thanx TXI, what if the officer wanted to push the issue. Say the offender popped off and was being a smart a$$. Could the officer charge him with a felony for something like that?

 

[Gunns0902]

Felony Mouthing Off is not quite on the law books.


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[A.Texas.Yankee]

Do officers usually "charge" someone with a crime? Or they just arrest them and the charges come later?

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[txinvestigator]

Ok thanx TXI, what if the officer wanted to push the issue. Say the offender popped off and was being a smart a$$. Could the officer charge him with a felony for something like that?

No. Perhaps your friend was hit wirh a felony, but he didn't give you the facts straight.

 

[txinvestigator]

Do officers usually "charge" someone with a crime? Or they just arrest them and the charges come later?

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They have to be arrested for an alleged and specified offense. There is no, "humm, I will hook this guy up cause he MUST have done something. The DA can figure it out"

 

[Shooter McGavin]

No. Perhaps your friend was hit wirh a felony, but he didn't give you the facts straight.

Kinda what I was wondering, I figured there had to a little more to it than what he was saying.

 

[craigntx]

wow, I caught a case while ccw.
my permit was yanked but didnt get any unlawful carry rap.
they gave it back after I showed a sales reciept.
good thing it wasnt a ftf trans.

 

[Southpaw]

wow, I caught a case while ccw.
my permit was yanked but didnt get any unlawful carry rap.
they gave it back after I showed a sales reciept.
good thing it wasnt a ftf trans.

Maybe the guy may have mouthed off a bit to get the unlawful carry.

 

[BIGPAPIGREG]

wow, I caught a case while ccw.
my permit was yanked but didnt get any unlawful carry rap.
they gave it back after I showed a sales reciept.
good thing it wasnt a ftf trans.

sales receipt for what? And why?

 

[TXARGUY]

sales receipt for what? And why?

The beer! Because he thought it was his insurance card!

 

[franzas]

wow, I caught a case while ccw.
my permit was yanked but didnt get any unlawful carry rap.
they gave it back after I showed a sales reciept.
good thing it wasnt a ftf trans.

Sorry to shit on y'all, but Texas' requirement's for getting a CHL are fucking stupid.

 

[Younggun]

Sorry to shit on y'all, but Texas' requirement's for getting a CHL are fucking stupid.

You must be the only one who has a clue what he is talking about.

I can't make any sense of his post.

 

[franzas]

You must be the only one who has a clue what he is talking about.

I can't make any sense of his post.

Not really, YG, I just took an "educated guess."

 

[Younggun]

Well, I agree with you.

Requiring a permit to carry is stupid.

 

[franzas]

Well, I agree with you.

Requiring a permit to carry is stupid.

I have my personal reservations (about people who might abuse the right), but legally, the whole country should be Constitutional Carry, per the...Constitution.

 

[TXARGUY]

Requiring a permit to carry is stupid.

+1

 

[RobertusMaximus]

Agreed!