Pedro Cura, 53, was not involved in a two-vehicle collision near the North Freeway on Saturday, October 17, according to the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable's Office. The office says Cura went to the scene wearing a green vest bearing his phone number and offered one of the drivers help with a case. He is charged with barratry, which Texas Penal Code defines as the illegal solicitation of professional employment with intent to obtain economic benefit.
The charge is uncommon in county records, though that finding is based on a review by ABC13 Houston: the station found no barratry cases explicitly listed in Harris County District Clerk criminal records dating back to 2020. Court records cited in the report say Cura photographed the damaged vehicles and offered to assist one driver with their case.
ABC13 reported that Cura's vehicle displayed the same phone number as his vest.
Magistrate Highlights Crash Victims' Vulnerability
The crash participants spoke Spanish. The magistrate warned that people dealing with the aftermath of a collision may be vulnerable and said, per ABC13, that they can be in “a vulnerable state.”
The magistrate also described the alleged conduct as falsely representing oneself as an attorney and said that claiming legal knowledge can exploit the trust people place in authority figures, including lawyers, according to ABC13. Under Texas Government Code Section 81.102, membership in the State Bar of Texas is generally required to practice law or offer legal advice, subject to limited exceptions, according to the State Bar of Texas Paralegal Division.
Harris County Precinct 4 deputies arrested Cura, and bond was set at $10,000. Cura told the court he sells solar panels. The court could not prohibit Cura from talking to people, displaying his name on his vehicle, or appearing at accident scenes where he might have a legitimate reason to be present, per the ABC13 account.
Constable Warns Against Preying on Accident Victims
Mark Herman, the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable, said accident victims should never be taken advantage of during stressful situations. Herman leads what the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable's Office describes as the largest constable department in the United States, with more than 670 sworn deputies.
Texas Penal Code Section 38.12 covers distinct barratry and professional-solicitation offenses, so the classification and penalties depend on the specific conduct, as described by L&L Law Group. Separately, Section 38.12(d) prohibits specified licensed professionals from making unsolicited communications to accident victims before the 31st day following a vehicle collision, according to Thompson Law.
Civil Penalties and Voidable Contracts Add to the Exposure
Beyond criminal charges, Texas law also exposes non-lawyers and case runners to steep civil liability. Effective for civil actions filed on or after September 1, 2025, the state updated Government Code Section 82.0651 to raise the statutory civil penalty for non-contracted barratry solicitations from $10,000 to $50,000 per violation, according to Dovalina Law, PLLC. Any contract for legal representation procured through prohibited solicitation is voidable by the client, who can demand the full return of any legal fees paid, under Texas Government Code Section 82.065, per the State Bar of Texas.
Prosecutors have faced evidentiary hurdles in barratry cases. In March 2010, a Harris County grand jury no-billed a criminal barratry case against a Houston defense attorney accused of using a third party to solicit clients, according to the ABA Journal. Cura's case is now moving through the court system.
Earlier Case and Legal Help
In a separate Corpus Christi case, attorney Mercier was disbarred in 2014 after his assistant tried to sign up a car-crash victim in a hospital room. A jury convicted Mercier of felony barratry and gave him probation, the Houston Chronicle reported.
