Denton County Continuous Sexual Assault Child Charges

Continuous sexual abuse of a child is a first-degree felony in Texas that carries a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison — with no possibility of probation, deferred adjudication, or parole until that sentence is served. If you or someone you love is facing this charge in Denton County, every decision made right now matters.

Why Your Defense Team Matters in a Case This Serious

Varghese Summersett is one of Texas’s most recognized North Texas criminal defense firms, with more than 100 years of combined legal experience and a team of over 70 attorneys, paralegals, and support professionals. The firm has secured more than 1,600 dismissals and over 800 charge reductions of various offenses.

We maintain offices in Fort Worth, Dallas, Houston, and Southlake — with attorneys who regularly handle Denton County sexual assault cases and understand how the Denton County courts operate.

Two attorneys on our team have spent the bulk of their legal careers inside prosecutors’ offices specifically handling crimes against children — and now they put that knowledge to work for the defense.

Letty Martinez is a board-certified Criminal Law Specialist who spent over 20 years as a prosecutor at the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office, including serving as Chief of the Crimes Against Children Unit. She has tried more than 100 cases and holds a deep understanding of exactly how these prosecutions are built — and where they can be challenged. She is also an adjunct faculty member at Baylor Law School.

Why Your Defense Team Matters in a Case This Serious

Varghese Summersett is one of Texas’s most recognized North Texas criminal defense firms, with more than 100 years of combined legal experience and a team of over 70 attorneys, paralegals, and support professionals. The firm has secured more than 1,600 dismissals and over 800 charge reductions of various offenses.

We maintain offices in Fort Worth, Dallas, Houston, and Southlake — with attorneys who regularly handle Denton County sexual assault cases and understand how the Denton County courts operate.

Two attorneys on our team have spent the bulk of their legal careers inside prosecutors’ offices specifically handling crimes against children — and now they put that knowledge to work for the defense.

Letty Martinez is a board-certified Criminal Law Specialist who spent over 20 years as a prosecutor at the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office, including serving as Chief of the Crimes Against Children Unit. She has tried more than 100 cases and holds a deep understanding of exactly how these prosecutions are built — and where they can be challenged. She is also an adjunct faculty member at Baylor Law School.

Christy Jack is a nationally recognized trial attorney and partner at Varghese Summersett who has tried more than 200 criminal jury trials over the course of her nearly 30-year career. She spent more than two decades as a prosecutor, handling some of the most serious and high-profile cases in North Texas, before bringing her extensive trial experience to the defense side. Known for her commanding courtroom presence and meticulous case preparation, Christy understands how prosecutors think, how they build their cases, and how to dismantle them at trial when a client’s future is on the line.

Both attorneys know what it looks like when a case is built on assumption, coaching, or investigative shortcuts. That experience is your advantage.

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What Is Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Young Child in Texas?

Under Texas Penal Code § 21.02, a person commits continuous sexual abuse of a young child if they are 17 years of age or older and engage in two or more acts of sexual abuse against a child younger than 14, with those acts occurring over a period of 30 or more days.

The statute defines “act of sexual abuse” broadly. It includes penetration, contact, or exposure under several sections of the Penal Code, including sexual assault of a child (§ 22.011), aggravated sexual assault of a child (§ 22.021), indecency with a child by contact (§ 21.11(a)(1)), and other qualifying offenses.

What the State Must Prove

To convict someone under § 21.02, prosecutors must prove each of the following beyond a reasonable doubt:

• The defendant was 17 years of age or older at the time of the offense
• The victim was younger than 14 years of age
• The defendant committed two or more acts of sexual abuse as defined by the statute
• The acts occurred over a period of 30 or more days in duration

The burden of proof rests entirely on the State. A defendant has no obligation to prove innocence, offer an explanation, or take the stand. The standard — beyond a reasonable doubt — is the highest in the law.

One of the Most Unusual Jury Rules in Texas Law

This charge contains one of the most striking legal rules in the Texas Penal Code. Under § 21.02(d), the jury is not required to agree unanimously on which specific acts of sexual abuse the defendant committed. They only need to unanimously agree that at least two such acts occurred during the required time period.

