BARRY GREEN

Special notice: If you are here because you have been charged with Possession of Penalty Group 2 (typically THC in the form of edibles, wax, vape pens, etc.) in Wise County, at least give me call (even if you eventually retain someone else.) It has come to my attention that some lawyers are simply ripping people off by using fear tactics about those types of cases and charging outrageous fees as a result. That does not need to happen to you.

I was born in Bridgeport in 1962 which makes me a native Wise Countian. I graduated from the University of North Texas in 1983 with honors and with a degree in Business Computer Information Systems. Afterwards, I received my law degree from the Baylor University School of Law in 1986 where I again graduated with honors and served on the Law Review.  (I wasn't necessarily the smartest guy in the class, but I might have worked harder than most of them.) After law school, I worked for Vial, Hamilton, Koch & Knox in downtown Dallas and then with Camp, Jones, Hall & Bates in downtown Fort Worth where I specialized in defending against personal injury lawsuits.  In 1990, I became dissatisfied with the limited courtroom experience that the large law firms had to offer and, in a leap of faith,  joined the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office where I prosecuted juvenile, misdemeanor, and felony offenses.

In 1992 and at the age of 30, I was elected as the District Attorney for the 271st Judicial District which includes Jack and Wise Counties. After being re-elected and serving a second term (and after trying more cases in the Wise County courthouse than I ever dreamed of), I decided to return to private practice in 2001. I teamed up with former Wise County DA, and now current district judge, Brock Smith until 2013. In March of that year, I opened up the law firm of The Law Office Of Barry Green.

In 2002, the Texas Board of Legal Specialization found that I had the required experience and background to sit for a six hour examination in criminal law. I passed the examination on my first attempt (I sat at a table on what is center court at the Frank Erwin Center at UT) and now bear the distinction of being Board Certified In Criminal Law. I am currently the only criminal defense lawyer with his principal office in Wise County holding that specialization who dedicates 100% of his practice to criminal defense.

I have a particular interest in DWI defense as well as drug cases. I practice no other type of law other than criminal law and limit myself to the Wise County courhouse by choice. Since leaving the DA's office in 2001, I have defended over 1,400 DWI cases and even more drug cases. A summary of some recent jury trial verdicts is located here. A complete list of the dispositions of almost every case handled over the last few years is here. Every case and every trial has involved me and me alone -- I have never had a second lawyer sit at the table to assist me.  For lawyers conducting legal research, I have painstakingly created a continuously updated web page that may be the most comprehensive compiled list of cases in the state of Texas that have been reversed on appeal.

Concerning past notable cases, I am especially proud of a defending a DWI case a few years back which began when my client was arrested for passing a car on the shoulder of a highway at a railroad crossing in Boyd, Texas.  Believing that the driving was not illegal and should not have been used as justification by the police officer for stopping his client, I filed a Motion to Suppress the use of all evidence gathered as a result of the stop. If granted, the DWI case would have to be dismissed. However, the trial judge overruled the Motion. Not to be deterred, I then appealed the case to the Fort Worth Court of Appeals in Fort Worth but was, once again, handed another setback when the court affirmed the trial court's ruling.  Still believing I was correct, I asked the highest criminal court in Texas to hear the case. Although the court did not have to consider it, it issued an order doing exactly just that. I then wrote a brief and traveled to Austin and argued before the nine judges of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. In less than two months, the court issued an opinion holding that the Motion to Suppress should have been granted and that the traffic stop of my client was illegal. The opinion, Lothrop v. State, 372 S.W.3d 187 (Tex.Crim.App.2012), led to the dismissal of the case.  The fight took two and one-half years.

Shortly after that case was resolved, another case took a similar route. I had a DWI client who was charged with DWI-Second Offense, and I was able to resolve the case with a plea bargain for probation. Less than ten days after the plea, he was unfortunately arrested on a new DWI offense in Tarrant County. This was a problem because not only could the new offense cause his probation to be revoked, but the new case could be filed as a felony in Tarrant County. That is, if the Wise County DWI-Second case had become "final" at the time of the alleged new offense.  Knowing that a Motion for New Trial can be filed within thirty days, I did so. I then argued that the filing of that Motion prevented the terms and condition of probation from taking effect; therefore, his probation could not be revoked. The trial court disagreed and ordered my client to jail for almost a year. I appealed the case and bonded the defendant out of jail. At the Fort Worth Court of   Appeals, I lost. Once again, not to be deterred, I appealed the case to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeal which agreed with my arguments in a 9-0 decision. Not only did my client not have to serve jail time, but his new Tarrant County case could not be pursued as a felony because of the decision.  One lawyer, who I do not know and have never talked to, referred to me as using a " Motion For New Like A Surgeon".

In a later drug case, the Fort Worth Court of Appeal described my persistence  as "undaunted" before dismissing an appeal by the State against my client.

I may be most honored to have represented a long time Wise County resident in 2014.   The official court reporter for the district court for thirty years was arrested on a felony offense.  Of all the lawyers he had seen in court over the years, he contacted me for representation.  I was able to resolve the case with a probation that did not result in a conviction. I consider him a friend.

In 2019, I represented Aric Maxwell who I believed was falsely accused of capital murder.  The case, which might become the most famous criminal case in Wise County history, resulted in an outright dismissal of the charges by the DA's office when I discovered an internal email in the Sheriff's Office which led to a further discovery of a DNA report which had been misinterpreted by everyone involved in the case.  A press release about the case's dismissal is here. A Twitter thread, including videos about the case, is here. My related appearance on the local newspaper's video podcast is here.

I served as the President of the Wise County Bar Association for over 15 years (but, in all honesty, we basically existed in name only and rarely had a meeting. I hate needless meetings.) I was appointed as Presiding Municipal Judge for the City of Decatur in 2017 and continue to serve in that capacity. I'm a former member of the board of directors for the First National Bank of Bridgeport and the First Financial Bank - Southlake and, just for fun, have also earned a certification in computer programming from Microsoft. I care deeply about my work, but I have a sense of humor.  I have to: I'm married and raised two girls.