Houston, TX asked in Criminal Law for Texas

Q: If you plead guilty to an agg assault-deadly weapon, is this considered felony offense conviction of moral turpitude?

In our state, if you have a felony offense conviction of moral turpitude, you cannot be serving as Board of Director of an association. I know one of our Board of Directors has plead guilty to Aggravated Assault using a deadly weapon by... From court records: intentionally and knowingly threaten, Mr X, with imminent bodily injury by using and exhibiting a deadly weapon.

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1 Lawyer Answer
Kiele Linroth Pace
Kiele Linroth Pace
Answered
  • Criminal Law Lawyer
  • Austin, TX
  • Licensed in Texas

A: Moral turpitude is an old concept and there isn't a definitive list of offenses that always qualify for every purpose and in every jurisdiction. Instead, what you will see is a court case where one side wanted to introduce a prior bad act of the other side into evidence and the judge had to decide whether or not that alleged act reflected on the person's core moral character. Some offenses that tend to always be recognized are murder, rape, theft, fraud, perjury, and child abuse.

Assault sometimes is and sometimes isn't, depending on the circumstances. Assault by a male against a female is USUALLY on the list. Assault with a deadly weapon MIGHT be on the list or it might not. Some jurisdictions consider any aggravated felony to be a crime involving moral turpitude. To determine if this particular assault is likely to be considered, you should examine the court's file to determine the circumstances of the accusation. The primary source of information should be the INDICTMENT because that contains the formal accusations but you might also look at the arrest affidavit (or warrant affidavit) for supporting details.

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