This non-unanimity provision was specifically designed to make these cases easier to prosecute — and it has significant implications for your defense strategy. Understanding this rule is one reason why having attorneys with insider prosecutorial experience is so critical.

Penalties for Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child in Texas

This charge is a first-degree felony, but it carries a punishment range that is significantly harsher than standard first-degree felonies. Under § 21.02(h), a person convicted of this offense faces:

• Mandatory sentence of 25 to 99 years, or life in prison
• No eligibility for probation or community supervision
• No eligibility for deferred adjudication
• No parole until the minimum sentence is served
• Lifetime registration as a sex offender under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 62
• A fine of up to $10,000

This is one of the most punishing sentencing schemes in Texas criminal law. A conviction is, for all practical purposes, a life-altering outcome. That is why the defense investigation must begin immediately.

If multiple victims are named, or if prosecutors stack charges with other offenses such as aggravated sexual assault of a child, the exposure compounds further. Read more about related charges and how they are prosecuted at our Texas sexual assault overview page.

Bond Amounts for Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child in Denton County

Based on an analysis Varghese Summersett completed of over 258 bonds in the Children and Minors category in Denton County, here is what bond typically looks like for the continuous sexual abuse charge (§ 21.02):

Charge	Cases Reviewed	Average Bond	Most Common Bond
§ 21.02(b) — Continuous Sexual Abuse of Child (Victim Under 14)	14	$444,821	$1,000,000

Judges in Denton County treat this charge with extreme severity at the bond stage. Bonds at or above $1 million are common. In some cases, the court may consider a motion to deny bail entirely, which is permitted under the Texas Constitution for certain offenses. Our attorneys are experienced in bond hearings and can present evidence and argument to fight for a reasonable bond amount. Learn more about the Denton County criminal court process.

Common Defenses in Continuous Sexual Abuse Cases

A charge is not a conviction. These cases are often built on statements from children that were gathered through improper interviewing techniques, or on allegations that surfaced in the middle of contentious custody disputes or family conflict. Every element the State must prove is a point of attack for the defense.

Challenging the Sufficiency and Reliability of the Outcry

In most child sex abuse prosecutions, there is no physical evidence. The case is built almost entirely on what the child said — and when, to whom, and under what circumstances they said it. The first person a child tells about alleged abuse is the “outcry witness” under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Art. 38.072. That statement must meet specific requirements to be admitted. If investigators or adults in the child’s life used leading questions, repeated interviews, or suggestive techniques before the forensic interview was conducted, the reliability of the entire outcry can be challenged.

Attacking the 30-Day Window

The State must prove the alleged acts occurred over a period of at least 30 days. If the timeline is vague, inconsistent, or contradicted by records such as school attendance, travel, work schedules, or phone data, the prosecution may struggle to establish the temporal element beyond a reasonable doubt.

Identity and Access

In some cases, the alleged perpetrator did not have the opportunity to commit the acts described. Employment records, surveillance, witness testimony, and cell phone location data can all be used to establish that the defendant was not present when the alleged abuse supposedly occurred.

False Allegations

False allegations in this category are a documented reality, particularly in cases involving divorce, custody battles, or family conflict. Defense attorneys investigate the circumstances surrounding how and why the allegation surfaced — and who stood to benefit. Read more about the Denton County sexual assault defense process.

Improper Forensic Interview Techniques

The gold standard for interviewing child victims is the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Protocol. When investigators deviate from that standard — using leading questions, multiple repeated interviews, or interviews in the presence of a parent who has an interest in the outcome — those deviations can be exposed through expert testimony. A credibility challenge to the forensic interview can fundamentally change the trajectory of a case.

Challenging Other-Acts Evidence Under Article 38.37

Under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Art. 38.37, prosecutors are permitted to introduce evidence of other alleged sexual misconduct — even uncharged acts, even with other alleged victims — in trials for child sex crimes. This evidence is powerful and prejudicial. Your defense team must be prepared to challenge its admission, cross-examine witnesses effectively, and counter its impact with the jury.

What Happens After an Arrest in Denton County

Understanding the process helps you move through it with your eyes open. Here is what typically happens after an arrest for this charge in Denton County.

