Galloway, Johnson, Tompkins, Burr & Smith

Being arrested and charged with a crime can be one of the most stressful and frightening events of one's life. It is important to have the right lawyer to represent you at this critical time. The repercussions of a criminal conviction can last a lifetime and can ruin career and educational opportunities. Furthermore, if your job involves a license or certification, a criminal conviction could jeopardize your standing in that vocation. Hiring an experienced criminal attorney can help ease this stress and protect your future.

An experienced criminal lawyer will know if the police have overstepped their boundaries or if the State's evidence should be suppressed. An attorney who is unfamiliar with criminal law could easily overlook a crucial issue that could be the difference between a dismissal and a conviction.

Galloway Johnson has the experience to represent you in the event you are charged with or are being investigated for a crime. Galloway Johnson has criminal defense lawyers throughout the Gulf South. Our attorneys include former prosecutors and public defenders, in addition to private criminal counsel. This experience gives us a unique perspective and insight into how the State views its case against you. This knowledge is invaluable when deciding how best to defend against serious criminal charges.

In our Florida offices, Todd LaDouceur has over 20 years of criminal defense and prosecutorial experience. He has defended clients charged with probation violations, petty theft and financial crimes, battery, domestic violence, DUI, serious drug cases, murder and sexual assault. He understands the system and will treat your case with the utmost importance. The consequences you face in a criminal case are severe. Our experienced Florida attorneys can assist you every step of the way, putting their knowledge to work to achieve the best possible outcome.

Below are some of the types of criminal cases with which Galloway Johnson can assist you in the various jurisdictions we practice:

Driving While Intoxicated Defense

In Texas, the State can prove intoxication by demonstrating the loss of normal use of mental and/or physical faculties due to the introduction of alcohol, a controlled substance or a combination of those substances and/or by having a blood alcohol content of 0.08% or greater. Florida's Driving Under the Influence laws are similar.

An experienced DWI/DUI defense attorney will be able to determine if the police officer had probable cause to pull you over and whether the officer correctly administered the field sobriety tests. Also, if you provided samples of your breath, there may be ways to contest the accuracy of those results. Galloway Johnson's DWI/DUI defense attorneys will analyze all possible ways to defend your DWI/DUI case.

Also, did you know that, in certain situations, your license could be suspended for up to two years for refusing to submit a sample of your breath? In Florida, in addition to suspension sanctions, a second refusal is a misdemeanor criminal offense. Galloway Johnson may be able to protect your license from being suspended.

Weapons Cases

The law in Texas regarding carrying weapons in a vehicle has changed multiple times in the past several years. Florida law includes a stand your ground provision, which our attorneys have used to successfully exonerate clients from serious charges. Galloway Johnson's criminal defense attorneys stay current with the law and will provide you with accurate and current information.

It is natural for a person to automatically to think of firearms when it comes to weapons cases. However, weapons cases encompass much more than firearms. In certain situations, it is illegal to possess, manufacture, transport, repair or sell certain items, including, but not limited to, brass knuckles, silencers, armor-piercing ammunition and/or a chemical dispensing device.

There are many more intricacies pertaining to weapons cases. If you should become involved in such a case, you'll want an experienced criminal law attorney, such as those of Galloway Johnson, to defend you.

Theft and Related Cases

It is critical to avoid a theft conviction because theft is a crime of moral turpitude. A conviction for a crime of moral turpitude could have long-term consequences. For example, future employers may conclude that you are not a trustworthy individual, and as a result, may not offer you a job for which you are qualified. Do not suffer this consequence because of a mistake you made several years ago! Galloway Johnson may be able to help you avoid a theft conviction.

Robbery is closely related to theft. Robbery is essentially a theft combined with an assault or the threat of assault. Police officers can often make mistakes during their investigations or they may not thoroughly investigate all of the facts before arresting a person for robbery. Galloway Johnson will methodically and carefully investigate your case to determine if robbery is even an appropriate charge and to assert all possible defenses to your robbery case.

There are several other related charges with which Galloway Johnson can assist you: in your defense, including burglary, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, burglary of a motor vehicle, forgery, credit card abuse, false statement to obtain credit.

Drug Cases

Drug cases are often more complex than they seem. There may be search-and-seizure issues that could be problematic for the State. Police officers often commit search-and-seizure errors that lead to cases being dismissed. Your case could be one of those cases. A knowledgeable defense attorney will be able to identify these issues and then research and analyze the law to determine the best case strategy.

