Accused of Child Molestation in Houston?
Call on the Experience of Jack B. Carroll & Associates.
Child molestation is a serious criminal offense. If you’re accused, much less indicted, or convicted of child molestation, it throws a hand grenade into your life and those of your loved ones. The public considers sexual misconduct with a child as an unforgivable offense.
This serious felony charge demands an aggressive defense. Criminal defense lawyer Jack B. Carroll has deftly defended many in Houston and Harris County accused of sexual offenses against children since 1990. He has deep experience defending people accused of various sex crimes against children.
Discuss your case with a seasoned sex crimes lawyer, call 713-228-4607 today to schedule a time to meet with our legal team. We provide thorough case reviews and affordable payment plans. We work with you every step of the way.
Child Molestation & The Texas Legal System
The statutes which determine whether or not you are charged with child molestation are broad. It doesn’t require the penetration of any of the child’s genital areas for an indictment against you, or for you to be found guilty. Technically, the Texas Penal Code describes it as participating in a conduct of a sexual nature with a child that harms their physical, mental, or emotional well-being. If it can be shown that you even touched them through their clothing, that could be just enough for prosecutors to charge you with child molestation.
Other statutes (and there are several different offenses) that are lumped together to describe child molestation include:
- Online solicitation of a minor
- Failing to prevent sexual abuse of a child if you know it exists
- Coercing or compelling a minor child to engage in sexual behavior
- Any offense (including possession) of child pornography – which includes showing a child pornographic material
Of course, proving any child molestation charge is another matter. Why?
Maybe Someone is Crying “Wolf”
Too many times child molestation claims have nothing to do with the child at all, but with one adult’s hatred and spite for another. Examples include divorce actions, property division, spousal support, the list goes on and on…
On a side note, I’ve won at least 10 cases over the last 20 years that involved a child making a false accusation against a stepfather in order to try and get the biological parents back together. Many times, the hapless child will throw out an allegation or two, in the hopes that someone will at least pay attention, and the process of reconciliation between the two parents will begin. But under the Child Outcry Statement Statute, if any person over the age of 18 hears a statement of alleged sexual abuse by an adult on a child, that person is bound by law to report the incident. And once the authorities get ahold of an allegation, no matter how unreliable that allegation is, the whole process snowballs until it becomes overwhelming for the child. The child is now backed into a corner and cannot come clean as to why this has happened. I’ve had cases go all the way to trial, where the child will take the stand, and through body language, this will be clear. Fortunately, the jury was able to read the child’s body language, and my client walked free.
We’ve seen cases where allegations of child molestation were made under many unrelated circumstances:
- One parent is divorcing another, and in order to gain child custody AND tarnish the reputation of their spouse, makes this frivolous and very harmful allegation.
- Many are accused of this crime due to innocuous and false interpretations by child care professionals, educators, and even neighbors who find it hard to keep their nose out of your business.
- Children seek revenge against a teacher, or employer, or some other adult and accuse them of this crime. Or someone decides to blackmail, extort money from some innocent someone like you when nothing of the sort ever happened.
- Sometimes the accuser (either a child or an adult) is mentally unstable.
- When adults with children remarry, and the stepparent begins disciplining the other spouse’s kids, resentful children have been known to falsely accuse that stepparent of child molestation. We call this “Stepparent Syndrome.”
- And even more ridiculous charges; some of them absolutely absurd.
All of the above illustrate why child molestation is easy to allege and hard to disprove! As I’ve said to many juries in the past, “how do you disprove a negative?” In other words, a child points the finger at you, and all you can do is say, “I didn’t do this.” Now it’s up to your lawyer to investigate the case thoroughly in order to back up the Defendant’s denial of the child’s allegation.
For so many years, judges and the courts had a history of taking “innocent children” at their word. In reality though, just like adults, children lie too! And their lies, if not corroborated or disproven, can wreck an innocent person’s life. In my 30 plus years of experience, I’ve run across many psychopaths and sociopaths, one of the big differences between them is that a psychopath is born that way, and a sociopath is made that way by their surroundings and upbringing.
We’ve all heard of a pathological liar, which ties in with the term psychopath, and I’ve learned in my education, focusing on child psychology, that children diagnosed as a psychopath, have no remorse/guilt about telling a lie and the consequences that follow. Children today are far more sophisticated than they were 20 years ago. They know what they can and can’t get away with. Of course, this is not to say that most children are bad by nature. What I’m talking about is a very small percentage that are born without a conscience. Some of the trials, where there have been false accusations, involved a psychopath that was born that way. They do not feel guilt or remorse for lying because of their life circumstances.
Unfortunately, with the Child Assessment Center’s psychological profile, school records, psychological studies by counselors, and interviews, I’ve yet to see this very important psychological differentiation or classification, which believe me, can make a world of difference. If the defense counsel in a trial begins to figure out that they are dealing with a psychopathic child, it gives them an immediate advantage if they know how to deal with it.
Regardless of why you were accused of this terrible crime, Jack B. Carroll & Associates will thoroughly investigate the charges, then make prosecutors (and the court) aware of the facts of your case.
If you’re facing charges for child molestation, are accused of the crime, or are a target of any child-related criminal investigation, call Jack B. Carroll & Associates immediately at 713-228-4607.
You will suffer many serious penalties if you’re convicted of child molestation. This makes it all the more critical that you retain experienced legal representation. Please read further about the different sexual crimes by following this link.
Accused of Child Molestation in Houston?
Reach Out To Attorney Jack B. Carroll Today!
Child Molestation Defense Lawyer
The moment you learn you are being investigated for child molestation, seek legal representation immediately! Your first indication could be when you’re contacted by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS). But it could also be when the police knock on your door.
In Texas (and nationally), sex crime allegations against children continue to rise. So law enforcement wastes no time taking whom they believe to be “predators” off the street. People accused of sex crimes are at the most significant risk of having their Constitutional Rights violated and need top-shelf legal counsel to assure fair treatment and a strong defense.
Attorney Jack B. Carroll has practiced criminal law in Texas and federal courts since 1990. He holds the coveted Board Certified® recognition in Criminal-Law, and a strong recognition for his record of winning sex crime cases that speaks for itself. He and everyone within the firm will fight tooth-and-nail to assure your rights as a suspect are protected under the law. Because under the Constitution, you are innocent until proven otherwise.
If you or a loved one are facing criminal charges due to allegations of child molestation or any other sex crime in the city of Houston, Harris County or the Houston-area metro, call Jack B. Carroll & Associates at 713-228-4607.
Fighting Child Molestation Charges in Houston
Jack B. Carroll & Associates
RESOURCES (The following links will take you away from this website.)
- Texas Penal Code Chapter 21: Sexual Offenses
- HPD: Sex Crimes Division
- Reason: False Sex Crime Accusations Destroys Family, Legally
- Houston Chronicle: Texas Sex Abuse Exonerations
- TDCJ: Victim Services Division