Mesquite Criminal Defense Lawyers
Direct-to-attorney criminal defense for Mesquite arrests and Dallas County criminal-court matters. Co-founders Reggie and Njeri London handle every retained case personally — from arraignment through trial or appeal — from our Frisco office, 35 miles from Mesquite.
L and L Law Group represents clients arrested in Mesquite, Texas and clients facing charges in the Frank Crowley Courts Building on the full Texas Penal Code and Health & Safety Code spectrum. Founding partners Reggie London (Texas Bar No. 24043514, former Dallas County Assistant District Attorney) and Njeri London (Texas Bar No. 24043266, admitted TXND, TXED, 5th Circuit) personally handle every Mesquite matter. Our office is in Frisco, 35 miles from Mesquite (45 minutes). Free 24/7 consultation: (972) 370-5060.
Common Mesquite criminal charges we defend
Mesquite gives people something most cities in this area do not: a standing way to walk into court without a court date. The Municipal Court holds In-Person Walk-In Court every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at 9:00 a.m., excluding holidays, in the Municipal Court Building at 211 Municipal Way. Check-in starts at 8:30 a.m. and stops exactly at 8:55 a.m., with no late admittance. That is not a soft deadline. Arrive at 8:57 and you come back another day.
What you can do there is broader than people assume. You can see the judge without a previously set court date; plead not guilty and request a bench or jury trial; plead guilty or no contest with the same access to compliance dismissals, a driving safety course, deferred disposition or a payment plan you would have on a set docket; ask to extend due dates already set; and seek resolution of an outstanding Mesquite warrant and have it cleared with no fear of being arrested, in the court’s own words. The court is also required to review a defendant’s ability to pay and offer alternative ways to discharge fines and costs, which matters when the real problem is money rather than the allegation.
Mesquite citations come from more than police officers
The Municipal Court’s jurisdiction is unusually broad on the issuer side. It handles Class C misdemeanor citations issued by Police Officers, Code Enforcement Officers, Animal Control Officers and Fire Marshals, along with maintaining records, processing payments, setting trial dockets, and issuing subpoenas and warrants. A citation from a code enforcement officer over a property condition is still a Class C criminal case that produces a conviction if you plead to it. People treat those like utility bills, then find the conviction on a background check later. Court hours are Monday through Thursday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., phone 972-216-6206. The Police Department is at 777 N. Galloway Ave., 972-216-6759.
Above Class C, Mesquite splits across two counties
The Census Bureau’s 2020 place-code file lists Mesquite city in Dallas County and Kaufman County. Which county a case files in depends on which side of the county line the alleged offense occurred on, and the two counties are not variations on a theme. They are different sizes, different layouts and different institutions.
| System | Dallas County | Kaufman County |
|---|---|---|
| Felony docket | Seven numbered Criminal District Courts plus ten additional felony district courts, three auxiliary courts and felony court magistrates | Handled at the Kaufman County Justice Center, where the criminal courts, prosecutor and clerk records offices all sit at one site |
| Misdemeanor docket | Eleven County Criminal Courts, numbered 1 through 11 | Two courts only: the County Court at Law and County Court at Law 2, with Class A and B files maintained by the County Clerk |
| Prosecutor | Frank Crowley Courts Building, 133 N. Riverfront Boulevard, Dallas | 1902 US Highway 175, Kaufman, 2nd floor of the Justice Center, (469) 376-4760 |
| Layout | Courts, prosecutor and jail sit in three separate downtown locations | Kaufman County Justice Center, 1902 E. US Highway 175, Kaufman, 469-376-4100, houses the criminal courts, prosecutor and clerk records together |
A Mesquite arrestee held on the Dallas County side goes to the Lew Sterrett Justice Center at 111 West Commerce Street in Dallas, where the bond desk operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Jail and bond information runs through (214) 761-9025. The scale difference is not trivia. Eleven misdemeanor courts move a docket very differently from two.
The charges that fill those dockets
Theft, including theft of service. Texas Penal Code Section 31.03 grades ordinary theft by the value of the property taken. Section 31.04 covers theft of service, which reaches things people never think of as theft, such as leaving a restaurant without paying, keeping rented equipment past the return date, or failing to return a leased vehicle. It carries the same value ladder, so an unreturned rental can become a felony allegation.
Assault and aggravated assault. Penal Code Section 22.01 makes assault causing bodily injury a Class A misdemeanor. Section 22.02 raises it to aggravated assault, a second-degree felony, where the person causes serious bodily injury or uses or exhibits a deadly weapon during the assault. Exhibiting is enough. A weapon that was never fired, never swung and never touched anyone can still move a case from a county criminal court to a district court.
