Principal Office
15110 Dallas Pkwy #400
Dallas, TX 75248
(972) 233-5700
15110 Dallas Pkwy #400
Dallas, TX 75248
(972) 233-5700
Years Defending Texans
Cases Dismissed
Criminal Cases Handled
Counties Served Across Texas
Available | Serving All of Texas
Being accused of stealing from an employer you trusted, a company you helped build, or a client relationship you spent years developing is one of the most personally devastating legal situations a professional faces.
Fort Worth embezzlement lawyers at the Law Offices of Richard C. McConathy defend people charged under Texas Penal Code Section 32.45 and Section 31.03 in Tarrant County state courts and the Northern District of Texas federal court, with over 6,000 cases handled and more than 1,000 dismissals across North Texas criminal defense.
Embezzlement cases in Tarrant County are built on financial records, and financial records frequently tell a more complicated story than the employer’s initial report to police suggests.
Authorization disputes, bookkeeping errors, payroll miscommunications, and scope-of-employment disagreements each look identical to criminal theft on an initial accounting review.
What separates a criminal case from a civil dispute is the prosecution’s ability to prove that the defendant intended to permanently deprive the owner of the property, and that element is where Fort Worth embezzlement defense begins.
A free consultation is available 24/7 because an embezzlement investigation does not wait for a convenient moment. Call 972-233-5700 or contact us online now.
McConathy Law defends embezzlement and theft by fiduciary charges in Tarrant County with over 35 years of courtroom experience, direct attorney review of financial evidence on every case, and a free consultation available around the clock.
The Law Offices of Richard C. McConathy has handled over 6,000 criminal cases across North Texas, with more than 1,000 resulting in dismissal.
That track record reflects decades of pre-trial defense work, including financial crime cases where early evidence review produced outcomes the client did not believe were possible when they first called.
An embezzlement investigation or arrest does not follow a business schedule. Call 972-233-5700 or contact us online any time, day or night.
Richard McConathy is a member of the Dallas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association and served as Treasurer of the Dallas Bar Association Criminal Law Section.
He has appeared in Tarrant County Criminal District Courts and the Northern District of Texas for over 35 years, building direct familiarity with how prosecutors in both jurisdictions approach financial crime cases.
Texas does not use the word embezzlement in its criminal statutes. The conduct most people call embezzlement is charged under two separate Texas Penal Code provisions depending on the relationship between the defendant and the property.
Texas Penal Code Section 32.45 governs misapplication of fiduciary property, meaning funds held in a position of trust such as an accountant, attorney, executor, or financial manager who diverts client funds.
Texas Penal Code Section 31.03 governs general theft, which applies when an employee takes employer property without authorization outside of a formal fiduciary relationship.
The distinction matters because the elements of proof differ. A Section 32.45 charge requires the prosecution to prove the defendant held the property in a fiduciary capacity and intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly misapplied it in a manner that involved substantial risk of loss to the owner.
A Section 31.03 charge requires proof that the defendant unlawfully appropriated property with intent to deprive the owner of it. Both require proof of criminal intent, and the defense challenges that element directly through the financial records the prosecution plans to use as its primary evidence.
Texas classifies theft and misapplication of fiduciary property charges on a tiered scale based on the value of the property involved.
Although Texas Penal Code Sections 31.03 and 32.45 contain separate punishment provisions, the punishment ranges generally parallel one another.
| Value of Property or Loss | Texas Charge Level | Potential Penalties |
| Under $100 | Class C misdemeanor | Fine only. No jail time. |
| $100 to $750 | Class B misdemeanor | Up to 180 days in county jail and fines up to $2,000. |
| $750 to $2,500 | Class A misdemeanor | Up to one year in county jail and fines up to $4,000. |
| $2,500 to $30,000 | State jail felony | 180 days to two years in a state jail facility and fines up to $10,000. |
| $30,000 to $150,000 | Third-degree felony | Two to ten years in state prison and fines up to $10,000. |
| $150,000 to $300,000 | Second-degree felony | Two to twenty years in state prison and fines up to $10,000. |
| Above $300,000 | First-degree felony | Five to ninety-nine years or life in state prison and fines up to $10,000. |
A Tarrant County prosecutor proves embezzlement by establishing three things from the financial record: that the defendant had authorized access to the property, that the defendant took or misapplied the property, and that the defendant did so with criminal intent rather than through mistake, miscommunication, or a genuine belief they were authorized.
Intent to deprive is not a fact the prosecution can prove by pointing to a transaction record alone. A missing deposit, an unrecorded withdrawal, or a vendor payment that does not match an invoice each creates a factual question about what the defendant understood their authorization to include.
An employer who never provided written policies, a bookkeeping system that multiple employees accessed, or a compensation arrangement that was verbal rather than documented each introduces reasonable doubt about whether the financial discrepancy was theft or a business dispute.
