Sexual assault under the Texas Penal Code is a second-degree felony carrying 2 to 20 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000, defined by Section 22.011 as non-consensual sexual penetration or oral contact with another person, or any such contact with a child younger than 17. The charge rises to a first-degree felony in specific circumstances, and Section 22.021 creates a separate aggravated sexual assault offense punishable by 5 to 99 years or life when a weapon, serious injury, or a particularly vulnerable victim is involved. Nearly every conviction also carries lifetime sex offender registration.
How Texas Defines Sexual Assault
Section 22.011 works on two tracks. The first covers non-consensual sexual contact with any person. The second covers sexual contact with a child, whether or not the child appeared to agree.
On the non-consent track, a person commits the offense by intentionally or knowingly causing penetration of another person’s anus or sexual organ by any means, penetration of another person’s mouth by the actor’s sexual organ, or contact between another person’s sexual organ and the actor’s mouth, anus, or sexual organ, without that person’s consent.1State of Texas. Texas Penal Code Section 22.011 – Sexual Assault The statute uses “sexual organ” rather than specifying anatomy, so it applies regardless of the sex of either party.
On the child-victim track, those same acts constitute an offense when committed against someone younger than 17, even where no force or coercion was used.1State of Texas. Texas Penal Code Section 22.011 – Sexual Assault Texas treats a child under 17 as legally incapable of consenting to sexual acts with an adult. This is what many people call statutory rape, though the code does not use that phrase.
When Consent Is Legally Absent
For adult-victim cases, the prosecution must prove the act happened without consent. Section 22.011(b) lists the specific situations where Texas law treats consent as nonexistent, and the list is broader than many people expect.
The most direct scenario is force: the actor physically compels submission, or threatens violence and the victim reasonably believes the actor can carry it out. The threat need not target the victim; threatening harm to anyone counts.1State of Texas. Texas Penal Code Section 22.011 – Sexual Assault
Consent is also legally absent when the victim’s mental or physical state makes real agreement impossible. That covers a victim who is unconscious or physically unable to resist, has a mental condition that prevents them from understanding what is happening or resisting it, is unaware the act is occurring, or has been secretly given a substance that impaired their ability to understand or resist.
The statute treats abuse of authority as a form of non-consent as well. Coercion by a public servant voids consent, and similar provisions cover mental health professionals, clergy, and employees of facilities where the victim lives or receives services.1State of Texas. Texas Penal Code Section 22.011 – Sexual Assault The power imbalance in those relationships makes truly voluntary agreement unrealistic.
When the Charge Becomes Aggravated Sexual Assault
Certain dangerous conduct or particularly vulnerable victims push the charge from sexual assault to aggravated sexual assault under Section 22.021. Penalties jump sharply at that line.
Conduct-based aggravating factors include using or displaying a deadly weapon during the assault, causing serious bodily injury or attempting to cause the death of the victim or another person, threatening serious bodily injury or death in the victim’s presence, or drugging the victim without their knowledge or consent to facilitate the offense.
Victim-based aggravating factors include a victim younger than 14, an elderly individual, or a person with a disability that leaves them substantially unable to protect themselves.2State of Texas. Texas Penal Code Section 22.021 – Aggravated Sexual Assault Where the victim is a child, the prosecution does not have to prove the actor knew the child’s age.
Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Young Child
A related but distinct offense sits at Section 21.02. A person commits continuous sexual abuse if, over a period of 30 or more days, they commit two or more acts of sexual abuse while the actor is 17 or older and the victim is younger than 14 or is a person with a disability.3State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 21.02 – Continuous Sexual Abuse of Young Child or Disabled Individual
The charge is a first-degree felony with a mandatory minimum of 25 years and a maximum of 99 years or life. Where a standard sexual assault sentence could in theory land at the low end of the range, continuous sexual abuse guarantees at least a quarter century in prison.
Penalties by Charge Level
Sexual Assault
A standard sexual assault conviction is a second-degree felony carrying 2 to 20 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and an optional fine of up to $10,000.4State of Texas. Texas Penal Code Section 12.33 – Second Degree Felony Punishment The offense is punished as a first-degree felony if the victim was someone the actor was legally prohibited from marrying or having sexual intercourse with under Texas family law, which covers incest situations.1State of Texas. Texas Penal Code Section 22.011 – Sexual Assault
Aggravated Sexual Assault
Aggravated sexual assault is a first-degree felony with a range of 5 to 99 years or life, plus a possible $10,000 fine.5State of Texas. Texas Penal Code Section 12.32 – First Degree Felony Punishment The mandatory minimum jumps to 25 years when the victim is younger than 6, or younger than 14 and the actor caused serious bodily injury or used a deadly weapon.2State of Texas. Texas Penal Code Section 22.021 – Aggravated Sexual Assault That 25-year floor cannot be lowered by plea agreement or judicial discretion.
Statutory Defenses
Section 22.011 contains specific defenses, but they apply only to the child-victim track. They do not apply to non-consent cases with adult victims.
A full defense is available when the conduct was medical care for the child and did not involve contact between the child’s anus or sexual organ and the actor’s mouth, anus, or sexual organ.1State of Texas. Texas Penal Code Section 22.011 – Sexual Assault
Two affirmative defenses also apply on the child-victim track. The first covers situations where the actor was the child’s spouse at the time of the offense, a narrow scenario under current Texas marriage law. The second is often called the Romeo and Juliet defense: the actor was no more than three years older than the victim, the victim was at least 14, and the actor was not already a registered sex offender or required to register for life.1State of Texas. Texas Penal Code Section 22.011 – Sexual Assault The provision keeps close-in-age relationships between teenagers or young adults out of felony court. An affirmative defense puts the burden on the defendant to prove the elements by a preponderance of the evidence; the prosecution does not have to disprove it.
In adult non-consent cases, consent itself is the factual battleground. The state must prove one of the statutory non-consent circumstances, and the defense contests whether that circumstance actually existed.
How Long Prosecutors Have to File Charges
Texas has expanded its filing windows for sex offenses significantly, and for many categories no deadline applies.
There is no statute of limitations for sexual assault of a child under Section 22.011(a)(2), aggravated sexual assault involving penetration of a child’s mouth, continuous sexual abuse of a young child, cases with untested DNA evidence or DNA that does not match the victim or any identified person, or cases where the defendant is believed to have committed the same or a similar sex offense against five or more victims.
For other sexual assault cases, primarily those involving adult victims outside the DNA or serial-offender categories, the limitations period is 10 years from the date of the offense.6State of Texas. Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Art. 12.01 – Felonies A sexual assault punishable as a state jail felony under Section 22.011(f)(2) has a two-year window from the date the offense was discovered.
Sex Offender Registration
A conviction for sexual assault or aggravated sexual assault triggers mandatory registration under Chapter 62 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. For most people convicted of these offenses, the duty lasts for life and ends only when the person dies.7State of Texas. Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Art. 62.101 – Expiration of Duty to Register Both sexual assault and aggravated sexual assault qualify as sexually violent offenses, which is the category that carries lifetime registration.
Some other reportable sex offenses that do not qualify as sexually violent carry a 10-year registration period. That clock starts on the date the person is released from prison, completes community supervision, or has the case dismissed, whichever comes last.7State of Texas. Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Art. 62.101 – Expiration of Duty to Register
Registration is not a paperwork exercise. Registrants must verify their information in person with local law enforcement on a set schedule, keep their address current, and follow restrictions on where they can live and work. Failure to comply is itself a felony offense that can bring additional charges. For many people convicted under Section 22.011 or 22.021, registration outlasts every other part of the sentence.