Articles Posted in About Micah Belden – Sherman Criminal Lawyer

I also started doing Federal CJA appointments in 2006 and it took about five years to really begin to learn what I was doing in federal court, which is normal for most lawyers.   The Sentence Guidelines are a penal-mathematical formula that every attorney must try to master and none completely do so due to the level of discretion, change and ambiguity involved.  But, one learns early on that the name of the game more often than not in Federal court is cooperating with the federal government and your guidelines and treatment are usually better.  There is even a third or half-off sentence reduction for substantially assisting the federal government in prosecuting other people.  Especially in the Eastern District of Texas, things normally tend to get worse with a jury trial in Federal Court unless you have a really good case for a not guilty verdict.  Some do, and we do see not guilty verdicts and dismissals.

I did well enough on federal appointments that I started getting referrals to help retained federal clients.  Sherman is a great federal crossroads as the smallest town in Texas with a federal courthouse but the second busiest court for extraditions from Latin America, normally regarding drug conspiracies or money laundering.  My most famous client was known as the Queen of Diamonds in Colombia, and was a very interesting nationwide jewelry robbery conspiracy allegation.  I worked very hard on learning Spanish, and am a low intermediate speaker.  It is a very important skill to learn both to understand the evidence and quality of translations better and to truly compete for extradition cases.

It is always a challenge to get juries to understand what the problems were on a machine that the state put forth as scientifically qualified.   The State of Texas was the last one to finally upgrade to the Intoxilyzer 9000, which still has some issues.   But back then, most of the trials were chemical test refusals and we normally fought over how intoxicated a person looked on video.  Now, the arresting officer almost always gets a search warrant if someone refuses to consent to a blood draw.  The State tries to do all they can to make license suspension hearings and DWI trials more winnable for them, but there are still errors and ways to win.   I won a blood test above .2 in Fannin County a couple years ago now.

In the early years, I found that I had a knack for felony trials beginning with Cooke County in 2006 and moving forward through many trials in Grayson and Fannin County.  I grew up in a chaotic household, so dealing with the chaotic situations and difficult personalities that we often encounter in felony trials was home for me.  On punishment, I know substance abuse and mental health very well and how to put together plans for rehabilitation along with my experts.  In 2023, I tried five cases and won them all, including sexual assault of a child allegations.   People would be surprised at how many false allegations I have seen of sexual assault over the last twenty years.   It is usually a family dynamic in a child case or a scorned ex-girlfriend in an adult or juvenile case.

My two oldest nephews and six of their friends came out and wanted to learn basketball, and drew me as their coach for better or worse. I felt bad when I was too hard on them at times (although I was too easy at others), but they all gave a ton of effort for three months and became one unit. Before our first game, only one had really experienced winning basketball to my knowledge, but by the end they had each taken part in a winning season and we had all advanced tremendously experience-wise. My defensive pride made me teach them man to man defense, which is particularly difficult at a young age due to its requirement of divided attention. In man to man, kids must master focusing on the ball and on their man, never losing sight of or position in relation to either. To see them play this defense very, very well for their age by the end of the year was a real blessing. Along with mastering other parts of the game, it showed how hard they worked and how serious they took basketball. I hope they continue to do so, as they have the foundation talent wise to be very special throughout their school years.
The thing I wish I could have done better this year was to relate more to the kids on their level. I took a “Hoosiers” approach to coaching, as that is the only style I have seen work well consistently in basketball. Sometimes I tried coaching them too much like high schoolers and not like the young kids they were, but for the most part they responded positively to what I was teaching and why I did what I did. Hopefully they learned as much as I did this season.

In life, what I learned on the basketball court has had a whole lot to do with becoming the lawyer and person I am today. I hope these kids learn the same lessons about success and overcoming adversity. The hours of basketball practice and the hard work in the weightroom made a huge difference on the court, so I learned the value of hard work early. I also learned the power of focusing on doing a couple things – defense and rebounding – really well, and that it would dramatically improve the team and my value to the team. We are all role players in our several stations in life. In my law practice, I still focus on doing the everyday, hustle plays, as well as I can. There is no substitute for hard work and preparation in any given career, especially preparing cases for trial. Also, in basketball anyone can win, especially if they give the effort, particularly when an opponent underestimates you, doesn’t prepare well for you, or doesn’t adjust to the things you do well. Victory is often just a little hard work and a few good decisions away.

