In Texas, if charged w/ a felony, can you go back years later and plead for a lesser (misdeameanor) charge?

Question

The conviction was for possession of a controlled substance. No other record or convictions since.

Answer 1

Just like in life, you can't go back in time in the legal world. Once the time to appeal the conviction has expired (usually 90 days --not sure about TX), the conviction is on your record.

However, there is a procedure called an "expungement" in most jurisdictions. This doesn't allow you to "plead to a lesser charge," but it prohibits the public from having any access to related records AND allows you to legally say that you were not convicted of the expunged offense.

The bad news is that expungements are costly (you would need an attorney to have a chance) and very difficult to obtain without the prosecutor's agreement.

As a prosecutor, I have only agreed to two expungements in my career. In both cases, the defendant was not convicted of the crime, but rather was trying to expunge the arrest records for employment purposes.

I would recommend contacting a TX attorney if you are serious about pursuing something like this.

Best of luck.