The financial records the prosecution obtains from the employer represent that employer’s version of what happened, not an objective accounting.
Richard McConathy retains forensic accounting consultants who review those same records from the defense’s position, identifying transactions the employer classified as theft that the records actually support as authorized expenditures, miscategorized entries, or amounts the defendant was owed through compensation or expense reimbursement.
That independent review produces a defense-side accounting that directly challenges the prosecution’s loss calculation, the classification tier, and the intent narrative.
In cases where the employer’s accounting is materially overstated, that challenge affects both the charge level and the prosecution’s willingness to pursue the case at the stated dollar amount.
Restitution in a Texas embezzlement case affects how the prosecution approaches negotiation, but it does not end the criminal case or substitute for a legal defense.
A defendant who pays restitution before a plea or trial demonstrates acknowledgment of the financial harm, which Tarrant County prosecutors weigh when considering charge reductions or sentencing recommendations.
Restitution presented as part of a coordinated defense strategy, with an attorney who uses it as negotiating leverage alongside evidentiary challenges, produces better outcomes than restitution paid as a standalone gesture without legal context.
An embezzlement charge in Fort Worth triggers consequences well beyond the courtroom, and for many defendants, the professional consequences arrive before any criminal penalty is imposed.
Texas licensing boards for accountants, attorneys, real estate agents, insurance professionals, and financial advisors require disclosure of criminal charges and convictions, with board proceedings that run independently from the criminal case on their own timeline.
The professional consequences that most Fort Worth embezzlement defendants face in parallel with their criminal case include the following:
Yes. A materially inflated loss calculation directly affects the charge classification and the prosecution's ability to prove the offense at the tier charged.
When a defense-side forensic accounting review identifies authorized expenditures, misclassified transactions, or legitimate compensation that the employer counted as theft, the prosecution's stated loss amount changes.
A reduced loss amount changes the felony classification, sometimes to a misdemeanor, and affects every aspect of how the prosecution evaluates the case going forward.
Sole account access establishes opportunity but does not prove criminal intent. The prosecution still carries the burden of proving you took the property with intent to deprive the owner of it, not that you were the only person who theoretically could have.
Cases where the defendant had exclusive account access regularly produce successful defenses through forensic review showing that missing funds were authorized expenditures, compensation adjustments, or accounting corrections that the employer's initial review did not account for.
No. Any conversation with your employer about the alleged missing funds after an investigation has started becomes part of the record the prosecution uses.
Employers who have reported conduct to police are not acting as neutral parties in that conversation, and statements you make to them can be turned over to investigators.
The statute of limitations for felony theft and misapplication of fiduciary property in Texas is generally seven years from the date of the offense under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Article 12.01.
Misdemeanor theft carries a two-year limitations period. For offenses involving a fiduciary relationship, some cases toll the limitations period from the date the victim discovered or reasonably should have discovered the offense rather than the date the conduct occurred. Confirm the applicable limitations period for your specific charge type with an attorney.
Yes. Tarrant County prosecutors negotiate charge reductions in embezzlement cases where the defense demonstrates evidentiary weaknesses in the intent proof, a materially different loss amount than the employer reported, or significant mitigating circumstances including restitution, a clean prior record, and documented employment history.
A reduction from a felony to a misdemeanor, or from a higher felony tier to a lower one, changes the sentencing exposure, the licensing consequences, and the long-term record implications substantially.
Yes. Texas allows deferred adjudication probation for most theft and misapplication of fiduciary property offenses under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Article 42A.102.
A defendant who successfully completes deferred adjudication does not receive a final conviction, though the arrest and deferred adjudication remain on the record and are visible to employers and licensing boards.
Some defendants later qualify for an order of nondisclosure that seals the record from most public view, depending on the offense classification and completion circumstances.
State embezzlement charges in Fort Worth are prosecuted under Texas Penal Code Section 31.03 or 32.45 in Tarrant County Criminal District Courts.
Federal embezzlement charges arise when the alleged conduct involves federal funds, a federally insured financial institution, or interstate wire communications and are prosecuted under 18 U.S.C. Section 666 or 18 U.S.C. Section 1343 in the Northern District of Texas Fort Worth Division.
Federal charges carry sentencing guideline calculations that produce longer recommended ranges than state charges for comparable dollar amounts.
Richard McConathy has defended financial crime and embezzlement cases in Tarrant County and the Northern District of Texas for over 35 years, with more than 6,000 criminal cases handled and 1,000+ dismissals across North Texas.
He reviews the financial records personally, retains forensic accounting consultants when the evidence requires independent analysis, and handles every case from the first consultation through final resolution.
A free consultation is available 24/7 because an arrest or investigation notice does not arrive at a convenient hour. Call 972-233-5700 now or contact us online.
Whether you're facing a felony charge or fighting a traffic ticket, every case deserves serious attention. Get an experienced defense team in your corner now.
