Minor on Minor Touching

My question involves child abuse or neglect in the State of: Texas


I just found out my brother touched our cousin when she was 4 and he was 11. All he did was feel around one time and that is it even she confirmed that's all that happened. It has been 11 years since this incident and the cousin is going to see a counselor about her abuse, which by Texas state law will then have to be reported. What will most likely happen to him?

sorry, crystal ball is broken and Miss Cleo won't take my calls anymore.

There is no way to know what will happen to your 'brother' however 'his' actions appear to be a violation of

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Quoting Sec. 21.11. INDECENCY WITH A CHILD

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(a) A person commits an offense if, with a child younger than 17 years of age, whether the child is of the same or opposite sex, the person:

(1) engages in sexual contact with the child or causes the child to engage in sexual contact; or

(2) with intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any person:

(A) exposes the person's anus or any part of the person's genitals, knowing the child is present; or

(B) causes the child to expose the child's anus or any part of the child's genitals.

(b) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this section that the actor:

(1) was not more than three years older than the victim and of the opposite sex;

(2) did not use duress, force, or a threat against the victim at the time of the offense; and

(3) at the time of the offense:

(A) was not required under Chapter 62, Code of Criminal Procedure, to register for life as a sex offender; or

(B) was not a person who under Chapter 62 had a reportable conviction or adjudication for an offense under this section.

(b-1) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this section that the actor was the spouse of the child at the time of the offense.

(c) In this section, "sexual contact" means the following acts, if committed with the intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any person:

(1) any touching by a person, including touching through clothing, of the anus, breast, or any part of the genitals of a child; or

(2) any touching of any part of the body of a child, including touching through clothing, with the anus, breast, or any part of the genitals of a person.

(d) An offense under Subsection (a)(1) is a felony of the second degree and an offense under Subsection (a)(2) is a felony of the third degree.

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Quote:

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Quoting Sec. 12.33. SECOND DEGREE FELONY PUNISHMENT.

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(a) An individual adjudged guilty of a felony of the second degree shall be punished by imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for any term of not more than 20 years or less than 2 years.

(b) In addition to imprisonment, an individual adjudged guilty of a felony of the second degree may be punished by a fine not to exceed $10,000.

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also registration on the sex offender registry under Chapter 62

due to the offender's age at the time of the crime, assuming this is his only sex offense, he may qualify for an exemption from registration under 62.301.


tl;dr your 'brother' needs a lawyer if charged

After 11 years, I would assume his memory on the issue would be foggy as would hers. Contrary to popular conventions, kids should not be automatic criminals based on the memories of minor events that happened when they were very young. I question the trauma experienced by a 4 yr old from an act she was likely too young to comprehend.

The problem here is the mom isn't even upset with it and neither is the cousin. The cousin has asked to spend the night at our house many times throughout the years with my little brother and no incident ever occurred and she never acted fearful towards him. But she has been having breakdowns for almost a year now and her mom started dating a man around that time and he acts weird towards the girl and she even sits on his lap and shes 15 now hes 40+. Some family members have suspected he may have molested her but no proof so far and the girl has told the mother about my brothers incident 2 years ago. So we feel she is having breakdowns because of this bf but the mom thinks it is my brother that caused this and is making her get therapy and I feel bad for my brother because hes married now and in college and it might just derail his whole life because of something he did when he did when he was a child. If he penetrated her or kept on the act for a year or more I could see but it was just a isolated incident of touching and he had forgotten it till her mother showed up yesterday revealing it all in front of him and my parents plus me saying she is getting therapy and I just want to let you know in case they press charges.

It appears they are creating the situation where one did not exist to cover for the boyfriend, based on your story.

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Quoting overtime

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I just found out my brother touched our cousin when she was 4 and he was 11.

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You found this out from your brother?

If your brother is worried about criminal charges, the best thing you can do for him is suggest that he consult a criminal defense lawyer who specializes in abuse cases.