Texas Child Enticement Laws

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Texas child enticement laws address the utilization of a number of digital or electronic communication modes for improper sexual contact with minor children.  Texas law will require that all elements of the crime be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.  In Texas a defendant can be convicted of a child enticement if he or she is over the age of 17 and commits the following:

• Intentionally seeks to gratify the sexual desire of any person
• Via the Internet, e-mail, text message or any other digital communication device
• By communicating via said devices in a sexually explicit way or’
• Distributing sexual explicit material
• Or for engaging with sexual contact, intercourse or deviant sexual conduct.

Penalties for Child Enticement Texas

If a defendant has been convicted of child enticement he or she will face the following penalties:

• If the child is younger than 14 a second degree felony that has a penalty of no less than two years or more than 20 years imprisonment with a fine not over $10,000. 
• If the child is older than 14, a third degree felony that has a penalty of no loess than 2 years and no more than 10 years with a fine not to be assessed of above $10,000.

Defense of Child Enticement in Texas

A defendant that has been charged with enticing a child will have available a number of defenses.  These defenses if asserted correctly could absolve the defendant of any criminal liability:

• Duress or compulsion where a person engages in criminal conduct due to threat of imminent death, or seriously bodily injury, or force.
• Ignorance to or mistake as a mater of fact that negates the element of intent to commit the crime
• Involuntary intoxication that results in lack of capacity to appreciate right from wrong
• Mental disease, defect, or insanity

Attempted Child Enticement in Texas

A person will be found guilty of attempt to entice of child if acting with the intent to commit the crime of child enticement, he or she take substantial acts towards completing the crime of child enticement.   Substantial acts are considered those that are strongly correlated to the person’s state of mind to complete the crime.  A person found guilty of attempt shall be sentenced to an offense under this section is one category lower than the offense attempted, and if the offense attempted is a state jail felony, the offense is a Class A misdemeanor.

When to Talk to a Lawyer

Whenever you are charged with a crime you should immediately seek the assistance of a lawyer.  Only an attorney licensed in the state of your residence can give you advice regarding your rights and defenses.