252nd District Court delivers multiple guilty pleas and sentences during morning docket

Presiding Judge of the 252nd District Court oversaw a busy criminal docket that produced multiple pleas, sentencing rulings and continuances on cases involving theft, burglary, aggravated assault, probation revocations and related matters.

The court handed down prison terms in several cases, imposed deferred adjudications in others and reset multiple matters for sentencing or trial. Many decisions reflected plea agreements signed in court; several matters were continued for pre‑sentence reports or further negotiation.

Key outcomes included: the judge sentencing Justin Livingston to concurrent 10‑year terms in the institutional division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice after finding him guilty of credit/debit card abuse and burglary of a habitation; a 9‑month Jefferson County jail sentence for Benjamin Shumate after a finding of true on a probation revocation charge; and multi‑year Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) sentences for other defendants. In other cases the court accepted guilty pleas and set sentencing dates or required probation reports before imposing punishment.

Sentences and court actions (selected)

- Justin Livingston: The court found Livingston guilty of credit/debit card abuse (third‑degree) and burglary of habitation (second‑degree) and sentenced him to 10 years in the institutional division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice on each count, to run concurrently. The judge said she would sign dismissals in related matters and handed Livingston trial‑court certifications and a written admonishment about ineligibility to possess firearms under Texas law.

- Benjamin Shumate: After the state offered certified judgments from Galveston County, the court found…