Category Archives: Sex Crimes
Plea Bargaining and Making Deals in Federal Felony Cases: Criminal Defense Overview
In both Texas prosecutions and federal criminal matters, many – if not most – arrests do not end up as a criminal conviction with formal sentencing after a full trial before a judge or jury, but instead are resolved out of the courtroom in what is called “plea bargaining.” This involves attorneys representing both the…
Buying Sex in Texas: Texas is First State in USA to Make Solicitation of Prostitution a Felony Offense
The term “john” is defined by the Merriam Webster Dictionary as “a man who pays money to a prostitute for sex.” In some parts of the world being a john, i.e., buying sex, is legal – although that has never been the case in Texas. For instance, just a few hours’ drive south on IH-35…
Internet Sex Crimes: Criminal Defense Overview of Texas Online Sexual Offenses
Internet sex crime charges can be filed in Texas based upon either state or federal law. These cyber-crime sexual offenses frequently involve serious felony charges, where those convicted of online sexual offenses face lengthy incarcerations as well as fines and mandatory registration as a sex offender. Considering how heinous even a rumor that someone is…
Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child: Texas Penal Code §22.021
Perhaps no criminal prosecution is pursued more aggressively by Texas prosecutors than cases involving allegations of the sexual assault of a child. Today, more and more arrests and charges are being pursued by law enforcement regarding crimes involving child sexual abuse than ever before. Correspondingly, statistics report that in the State of Texas, 1 in…
Online Solicitation of a Minor: Texas Penal Code §33.021
One of the many consequences of the unprecedented COVID-19 Pandemic has been the skyrocketing use of the internet by minors, since remote schooling for many required the ability to access the web. More children in the United States are online than ever before. Read, “Growing up on screens: How a year lived online has changed…
Federal Prosecution: Commercial Sex Acts and Sexual Exploitation of a Minor
Under federal law, anyone under the age of 18 years is considered to be a “minor” regardless of how any state statute may define the age of majority, or how sophisticated and mature the individual may appear. 18 U.S.C. § 2256(1). Minors are assumed to lack the mental ability or capacity to understand the full…
Crimes of Sexual Assault or Rape: Texas Injury Claims Based Upon Premises Liability Law
According to the latest crime statistics compiled by the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), sexual assaults are on the rise in our state, with an almost 10% annual increase in reported sexual assaults. The DPS data confirms that targets of sexual assault in Texas are more likely to be female than male and that …
Sexual Harassment: Sexual Assault Personal Injury Claims in Texas
Sexual harassment is illegal under both federal and state law. It is widely prohibited under the premise that an individual has the basic legal right to go to work without having to face harassment. In some instances, sexual harassment can form the basis of a civil damages lawsuit based upon Texas injury law that is…
The Crime of Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child, Texas Penal Code 21.02(c) Part Two of Two: Is Texas’ Version of Jessica’s Law Unconstitutional?
Criminal Defense Discussion of Constitutional Challenges to Texas’ Version of Jessica’s Law Recently a petitioner took his case to the highest court in the land, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS), asking the High Court to consider whether or not the Texas statute enacting the Lone Star State’s version of Jessica’s Law violates…
The Crime of Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child, Texas Penal Code 21.02(c): Part One of Two
Criminal Defense Overview of Texas’ Version of Jessica’s Law In February 2005, a nine-year-old girl named Jessica Lunsford was abducted from her bed in her family home’s in Homosassa, Florida. Her body was discovered buried in a shallow grave, shrouded in a garbage bag, behind the mobile home where a neighbor named John Evander Couey…