Arrest and Magistration

After arrest, you will be brought before a magistrate for an initial appearance, typically within 48 hours. At this point, the magistrate will set bond — or, in some cases, hold a hearing to determine whether bond should be denied. Your attorney can appear at this hearing and argue for a reasonable bond amount.

Grand Jury Presentation

Because this is a felony, the case must be presented to a grand jury before an indictment can issue. The grand jury will hear evidence from prosecutors and determine whether probable cause exists to formally charge you. This is a critical stage — and an experienced defense team may be able to present a “grand jury packet” with evidence and legal argument before the jury votes, with the goal of a no-bill (no indictment).

 Pretrial Motions

In the months that follow, your attorneys will file motions — potentially challenging the admissibility of evidence, the reliability of witness statements, or constitutional violations in the investigation.

Trial or Resolution

If the case goes to trial, only a jury — not a judge — may assess punishment for a § 21.02 conviction. The defense team will work through voir dire, opening statements, cross-examination of the State’s witnesses (including the child, forensic interviewers, and any outcry witnesses), presentation of defense witnesses and expert testimony, and closing argument. Given the non-unanimity provision, jury selection is one of the most important stages in these cases.

What to Expect From Varghese Summersett

When you hire Varghese Summersett, you are not getting a general practitioner who handles a little of everything. You are getting a team that has spent careers on both sides of child sex crime cases — in the courtroom and in the prosecutor’s chair.

We begin every case with a thorough investigation. We review forensic interview recordings, scrutinize the chain of custody for any physical evidence, analyze the timeline of the allegation, and identify every inconsistency in the record. We retain the experts necessary to challenge the State’s case — forensic interviewers, child psychologists, and other specialists.

We communicate honestly. These cases are serious. We will tell you exactly where the case stands, what the exposure is, and what the realistic options are — not what you want to hear, but what you need to know to make informed decisions. We fight hard at every stage, from the grand jury to the trial courtroom.

Reach our Denton County criminal defense team at (940) 252-2220 — we answer 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can a continuous sexual abuse charge in Texas be reduced to a lesser offense?

In some cases, yes — but it depends entirely on the strength of the evidence and the facts of the case. A § 21.02 charge cannot be reduced to a deferred adjudication plea; the statute specifically prohibits it. However, depending on the evidence, prosecutors may agree to reduce the charge to a different offense that carries different sentencing options. This is a case-by-case determination that requires experienced legal counsel who can evaluate the evidence and negotiate from a position of knowledge.

What is the statute of limitations for this charge in Texas?

There is no statute of limitations for continuous sexual abuse of a young child under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Art. 12.01. Charges can be filed at any time — including decades after the alleged offense. This means that defense attorneys must sometimes investigate events from the distant past, making documentation, records, and witness memory all the more critical.

Can the jury convict without agreeing on which specific acts occurred?

Yes — and this is one of the most significant features of this statute. Under § 21.02(d), jurors do not have to unanimously agree on which specific acts of sexual abuse were committed. They only need to unanimously agree that at least two qualifying acts occurred during the 30-day-or-more period. This rule was designed to benefit the prosecution and is one reason why aggressive defense at trial — particularly during jury selection — is so important.

Will I have to register as a sex offender if convicted?

Yes. A conviction under § 21.02 triggers lifetime sex offender registration requirements under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 62. Registration affects where you can live, where you can work, and requires ongoing reporting to law enforcement. The consequences extend far beyond the prison sentence itself.

What should I do if I’ve been accused but not yet arrested?

Call a defense attorney immediately — before you speak to any law enforcement officer, detective, or investigator. You have no obligation to give a statement, and anything you say can be used against you. A proactive defense that begins before charges are filed gives your attorneys the best opportunity to present information to a grand jury, challenge the investigation at its earliest stages, and potentially prevent an indictment from ever issuing. Time is the one resource you cannot recover.

If you or someone you care about is facing a continuous sexual abuse of a child charge in Denton County, the time to act is now. These cases move fast, and the decisions made in the earliest days — including what you say, who you say it to, and whether an attorney is present — can define the entire trajectory of the case.

Varghese Summersett’s Denton County criminal defense team is available around the clock. Reach us at (940) 252-2220 for a free, confidential consultation.