Indecent Assault: Texas Penal Code §22.012

The Texas Indecent Assault law makes it a criminal offense to touch or expose certain body parts of yours or someone else when the other person involved did not give you permission to do so, and it also makes it illegal to “share” (shall we say) bodily fluids with another person who did not consent to the sharing.

When you think about the crime of “assault,” you likely picture situations where one person tries to physically harm another. However, you can also be charged with Assault for touching someone without their consent. In Texas, this offense has for years been prosecuted as Assault – Offensive Contact. But the punishment for this offense was a mere Class C misdemeanor, even if the unwanted touching was sexual in nature.

The legislature created the Indecent Assault law to make this type of touching a more serious crime, and it ended up as a middle ground between Assault and Sexual Assault. The Texas Indecent Assault law does not require penetration or contact the way that Sexual Assault does, but Indecent Assault is a more serious offense than the “offensive touching” version of Assault.

Indecent Assault is punished as a Class A misdemeanor or state jail felony. Prior to the enactment of this law, unwanted sexual touching would only be punishable as a Class C misdemeanor under the Class C Assault – Offensive Contact law. Indecent Assault also covers additional types of behavior that don’t require any contact in the way that Class C Assault – Offensive Contact does.

The law was created by the 86th Texas Legislature and went into effect on September 1, 2019. The state jail felony enhancement was added by the legislature in 2023.

The Penal Code classifies the Texas Indecent Assault law under Title 5 “Offenses Against The Person,” Chapter 22 “Assaultive Offenses.” Learn more about the Texas offense of Indecent Assault below.

What is the current Texas law about Indecent Assault?

Texas law currently defines the offense of Indecent Assault in Penal Code Section §22.012 as follows:^[1]

(a) A person commits an offense if, without the other person’s consent and with the intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any person, the person:

(1) touches the anus, breast, or any part of the genitals of another person;

(2) touches another person with the anus, breast, or any part of the genitals of any person;

(3) exposes or attempts to expose another person’s genitals, pubic area, anus, buttocks, or female areola; or

(4) causes another person to contact the blood, seminal fluid, vaginal fluid, saliva, urine, or feces of any person.

Is Indecent Assault a registrable offense?

As of 2024, the Indecent Assault does not currently appear on Texas’s list of registrable offenses.^[2]

What is the statute of limitation for Indecent Assault in Texas?

Misdemeanor level Indecent Assault charges have a two-year limitations period.^[3] Felony level offenses have a three-year limitations period.^[4]

What is the penalty for a Texas Indecent Assault offense?

Indecent Assault is classified as a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and up to a $4,000 fine, unless the state jail felony enhancement applies.^[5]

In 2023, the legislature added a felony enhancement for repeat offenders and for situations where the accused person is a health care services provider or a mental health services provider and the assault occurred during the course of providing a treatment or service to the victim.^[6] In these situations, the offense is classified as a state jail felony unless the health care services provider or a mental health services provider is convicted as a repeat health care services provider or a mental health services provider offender, in which case the offense is classified as a third degree felony.^[7]

Can you get probation for Indecent Assault in Texas?

The Texas Code of Criminal Procedure allows both judges and juries to grant probation for Indecent Assault, and judges are also allowed to accept deferred adjudication plea deals.^[8]

Note, however, that judges may not grant community supervision after a conviction if (1) the defendant used or exhibited a deadly weapon during the commission of the felony or immediate flight thereafter and (2) the defendant used or exhibited the deadly weapon himself or was a party to the offense and knew that a deadly weapon would be used or exhibited.^[9]

Do I have to register as a sex offender in Texas if guilty of Indecent Assault?

The Indecent Assault offense does not appear on the list of offenses requiring registration under Chapter 62 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure.^[10]

However, the legislature can add this offense to the list at any time. If that happens, people convicted of Indecent Assault would have to register, even if the offense did not appear on the list at the time they accepted a deferred adjudication plea (even if later dismissed), pled guilty or were founty guilty.

What level of crime is Indecent Assault in Texas?

The Penal Code classifies the punishment for Indecent Assault as a Class A misdemeanor, state jail felony, or third degree felony, depending on the circumstances.

Learn more about the penalty range for this offense in the section above.

Can a Texas Indecent Assault offense be reduced?

Yes, Indecent Assault can be reduced to Class C Assault – Offensive Contact.

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Legal References:

^1. Texas Penal Code §22.012. This law is current as of 2024.^2. Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Section 62.001^3. Code of Criminal Procedure 12.02(a)^4. See Code of Criminal Procedure 12.01(9)^5. Texas Penal Code §22.012(b)^6. Texas Penal Code §22.012(b)(1), as enacted by HB 55, 88th Legislature^7. Texas Penal Code §22.012(b)(2), as enacted by HB 55, 88th Legislature^8. See Chapter 42, Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, Art. 42A.054, Art. 42A.056, Art. 42A.102^9. Art. 42A.054(b), Texas Code of Criminal Procedure^10. Code of Criminal Procedure, Article 62.001