Driving while intoxicated. Penal Code Section 49.04 sets the base offense, and two subsections change the arithmetic. Under Section 49.04(c), if an open container of alcohol was in the vehicle at the time, the minimum term of confinement rises to six days. Under Section 49.04(d), a specimen analysis showing an alcohol concentration of 0.15 or more makes the offense a Class A misdemeanor rather than a Class B. Possessing the open container by itself is separately chargeable as a Class C under Section 49.031.
Prescription drug possession. Not every drug case is Penalty Group 1. Health and Safety Code Section 481.117 covers Penalty Group 3, which includes many common prescription medications, and Section 481.118 covers Penalty Group 4. Under 28 grams these are Class A misdemeanors, which surprises people carrying a few pills from a legitimate prescription in an unlabeled container. Whether a valid prescription existed is a defense worth developing properly.
Diversion follows the county line, and the two menus are not comparable
On the Dallas County side, DIVERT Court is a judicially supervised treatment and case-management program administered through Dallas County Criminal Justice. On successful completion the original charge, and misdemeanor charges arising from the same transaction, may be dismissed, and the participant may then file to have the offense expunged. The intake coordinator line is 214-653-5878.
On the Kaufman County side, the Criminal District Attorney’s Office lists a Pre-Trial Diversion Program among its divisions, alongside its Felony, Misdemeanor, Intake, Appellate and Hot Check divisions. Published terms are thin, so eligibility and conditions have to be asked about directly through counsel rather than assumed from how Dallas County does it. That is the honest answer rather than a guess someone would rely on.
Before anything else, confirm which county your Mesquite case filed in. It determines the jail, the prosecutor, the courthouse, and whether any diversion door exists at all. From there, the charges we handle map onto whichever system you landed in.
Mesquite criminal defense FAQs
What is Mesquite Walk-In Court and when is it held?
It runs every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at 9:00 a.m., excluding holidays, in the Municipal Court Building at 211 Municipal Way. Check-in starts at 8:30 a.m. and stops exactly at 8:55 a.m., and the court states there is no late admittance. It lets you see the judge without a previously set court date, enter a plea, request a bench or jury trial, or ask for an extension on due dates already set. The 8:55 cutoff is enforced, so plan for parking.
Can I clear a Mesquite warrant without getting arrested?
The Mesquite Municipal Court states that Walk-In Court allows a defendant to seek resolution of an outstanding Mesquite warrant and have it cleared with no fear of being arrested. That is the court describing its own municipal warrants. It does not extend to warrants out of a Dallas County or Kaufman County court on a felony or a Class A or B misdemeanor, which are handled very differently. If you are unsure which kind of warrant you have, find that out before you walk into any building.
I cannot afford the fine on my Mesquite citation. What are my options?
The court is required to review a defendant’s ability to pay and offer alternative ways to discharge fines and costs, and Walk-In Court is where that conversation can happen without a set date. Depending on the citation, the available paths include compliance dismissals, a driving safety course, deferred disposition or a payment plan. Ignoring the citation because the money is not there is the one approach that makes it worse, because the unpaid case generates a warrant that then has to be resolved separately.
Is Mesquite in Dallas County or Kaufman County?
Both. The Census Bureau’s 2020 place-code file lists Mesquite city in Dallas County and Kaufman County, so the filing county depends on which side of the county line the alleged offense occurred on. The two counties run entirely separate courts, prosecutors, jails and diversion programs. We have not found a source that quantifies how much of the city lies in Kaufman County, so rather than guess, check the county named on your bond paperwork, citation or summons.
Where is someone taken after a Mesquite arrest on the Dallas County side?
To the Lew Sterrett Justice Center at 111 West Commerce Street in Dallas. The bond desk there operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and the jail and bond information line is (214) 761-9025. Because the Dallas County criminal courts sit in the Frank Crowley Courts Building at 133 N. Riverfront Boulevard and the jail is a separate location, families often end up making two trips downtown. Call the information line before you drive anywhere.
Who prosecutes a Mesquite case that files in Kaufman County?
The Kaufman County Criminal District Attorney’s Office, at 1902 US Highway 175 in Kaufman, on the 2nd floor of the Justice Center, phone (469) 376-4760. Kaufman County concentrates its criminal courts, prosecutor and clerk records offices at that single site, the Kaufman County Justice Center at 1902 E. US Highway 175, main line 469-376-4100. It is a very different experience from Dallas County, where the courts, the prosecutor and the jail occupy three separate downtown buildings.
More Mesquite questions
How different are the Dallas and Kaufman court systems?
Substantially. Dallas County runs seven numbered Criminal District Courts plus ten additional felony district courts, three auxiliary courts and felony court magistrates, with eleven County Criminal Courts numbered 1 through 11 for Class A and B misdemeanors. Kaufman County’s misdemeanor docket runs through just two courts, the County Court at Law and County Court at Law 2, whose Class A and B files are maintained by the County Clerk. The same allegation can move at a completely different pace depending on the side of the line.
