My nephew was arrested for public intoxication this weekend at a bar in Houston and feels the cops went to far because he was just out having a good time. I had to explain to him that regardless of how good of a time he was having, it is no excuse to break the law. If being intoxicated in public is illegal, then police are well within their right to execute an arrest if they have probable cause to believe that you are publicly intoxicated.

After talking with a criminal defense attorney, we decided it best for him to plead guilty to the misdemeanor charged so long as he is given deferred adjudication. The prosecutor agreed.

Moral of the story: obey the law, and you won’t have to have any dealings with the criminal justice system in Texas.