Legal Defense When Charged with Online Solicitation of a Minor

Protecting Your Rights In Texas

The Internet has created a host of opportunities for committing a wide variety of crimes. From identity theft to threatening someone else with bodily harm, cyberspace has turned into a sleeker version of the wild, wild, west. Lost in the publicity paid to crimes such as identity theft is a serious crime that can bring dramatic legal repercussions.

The crime is called online solicitation of a minor.

If you or someone close to you face the charge of online solicitation of a minor, you need to turn to a trusted criminal defense attorney who has successfully litigated numerous similar cases. At Capetillo Law Firm, highly rated criminal defense lawyer Adam Capetillo has help clients win cases involving the solicitation of a minor online. Adam understands every possible defense to use during a case that can have highly negative lifetime consequences.

Overview of Texas Online Solicitation of a Minor Law

Texas statute under Penal Code Section 33.021 defines the term “Minor” to be anyone “who represents that he or she is younger than 17 years old or any person whom the defendant believes to be under the age of 17.” Many of the arrests made by invoking Texas Penal code Section 33.021 are made under the guise of an undercover operation when a law enforcement officers plays the role of a child under the age of 17 years.

A criminal charge of online solicitation of a minor is a felony of the third degree, with a felony of the second degree the charge when the minor involved is younger than 14 years old. Subsection (b) of Texas Penal Code Section 33.021 states several conditions must be met before someone can be charged with the online solicitation of a minor.

The defendant must be at least 17 years old and he or she must have acted with the intention of heightening the sexual pleasure of a minor. According to Texas law, online solicitation of a minor must happen exclusively over the Internet via a text message, electronic mail, or any other type of electronic message system that includes online message boards. The solicitation must be made intentionally by communicating in an explicit way with a minor and/or distributing sexually graphic materials online to a minor.

Defenses Use for the Charge of Online Solicitation of a Minor

The long list of conditions that must be met to arraign a defendant on a charge of online solicitation of a minor represents one of the most common defenses sued by a criminal defense attorney. Licensed in Texas, Adam Capetillo will conduct a thorough review of your case to determine if all of the conditions were met in defining the crime of online solicitation of a minor.

Here are a few other ways to exonerate defendants charged with online solicitation of a minor in Texas.

Not Online at the Time of the Interaction

Every online form of communication carries with it a digital time stamp. Adam Capetillo will investigate your case to determine whether you were online at the time of the alleged solicitation. Log in records generated by public access sites will help us decide whether you were online during the alleged solicitation of a minor.

Violation of Constitutional Rights

The United States Constitution includes several provisions that protect the rights of anyone accused of a crime. We will work hard to prove every one of your rights were granted during the arrest, as well as when you spoke with law enforcement officials during an interrogation. A law enforcement official must read your Miranda rights, as well as have probable cause to arrest you for the online solicitation of a minor.

Exceptions Covering the Time of the Alleged Crime

We can defend against a charge of online solicitation of a minor by referencing certain clauses written into Subsection (b) or (c) of Texas Penal Code Section 33.021. For example, an exception to the age restrictions can be made if the defendant was not more than three years older than the minor and the minor permitted the sexual solicitations to occur. In addition, if the defendant is married to the minor, then the age restriction clause of Texas law does not apply.

Adam Capetillo will Fight an Online Solicitation of a Minor Charge

Facing the charge of online solicitation of a minor can lead to life-altering ramifications. Texas law does not treat abuses to minors lightly, which means that if you face the charge of online solicitation of a minor in Texas, you can expect the prosecution to come after you hard. Noted criminal defense attorney Adam Capetillo aggressively defends the rights granted to his clients, as well as find holes in the prosecution’s case.