Is DIVERT Court available on a Mesquite case?
Only if the case filed in Dallas County. DIVERT is a judicially supervised treatment and case-management program administered through Dallas County Criminal Justice, and on successful completion the original charge, along with misdemeanor charges arising from the same transaction, may be dismissed, after which the participant may file to have the offense expunged. The intake coordinator line is 214-653-5878. A Mesquite case that filed in Kaufman County has to be evaluated against that county’s own program instead.
Does Kaufman County have a diversion program?
The Kaufman County Criminal District Attorney’s Office lists a Pre-Trial Diversion Program among its divisions, alongside its Felony, Misdemeanor, Intake, Appellate and Hot Check divisions. Detailed public terms are thin compared with what larger counties publish, so eligibility, length and conditions are things to ask about directly rather than assume. We would rather tell you the published record is limited than describe a program in terms that turn out not to match what the office actually offers.
I got a citation from a code enforcement officer. Is that criminal?
Usually yes, in the sense that matters. The Mesquite Municipal Court handles Class C misdemeanor citations issued by Police Officers, Code Enforcement Officers, Animal Control Officers and Fire Marshals. A Class C is a criminal offense, and pleading guilty or no contest to one creates a conviction that can appear on a background check. People pay these the way they would pay a parking fee and never consider the disposition. If the citation alleges conduct rather than a simple compliance issue, get advice before paying.
What raises a Mesquite DWI above a standard Class B?
Two subsections do most of the work. Under Texas Penal Code Section 49.04(c), an open container of alcohol in the vehicle at the time raises the minimum term of confinement to six days. Under Section 49.04(d), a specimen analysis showing an alcohol concentration of 0.15 or more makes the offense a Class A misdemeanor. Possessing the open container is also separately chargeable as a Class C under Section 49.031. Our page on a Texas DWI charge works through how those stack.
Can a Mesquite case be cleared from my record afterward?
It depends on how the case ends and which county it ended in. A completed Dallas County DIVERT program allows the participant to file to have the offense expunged, and dismissals and acquittals open their own paths. Convictions do not, and a deferred disposition on a Class C follows different rules from a deferred adjudication on a Class A. Our Texas expunction and record-clearing page breaks down which dispositions qualify for expunction and which only support nondisclosure.
Arrested in Mesquite?
Free, confidential consultation — direct to attorney, 24/7. We pick up jail-release calls at all hours.
Call (972) 370-5060Why most Mesquite cases route to Frank Crowley, not Kaufman
Most of Mesquite sits in Dallas County, with only a small sliver on the eastern edge crossing into Kaufman County. For the great majority of arrests, that means the Dallas County District Attorney files the charge and the case is heard at the Frank Crowley Courts Building, with pretrial custody at the Lew Sterrett Justice Center. The Kaufman-side exception is narrow, but it matters: an offense a few blocks past the county line can be handled by a different district attorney in a different courthouse, which changes the bond process, the court dates, and who controls the file. Confirming the county of arrest is one of the first things our team checks.
Not every Mesquite charge ends up at Frank Crowley. The Mesquite Municipal Court handles Class C misdemeanors on its own — traffic citations, city-ordinance violations, and other fine-only matters that stay in town and never reach the county system. Class A and B misdemeanors and felonies are a different track entirely; those move to the Dallas County courts, where the exposure and procedure are far more serious. Knowing which forum a given charge belongs in tells you what is genuinely at stake, and it shapes whether the priority is protecting a driving record or defending against jail-eligible allegations downtown.
Mesquite's road network feeds much of its caseload. The city sits where I-635 and I-30 frame the east side of Dallas County, with US-80 cutting through and SH-352 running alongside, and those corridors generate a steady stream of traffic stops, DWI arrests, and related charges. Town East Mall draws heavy retail traffic that can surface theft and shoplifting allegations, and the city's identity as the "Rodeo Capital of Texas" brings event crowds that add their own enforcement pressure. We pay attention to where on this grid a stop happened, because the corridor and the reason given for the stop often define the early defense questions.
For someone charged in Mesquite, the practical takeaway is that the courthouse you face usually depends on which side of the Dallas–Kaufman line your case began on, and most often that is Frank Crowley. We work to pin down the filing county early, separate fine-only municipal matters from county-level charges, and build a defense around the specific stop or incident — not a generic template.
About the Authors
Criminal Charges We Defend in Mesquite
L&L Law Group represents clients throughout Mesquite and Dallas County against the full range of Texas criminal charges. These are the charges our defense team handles most often — or call (972) 370-5060 for a free, confidential consultation.