The newest editions of our manuals (below) include a short blurb to describe the contents. Visit our website at www.tdcaa.com/books for more information on each publication and to order them.
Manuals
Expunctions & Nondisclosure (2026), $38
With a significant rewrite of the law dealing with nondisclosures in the last several legislative sessions and changes to expunction laws in 2025 by the legislature, the 2026 edition of this book is essential. Appellate prosecutor Andrea Westerfeld (County & District Attorney’s Office in Ellis County) has made the rules and procedures for expunction and nondisclosure easy to understand. Checklists, sample petitions, and orders (all included on a CD) help simplify the process. The 2026 edition incorporates new caselaw, the newest statutory requirements for expunctions, all types of nondisclosures, and caselaw updates for both.
Prosecutor Trial Notebook (2026–2028), $89
Updated with the latest cases and statutes, the Prosecutor Trial Notebook covers every topic from arrest through closing argument and more—all with handy laminated sheets. The most relevant cases, cites to significant statutes and rules, lists, charts, and tips—all are at your fingertips in a single three-ring binder: 1) arrest and detention; 2) search and seizure; 3) confessions; 4) grand jury; 5) indictments/motions to quash; 6) Brady; 7) victims’ rights; 8) pretrial hearings 9) bail bonds; 10) jury selection; 11) Batson challenges; 12) opening statements and continuances; 13) evidence: objections; 14) evidence: hearsay; 15) evidence: confrontation; 16) evidence: experts; 17) extraneous offenses; 18) closing argument; 19)–20) jury charges I & II; 21) defenses; 22) punishment evidence; 23) enhancements; 24) motions for new trial; 25) jeopardy, estoppel, and mistrial; 26) State’s appeals; 27) asset forfeiture; 28) juveniles; 29) DWI; 30) murder; 31) domestic violence; 32) protective orders; 33) drug offenses; and new in 2026, 34) driver’s license suspensions.
Offense Report Manual, $34
The Offense Report Manual, written by Ken Sparks, former County & District Attorney in Colorado County (retired), is intended primarily for patrol officers. The book includes the most common criminal offenses normally encountered by officers in alphabetical order. For each offense, the book lists the basic elements, necessary details to include in the report, and legal considerations relating to that offense. An appendix includes numerous helpful forms.
Punishment & Probation, $40
Punishment & Probation, written by TDCAA Publications Director Diane Beckham, covers all the law relevant to sentencing. Punishment & Probation, first published in 2014, has been updated with the latest statutes (from the 2025 legislative session) and caselaw from the U.S. Supreme Court and Texas courts.
Complete with charts that spell out potential sentencing options for different types of offenses, the manual describes the application of Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 42A for sentencing, community supervision, deferred adjudication, and pretrial diversion.
State’s Appellate Manual (2025), $120
The State’s Appellate Manual is a comprehensive look at the State’s side of criminal appeals. Starting with timelines all the way through motions for rehearing, the manual covers: Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure; motions for new trial; perfection of appeal; bail pending appeal; abatement; the record on appeal; preservation of error; standards of review; harmless error; oral argument; motions for rehearing; writing the State’s brief; State’s petitions for discretionary review; and State’s appeals. Chapters were written and edited by Assistant District Attorneys Jessica Caird, Alan Curry, Andrew Fletcher, Heather Hudson, and Patricia McLean (in Harris County); Assistant State Prosecuting Attorney Emily Johnson-Liu; and Assistant Criminal District Attorney Britt Houston Lindsey (Taylor County).
Warrantless Search & Seizure (2025), $45
Searching people, places, and vehicles is the starting point for this comprehensive look at warrantless searches and seizures written for prosecutors and officers. Written by TDCAA Publications Director Diane Beckham, it sets out the basics of Fourth Amendment law, then moves to more specific situations, including searches in cars, homes, offices, and schools, and the exclusionary rule —complete with handy reference charts in each chapter. The 2025 edition includes the latest updates on searches of cell phones, curtilage, use of anonymous tips (especially in DWI stops), drones, hemp, and dog sniffs.
Child Sexual Abuse (2025), $45
In the high-stakes world of prosecuting child sexual abuse, a prosecutor typically must work with little or no medical evidence, medical experts with varying degrees of expertise, a jury panel in need of education about the crime, and a victim who may (understandably) crumble on the stand. The 2025 edition of this helpful manual, updated by Sunni Mitchell (Assistant District Attorney in Fort Bend County) and Jamie Felicia (Assistant District Attorney in Williamson County), walks prosecutors of all experience levels through the case, from investigation to the punishment phase of trial.
Warrants Manual (2025), $48
This edition of the Warrants Manual describes how officers and prosecutors can legally obtain different types of evidence: by warrant, by court order, via subpoena, or through a recognized warrantless exception. The chapters are organized into the type of evidence sought (DWI, vehicles, digital evidence, remotely stored electronic data, real-time data, contraband subject to forfeiture, and people, including DNA). Sample forms showing all types of warrants under Art. 18.02(a) are included with the book, along with the full text of Chapters 18, 18A, and 18B of the Code of Criminal Procedure. This edition includes the latest information about geofencing warrants, cell phones and digital evidence, and narcotics dog sniffs, along with other information.
Traffic Stops, $33
From initial sighting of a car on the road through arrest, Traffic Stops leads officers and prosecutors through the permissible ways to approach a traffic stop. Written by TDCAA Publications Director Diane Beckham, Traffic Stops includes charts on the most common traffic offenses and important facts to know about each of them, easy-to-read tables on what officers can do at each step of a traffic stop, and plain-English summaries of what the courts have said about arrests, detentions, and searches related to cars, drivers, and passengers. The 2026 update includes information about how to handle blood draws (and establishing exigent circumstances) as well as important updates from recent cases from the U.S. Supreme Court on dog sniffs, anonymous tips, cell phone searches, good faith, and consent.
Family Violence (2025), $48
From investigation through trial, the second edition of Family Violence tells prosecutors, officers, and others in the criminal justice system everything they need to know about how to handle prosecution of family violence cases. Written by Staley Heatly, County Attorney in Wilbarger County, the book includes checklists, forms, and sample pleadings as well as a narrative that leads readers through every step of the process and offers common-sense tips. A CD that accompanies the book contains forms from the book as well as other helpful resources.
Grand Jury Handbook, $6
Prosecutors can establish a strong relationship early with their grand jurors by providing them with this informative publication. Grand Jury Handbook, updated with current legislative changes, furnishes grand jurors with all the knowledge they need to have a successful term, including the history of the grand jury, the important role jurors play in our judicial system, how to conduct the business of a jury, and a brief rundown of criminal law in Texas.
Additional manuals available from TDCAA
Writs, $35
Victim Assistance Manual, $30
Confessions, $40
Guide to Asset Seizure & Forfeiture, $55
Predicates, $35
DWI Investigation & Prosecution, $48
Intoxication Manslaughter, $45
Mental Health Law for Prosecutors, $50
Jury Selection, $30
Criminal code books
Quick Penal Code Reference, $10
Annotated Criminal Laws of Texas, $87
Legislative Update, $30
Charging Manual (disk or binder, $175; both, $200)
Texas Crimes, $28
Penal Laws of Texas, $50
Code of Criminal Procedure, $55
Transportation Code Crimes, $43