Another common issue in drug cases is whether you were in possession of the drug. In Texas, possession is defined as having actual care, custody, control or management over the substance in question. In order to prove possession, the State will look for "affirmative links" between you and the drug allegedly in your possession. The list of affirmative links is substantial and requires an in-depth knowledge of the law to determine if there is a defense to that critical link in the State's burden of proof. Galloway Johnson has extensive legal resources that its drug crimes attorneys use to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of drug cases.

Florida law contains several minimum mandatory prison sentences associated with drug related crimes. How your crime is charged can have significant consequences. The experience and knowledge of the Galloway Johnson attorneys can be the difference in whether these mandatory sentences are applied. This is not an area of law that you should venture without the expert advice Galloway Johnson can provide.

Assault Cases

If you are charged with assault, aggravated assault, assault of a public servant, injury to a child, elderly or disabled individual, indecent exposure, deadly conduct or terroristic threat, Galloway Johnson has experienced and knowledgeable assault defense attorneys to assist you in your defense.

Galloway Johnson's attorneys realize that there are two sides to every assault case. Frequently, police officers fail to fully investigate both sides of the case before making an arrest or police officers may unknowingly rely on a witness who is mistaken or lying in connection with an arrest.

Galloway Johnson is prepared to undertake a thorough investigation of your case so that all of the facts may be brought to light.

Domestic Violence

Domestic violence cases are very serious and are treated as such by law enforcement agencies. Many Texas District Attorney's Offices and Florida Prosecutor's Offices have special departments to handle domestic violence cases.

Furthermore, if you have been previously convicted of domestic violence, the State will charge you with a third-degree felony if you are arrested again for domestic violence. Additionally, not all domestic violence cases are treated equally. If you are accused of choking or suffocating a family member as opposed to striking them with your hand you could be charged with a third degree felony instead of a misdemeanor.

Again, there are two sides to every domestic violence case. Domestic violence cases are notorious for being riddled with false accusations. For instance, a spouse may make false accusations against the other spouse if there is an underlying divorce or child custody case.

Galloway Johnson's experienced domestic violence attorneys know the State's tactics and can use their insight, knowledge and experience to make sure that you have the most effective defense against these charges.

Galloway offers its clients a team of professionals that reflect both our commitment and our clients’ commitment to diversity. Diversity enhances the quality of our legal services just like it enhances our clients’ businesses. Our goal is to attract and develop the most talented and motivated professionals while insuring fairness, respect and opportunity for advancement regardless of race, gender, age, religion, national origin, disability, sexual orientation or other protected status.

Our firm’s commitment to diversity is reflected in our member's civic, legal, and industry leadership.

Galloway commits to the Louisiana State Bar Association’s Diversity Pledge
Galloway is proud to support the LSBA’s Diversity Statement of Principles and make the following commitment:

Those signing this Statement of Principles hereby commit themselves to foster diversity in the legal profession. The LSBA recognizes that diversity is an inclusive concept that encompasses race, color, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion, national origin, disability and other aspects of diversity.

We believe that with greater diversity, we can be more creative, effective and bring more varied perspectives, experiences, backgrounds, talents and interest to the practice of law and the administration of justice. We further believe that a diverse group of talented legal professionals is critically important to the success of every law firm, corporate or government legal department, law school and public service organization and every other organization that includes attorneys.

We recognize that to fully and equitably pursue justice, our profession must reflect the full spectrum of our communities. To this end, we pledge to make our best efforts to increase the diversity in our hiring, retention and promotion of attorneys and the elevation of attorneys to leadership positions within our respective organizations. We believe that all members of the bar should participate equally and fully in our profession. Ultimately, we believe that diversity, in the legal profession is good for the profession, good for business, good for our communities and critical for enhancing the public’s confidence in the judicial system.

Galloway believes that achieving diversity within our organizations and creating inclusive environments are evolutionary processes that require a continued effort and commitment on our part. We pledge to promote and participate in appropriate diversity awareness training programs. We further agree to participate in programs to measure our progress in the pursuit of these stated principles.

Galloway sponsors 21st Annual Minority Job Fair
Galloway was proud to serve as a Gold Level sponsor of the 21st Annual Minority Job Fair, hosted by the Louisiana State Bar Association. Our directors and associates who attended were pleased to see a fantastic number of talented law students take advantage of this year’s event. We believe that our leadership in such endeavors forms an essential part of our commitment to diversity in the legal profession.