Dallas Rape Lawyer

Sexual Assault (Rape) Charges in Texas

In Texas, Rape is referred to as Sexual Assault.  If you are under investigation or an allegation for rape, you should hire an experienced, board certified criminal defense attorney as soon as possible.  Sexual assault is a felony.  If you are convicted, the punishment could include several years in prison and a hefty fine.  

Rape cases are heavily prosecuted in the State of Texas.  Believe that when you’re facing a sexual assault charge, your rights, freedoms, and future are at risk.  When you hire James Aulbaugh, you are hiring a former Chief Felony Prosecutor and Board Certified Criminal Specialist who knows how to work and analyze every angle to get you the best possible result on your case.

Schedule your confidential consultation today or call (214) 380-3383 today!

What Are the Penalties for Rape in Texas?

Sexual assault (Rape) is a second degree felony, punishable by 2 to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. 

Aggravated sexual assault (Rape) is a first degree felony, punishable by 5 to 99 years, or life in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.  If the offense is committed against someone under the age of 14, the minimum prison sentence is 25 years.

What Is Rape?

In Texas, Sexual Assault is when someone engages in nonconsensual sexual conduct or contact with another. 

More specifically, a person commits sexual assault (rape) if they intentionally, knowingly, and without consent:

• Penetrate another person’s anus or sex organ
• Penetrate another person’s mouth with their sex organ
• Makes someone else’s sex organ contact or penetrate another person’s mouth, anus or sex organ

Sexual assault also occurs when someone engages in any of the above conduct with a child (a person under 17 years of age). The individual could be accused of the offense regardless of whether or not they received consent or knew the child’s age at the time the act was committed.  This offense is commonly referred to as Statutory Rape.

How is Aggravated Sexual Assault Determined? 

Specific circumstances may result in an sexual assault being enhanced to aggravated sexual assault, including:

• Threatening the other individual so that they believe they will be a victim of human trafficking or subject to death, serious bodily injury, or kidnapping
• Causing death, serious bodily injury, or kidnapping
• Using or displaying a deadly weapon
• Committing the act with another person
• Giving the alleged victim a drug that impairs their normal faculties and they do not know what’s going on or cannot resist
• Committing the act against a child under 14 years of age
• Committing the act against an elderly or disabled person

What Is Consent in Texas?

Sexual Assault occurs when the alleged perpetrator did not have consent from the alleged victim to have sex with them. In many sexual assault cases, the central question is whether the alleged victim legally gave consent.

A sexual act is nonconsensual if it occurs:

• By use of force, violence, or coercion
• By use of threats that the alleged victim reasonably believes the actor will carry out
• When the alleged victim is unconscious or otherwise unable to resist
• When the alleged victim is mentally incapacitated and unaware of what’s happening and unable to resist
• When the actor gave the alleged victim a substance to impair their normal faculties
• When the actor threatens anyone else and the alleged victim believes they will carry out the threat
• When the actor uses their role as a public servant, such as a police officer, to coerce the alleged victim
• When the actor is a mental health provider, clergyman, employee of a facility where the alleged victim lives, or a health care services provider who uses their role or knowledge of the alleged victim’s mental state to make them participate in sexual conduct

James Aulbaugh is a former Chief Felony Prosecutor and Board Certified Criminal Specialist who will aggressively represent you to ensure you get the best outcome on your case. Contact us today!