A conviction for a sex offense crime in Texas can trigger some of the harshest penalties handed out for any other type of crime except murder and extremely violent battery cases. Convicted felons committing sex crimes also face some punishments in addition to incarceration and hefty fines. It can be difficult to find gainful employment, and instead, many convicted felons have to trade down several employment notches because of their sex crime convictions.
If you face a charge of committing a sex crime, you should act with a sense of urgency and contact a litigator who fights hard and smart for his clients. Criminal defense attorney Adam Capetillo understands the seriousness of a sex crime charge, and he carefully mulls over every legal option before deciding on which legal path to take.
If you are a teacher in Texas who has a sex crime conviction on his or her record, your career could be in jeopardy.
Types of Sex Crimes Prosecuted in Texas
Under the Texas Penal Code, a defendant can be charged with one of five types of sex crimes.
- Sexual Assault
- Aggravated Sexual Assault
- Child molestation
- Prostitution
- Sexting
Sexual assault and aggravated sexual assault differ on one important factor. Aggravated sexual assault involves the use of violence, death threats, or a deadly weapon used to commit a sexual assault. Sexual assault is a crime committed by forcing another person to engage in unwanted sexual acts. As a relative newcomer to the list of sex crimes, sexting often involves the sending or receiving of pornographic materials.
Punishments for Sex Crime Convictions
Length incarcerations are often the punishment handed down for virtually every type of sex offense conviction. A convicted child molester can face jail time up to 20 years, and that is for a first-time conviction. Anyone convicted of aggravated sexual assault can spend up to 99 years behind bars. Child pornography cases are especially sensitive cases for Texas prosecutors, with the result of a conviction carrying a sentence of 20 years in the state penitentiary. Although not considered as serious of a sex offense, a prostitution conviction can land the defendant in jail for up to two years.
Sex crime convictions introduce an additional element that can derail a teaching career. Anyone convicted of a sex offense in Texas must register as a sex offender.
Overview of the Sex Registry Program in Texas
As part of the Texas legal system since 1991, the sex offender registration program has undergone several changes to account for new types of crimes, such as the sex offense called sexting. For example, the Texas legislature in 1995 made it mandatory for the public to receive notification about sex offenders moving into the neighborhood. In 2005, the Texas legislature passed into law the Texas Sex Offender Registration Program (SORP), which requires every adult and juvenile convicted of a sex crime to register with the appropriate law enforcement agency in the city or county where they live.
A convicted sex offender must provide the following information when registering with a law enforcement agency:
- Name
- Residential address
- Any aliases
- Social Security number
- Driver’s license number
- Recent color photograph
- Home, work, and/or cell phone numbers
- The offense that produced the conviction
- Physical attributes (Height, weight, eye color, shoe size, etc.)
- Complete set of fingerprints
School education systems check with the sex offender registry to weed out teaching applicants that received a conviction for a sex crime. With the penalty for failing to register almost as harsh as the sex crime itself, few of the defendants convicted of sex crimes fail to comply with the sex offender registration mandate ordered by Texas law.
Possible Defenses
If you are a teacher facing a sex offense charge, a sex offense conviction could end your teaching career in Sugar Land, Texas. Advancements in DNA detection technology makes it much easier than it was 10 years ago to present a formidable defense based on the lack of DNA. Physical evidence is the key factor for prosecutors to argue for convictions in sex crime cases. Consent is another possible defense, but it often comes down to determining which side is telling the truth. Unless one or more witnesses to an alleged sex crime speak out, consent takes a legal back seat to the presented physical evidence that exonerates a defendant of all sex offense charges.
As the standard of proving, the guilt of a defendant accused of most crimes, “Beyond a reasonable doubt” is the toughest legal litmus test that prosecutors have to pass to gain a conviction. “Beyond a reasonable doubt” means that every juror must be 100 percent sure the defendant is guilty of the sex offense charges he or she faces. Sugar Land, TX criminal defense lawyer Adam Capetillo argues for defendants to plant the seeds of reasonable doubt that lead to a not guilty verdict.
Contact Adam Capetillo for Defending a Sex Offense Charge
If you are a Texas licensed teacher, you cannot afford to take the chance of defending a sex offense charge by working with a public defender. Your case requires a persuasive criminal defense attorney who knows how to argue forcefully, yet eloquently for your rights.
Schedule a free initial consultation with criminal defense attorney Adam Capetillo by calling our law firm at 346-220-3404 or by submitting the convenient Contact form located on our website.
