There is a "regular crime" then there is an "aggravated crime," but
what does this mean in the scheme of the American justice system?

It's a slightly simplified explanation of the differences in how a
crime is charged to say there is a crime, and then an aggravated
version of the same crime. This term is bandied quite often on TV when
the cops and attorneys get their heads together to figure out what to
charge the perpetrator with and how "aggravating" the crime was in
totality.

Aggravating is living with your ex spouse, but aggravating in
reference to a crime is something different. There needs to be certain
factors present in order to charge a crime as an aggravated one; say
aggravated assault, for instance.

"The factors that need to be present may include whether or not
there was a dangerous weapon involved, if there was a threat to use a
dangerous weapon, and if bodily harm was caused as a result of the
crime in question, etc," explained Daniel H. Wannamaker, board
certified criminal defense attorney of Wannamaker and Associates, an
Austin law firm with offices in Dallas and Houston.

"The factors are what "converts" a regular crime to an aggravated
crime, and while that may sound simple enough on the surface, it rarely
is," said Wannamaker, who would definitely know what he is talking
about, since he deals with many cases such as this on a regular basis.
There may be the crimes of aggravated assault, aggravated battery and
even aggravated murder. "Although having said that, what makes a murder
an aggravated one is slightly different," added Wannamaker.

In cases of aggravated murder, not only do the factors mentioned
earlier apply, but also the key to the charge being changed from murder
to aggravated murder has to do mainly with the location and situation
of the murder. "The best example I can think of in this instance is the
murder of an inmate by another prison inmate, while in prison. The
location makes the charge aggravated murder," explained Wannamaker.

Generally speaking most aggravated crimes tend to have higher
penalties attached to them; however, each case is different and
involves different factors. "If you're in a situation where you have
been charged with an aggravated crime, call me, we need to talk about
your options," said Wannamaker.

Daniel Wannamaker is a board certified criminal law specialist and
has 24 years of criminal trial experience with proven results as a
Dallas criminal defense lawyer practicing in Austin criminal defense
and Houston Texas. To learn more about Dallas criminal defense lawyer, Houston criminal defense lawyer, Austin criminal defense lawyer, visit Wannamakerlaw.com.