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If Fort Worth police or a Tarrant County CPS caseworker have contacted you about how your child was injured, you are already in the case. An accusation is not a conviction, but child abuse investigations move quickly and are often built before the accused person is ever interviewed.
Varghese Summersett defends parents, stepparents, relatives, babysitters, daycare workers, and coaches accused of hurting a child. Our criminal team includes four Board Certified criminal law specialists and former Tarrant County felony prosecutors.
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Child Abuse Charges in Tarrant County
There is no single Texas offense called child abuse. Depending on what the State believes happened, a Fort Worth case is usually filed as one of these:
- Injury to a child under Penal Code 22.04, when a child 14 or younger suffered bodily injury, serious bodily injury, or serious mental impairment.
- Child endangerment or abandoning a child under Penal Code 22.041, when a child younger than 15 was placed in danger or left without adequate care.
- Medical child abuse, when a caregiver is accused of fabricating or inducing a child’s illness.
Every one of these is a felony. Which one is filed, and at what level, is driven by the mental state the prosecutor believes is provable. See our statewide child abuse defense overview for how the offenses fit together.
Where a Fort Worth Child Abuse Case Is Handled
Felony child cases in Tarrant County are filed and heard at the Tim Curry Criminal Justice Center in downtown Fort Worth. Because these are felonies, the case must be presented to a Tarrant County grand jury before it can proceed to trial, and that presentation is a genuine opportunity. A grand jury that hears the medical timeline, the alternative explanation, or the custody dispute behind the outcry can no-bill the case before it ever becomes public.
If the child is old enough to be interviewed, that interview is typically conducted at the county’s children’s advocacy center rather than by a patrol officer. The recording, the interviewer’s questions, and what the child was told before walking in are all discoverable, and they are frequently where the defense starts.
The CPS Investigation Runs Beside the Criminal Case
A Tarrant County child abuse allegation almost always produces two investigations at once. CPS decides whether your child is safe. Fort Worth police or the sheriff’s office decide whether to file charges. They share information freely.
Parents routinely damage the criminal case while trying to satisfy CPS. A safety plan, a psychological evaluation, or an interview given to keep your children at home can generate statements that end up in the offense report. We coordinate with family counsel so that protecting your relationship with your child does not cost you the criminal case.
What to Do If You Are Contacted
- Do not give the interview. It is evidence collection, not a chance to clear things up. Decline politely and call a lawyer.
- Do not take a polygraph offered by CPS or police without counsel.
- Preserve the record now. Photos, texts, daycare sign-in sheets, medical records, and calendars establish who had the child and when.
- Write the timeline down while it is fresh, including who was present and when the injury was first noticed.
Defenses to Fort Worth Child Abuse Charges
The right defense depends on which statute is charged and what the evidence shows. Common approaches include an accidental injury that does not meet the required mental state, an alternative medical explanation such as a bleeding or bone-fragility condition, proof that another caregiver had access during the relevant window, a timeline that does not support the State’s dating of the injury, reasonable parental discipline, and a suggestive or repeated child interview that produced an unreliable account.
In infant and toddler cases the State’s case is often a physician’s opinion rather than a witness. Those opinions deserve scrutiny. We work with independent pediatric and radiologic experts and obtain the complete medical record rather than the summary attached to the offense report.
Frequently Asked Questions About Fort Worth Child Abuse Cases
Is child abuse a felony in Fort Worth?
Yes. Every Texas offense commonly called child abuse is a felony, from a state jail felony up to a first degree felony punishable by 5 to 99 years or life.
Can I be charged if I did not hurt my child but did not stop it?
Yes. Texas allows prosecution by omission where a person had a legal duty to protect the child. Parents and others who have accepted care, custody, or control of a child can be charged for failing to act.
Will CPS take my children?
Not necessarily. CPS may use a safety plan, place the child with a relative, or seek removal. Because CPS statements can be used against you criminally, both cases should be handled with one strategy.
Should I talk to the detective to clear things up?
No. Speak to a lawyer first. In child cases the interview is very often what turns a thin allegation into a filed charge.
What if the allegation came up during a custody fight?
That context matters and should be documented immediately. When the claim first surfaced, who the child spoke to first, and what was happening in the family case that week are all relevant.