Sexual Abuse Attorney in Austin

How Sexual Abuse Cases Are Charged and Prosecuted in Austin

Travis County District Attorney prosecutors and the Austin Police Department’s Sex Crimes Unit follow defined investigative protocols, and the statute itself gives the prosecution structural advantages that defense counsel must account for from the outset.

The Jury Unanimity Rule

Under § 21.02(d), jurors don’t have to agree on which specific acts occurred or on the exact dates. They only need to agree unanimously that two or more acts of sexual abuse took place over a period of 30 or more days. The prosecution can present a general pattern of conduct without establishing a precise timeline, and individual jurors can reach the same verdict based on different acts. This feature of the statute significantly affects how the government builds its case and sets the floor for what the defense must challenge.

How Investigations Typically Begin

Most sexual abuse cases start with a child’s outcry statement to a trusted adult, such as a parent, teacher, or counselor. That statement typically triggers a CPS investigation and referral to APD. CPS and APD investigators are trained to conduct forensic interviews of child complainants, and the statements recorded in those interviews become central evidence for the prosecution. Because the jury unanimity rule doesn’t require agreement on specific acts, prosecutors can rely on the general pattern a complainant describes rather than pinning the case to particular incidents.

Defense Approaches in Sexual Abuse Cases

These cases frequently rest on a child’s statements without corroborating physical evidence. Challenging the reliability of those statements is often the core defense task: examining how the outcry was first made, whether forensic interviews followed proper protocols, and whether bias, family conflict, coaching, or other factors may have influenced what was reported.

Defense investigation also looks at the circumstances surrounding the allegation, including relationships between the parties, potential motivations, inconsistencies across multiple statements, and whether the complainant’s account changed over time. Preserving evidence early and interviewing witnesses before memories fade can make a material difference.

In cases involving a single victim who is under 14 (not a disabled individual), an affirmative defense may be available under § 21.02(g) if the actor and victim were not more than five years apart in age, no force or duress was used, and the actor was not a required lifetime registrant at the time of the alleged offense. This defense is narrow and fact-specific and does not apply to cases involving disabled individuals.

When federal agencies such as the FBI or Homeland Security Investigations are involved, federal charges may follow alongside or instead of state charges. Our sexual abuse attorney in Austin has worked directly with both agencies and understands how those investigations develop and intersect with state prosecution.