This year I had the privilege of coaching eight young men in 5th and 6th grade basketball. I thought that I would descend from the clouds and teach them everything there is to know about basketball, but I believe that I learned a whole lot more about coaching, teaching and humanity through this experience than I was probably able to give back. It was very special to see eight kids learn how to play as one unit, play for each other, and overcome adversity and the ups and downs of a serious basketball season, eventually firing on all cylinders together up and down the basketball floor. This was a special group of kids and part of a special class group at their small town school, and they will achieve big things in the future.

Although I have strayed from the game, basketball was my passion in high school and going into college. I was fortunate to be a part of a special class group at Howe that included some very talented basketball players, and was blessed myself with the gift of height (although I would have appreciated some athletic skill to go along with it). I went from a very skinny 6′ 3″-6′ 5″ sophomore and junior (6′ 5″ 165 to be exact, kind of like a stick of spaghetti), to being a more rounded 6′ 8″ senior. What I lacked in weight and athleticism, I had to make up for in hard work and discipline, the latter always being toughest at that tough age. I focused on rebounding and defense, and went from being a bench player to getting a few (very, very few) college looks and having some potential to play at the next level. Fortunately, my academics were always well ahead of my athletics, and I did far better at A&M scholastically than expected. So, basketball became history as I pursued my law career.

I had forgotten much of my love of the game and the reasons I loved basketball so much. One thing I loved is that in basketball, effort is a force multiplier. My competitive nature means that effort is usually not in short supply. While effort can help some in baseball (my first love as a kid), mostly in preparation, baseball is a one-on-one, linear skill sport. You either have it or you don’t. I gave a lot of effort in baseball and did well at a young age, but I quickly grew too tall and skinny to play my beloved catcher position. In football, effort goes a longer way, but it is still very much eleven players playing one-on-one with the guy lined up to attack them. In basketball, five players must learn to move together in harmony as one unit, and it almost becomes like music to see true team basketball.

Last week I had the pleasure of defending one of the finest young men I have ever represented. He was falsely accused of a horrible act and we were fortunate to have a wise jury who listened very attentively to our evidence and came to the correct conclusion. I am very glad this young man will forever have this accusation removed from his name and it never be spoken of again except by those who unlawfully attempted to do him a grave harm. He was very brave in insisting on his day in court in face of a very long potential sentence if convicted. Much thanks to all who helped me brainstorm our case.

I have much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving in Sherman, Texas. I am most thankful that I have such a good family support network in all I do, and that my family understands what I do for a living. It is sacrifice to work all the time to be a better lawyer and do the best job possible in each case, but it puts strains and distance on your relationships. However, the relationships with those you work for and work with grow and improve and it makes a difference in the long run. I heard a lawyer the other day say how hard they work NOT to get close to their clients, and I believe this is the opposite of what it takes to win as a lawyer, especially with clients facing horrible accusations. If you truly care for your client, that caring can become contagious in the courtroom. Jurors and judges can tell when a lawyer believes in what he is talking about and when he is just going through the motions.

I am very thankful for those who have helped my practice become what it is, and helped me become the lawyer I am. I am better able to serve people because of those who gave their time and effort to improving me as a person and a lawyer, and I cannot say how thankful I am for that. As iron sharpens iron, one man sharpens another.

In the middle of this sea of injustice is the lonely, scared, powerless citizen branded “defendant” by the system. The citizen has been accused of a crime he hasn’t committed and knows nothing about crime or law or justice or defending himself. In our society, an accusation goes a long way. In people’s heart of hearts a person is guilty until proven innocent once a nasty (although false) allegation is made. Back that false accusation up with an officer with a badge and a gun, and we may have a conviction.

When a true criminal trial lawyer steps in, you can hear the wheels of injustice come to a screeching halt. The powerless citizen trapped in a game of accusation and conviction finally has a voice. The accused has someone trained to reason with jorors inflamed by accusations and arguments. Someone now will stand between him and months or years or a lifetime in a small steel cage at the taxpayer’s expense.

If you are accused of a crime, exercise your right to an attorney. Criminal defense attorneys are the only private profession mentioned in the Constitution of the United States for a reason. You deserve a fair fight, a fair trial, and your true shot at justice. There plenty of lawyers in your community who are proud to try criminal cases on a regular basis, which fight back and regularly win trials for those falsely or improperly accused of a crime. Call around town and ask around town about who is in the courthouse fighting and winning. Do not plead guilty simply because you are scared or don’t have the money to hire an attorney. Ask the court for an attorney if you cannot hire one. When the government comes after you, you can’t make it without one.