CRIMINAL DEFENSE LIBRARY
Articles examining sexual assault charges, consent disputes, child allegations, forensic interviews, medical evidence, DNA analysis, digital evidence, witness credibility, felony punishment, and sex-offender-registration consequences.
Texas Sexual Assault cases can involve disputed consent, child allegations, forensic interviews, medical evidence, DNA, digital evidence, witness credibility, serious felony punishment, and sex-offender-registration consequences. The exact statutory theory and evidence matter.
READ ARTICLEAggravated Sexual Assault is generally a first-degree felony, but specified child-victim circumstances can raise the minimum term to 25 years. The State must prove the underlying sexual offense and the statutory aggravating circumstance, while forensic interviews, medical evidence, DNA, digital evidence, and punishment enhancements can all matter.
READ ARTICLETexas Indecency With a Child law distinguishes sexual contact from exposure. Contact is generally a second-degree felony carrying 2–20 years, while exposure is generally a third-degree felony carrying 2–10 years. Intent, age, outcry evidence, forensic interviews, digital evidence, and the exact conduct alleged can be critical.
READ ARTICLETexas Continuous Sexual Abuse law requires two or more qualifying acts during a period of 30 days or more and carries a minimum prison term of 25 years. The timeline, individual alleged acts, forensic interviews, corroborating evidence, and unusual jury-unanimity rules can all be critical.
READ ARTICLEA child sexual-abuse case may develop through an initial disclosure, family questioning, CPS, law enforcement, a CAC forensic interview, medical history, and later testimony. Texas outcry law, interview technique, repeated questioning, consistency, new details, and the complete recorded interview can all matter.
READ ARTICLEDelayed disclosure, continuous memory, claimed repression, and later recovered memories are not the same. Memory is reconstructive, suggestion can matter, and the circumstances of recovery, prior statements, therapy history, chronology, corroboration, and expert testimony can become critical in an old child sexual-abuse allegation.
READ ARTICLESome serious Texas child sexual offenses currently have no limitations period. But historical cases can require analysis of the exact offense, offense date, prior limitations law, statutory amendments, tolling, DNA provisions, and whether the prosecution had already become time-barred before the law changed.
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