Facing an Online Sex Crime Charge? Address Your Firearm Questions Early

A Texas online sex crime case can limit gun rights. How far those limits reach depends on the charge, the type of disposition and the release dates that follow.

Why the Answer Is Not a Simple Yes or No

There is no single rule, because the answer turns on how the case ends. Many people ask this while a charge is still pending. Others ask after a case has closed. Some are asking for someone else: a spouse, a parent or a partner who wants to know whether a gun in the house is now a problem.

Three things shape the analysis. The first is whether a felony conviction exists. The second is what type of disposition the case received, such as deferred adjudication or dismissal. The third is the dates of any release or supervision. Federal law also runs alongside Texas law, so a federal matter can raise its own firearm questions.

Federal Firearm Rules Run Alongside Texas Law

Online conduct can lead to state or federal charges, and the two systems don’t always line up. Texas law addresses this overlap directly. Under Texas Penal Code § 33.021, conduct that breaks more than one law can be prosecuted under the online solicitation statute, the other law, or both.

That means one case can carry more than one set of consequences. A review should look at the state and federal layers together, not just one. Our online sex crimes defense page explains how these charges differ. A federal question needs its own review based on its own facts.

Texas Felony Rules: Convictions, Release Dates and the Five-Year Period

Under Texas Penal Code § 46.04, a person convicted of a felony commits an offense by possessing a firearm before the fifth anniversary of release. The clock starts from the later of release from confinement or release from supervision. Supervision includes community supervision, parole and mandatory supervision.

After that period, the rule changes. A felon commits an offense by possessing a firearm at any location other than the premises where the person lives. This point deserves close attention in any review. A hunting trip or a range visit is a location question, so the facts of each trip matter. An offense under this subsection is a felony of the third degree.

The felony test also reaches offenses from other states and federal law. Such an offense counts if the law calls it a felony, if it contains all the elements of an offense designated by a law of this state as a felony, or if it’s punishable by confinement for one year or more in a penitentiary, subject to an exception.

Online solicitation has its own felony levels. Under Texas Penal Code § 33.021, a person who is 17 years of age or older commits an offense if, with the intent to commit an offense listed in Article 62.001(5)(A), (B), or (K), Code of Criminal Procedure, the person intentionally communicates in a sexually explicit manner with a minor online; this is generally a third-degree felony. It becomes a second-degree felony if the minor is younger than 14, or is an individual whom the actor believes to be younger than 14 years of age at the time of the commission of the offense. Knowingly soliciting a minor online to meet for sexual contact is a second-degree felony, though the statute provides a defense if the actor was married to the minor, or was not more than three years older than the minor and the minor consented. The statute also says a meeting that never happened is no defense.

Deferred Adjudication, Dismissal, Nondisclosure and Expunction

These are different dispositions, and they don’t work the same way. Deferred adjudication places a case on supervision without entering an adjudication of guilt. Dismissal ends the case. A nondisclosure order limits public access to records. An expunction removes records. Each one has its own rules.

When that supervision ends without an adjudication, the judge shall dismiss and discharge the defendant, under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure art. 42A.111. A dismissal and discharge generally isn’t treated as a conviction for disqualifications, with exceptions. The judge may not dismiss early a defendant charged with an offense requiring sex offender registration under Chapter 62.

Nondisclosure has its own limits. For a felony deferred adjudication, Texas Government Code § 411.0725 applies only to a person not eligible for nondisclosure under Section 411.072 and not placed on deferred adjudication for an offense under Penal Code § 49.04 or 49.06, and allows a petition only on or after the fifth anniversary of discharge and dismissal.

Expunction is a separate process. A person entitled or eligible for expunction under the listed articles may, subject to Article 55A.252, file an expunction petition in a district court in the county of arrest or where the offense was alleged to have occurred, or, if the arrest was for an offense punishable by fine only, in a justice court or a municipal court of record in that county. Firearm effects should be checked against the exact order language, not the name of the order.

Possession, Carrying and Living With a Gun Owner

Owning a gun, possessing it, carrying it and living near one are separate questions. The core rule in § 46.04 is about possession. Who holds the gun, who controls it and where it’s kept all matter.

Location is another key factor. The away-from-home rule applies to a person convicted of a felony, after the fifth anniversary of release from confinement or from supervision, whichever is later. Under Texas Penal Code § 46.04, a person convicted of a felony commits an offense by possessing a firearm after conviction and before the fifth anniversary of the person’s release from confinement or release from supervision, whichever date is later. After that period, possession is an offense at any location other than the premises at which the person lives. A trip outside the home is where the analysis shifts.

A separate rule covers certain family violence convictions. Under Texas Penal Code § 46.04, a person convicted of a Class A misdemeanor under Section 22.01 involving a family or household member may not possess a firearm before the fifth anniversary of the later of release from confinement or release from community supervision.

Protective Orders and Family Violence Charges

A family violence finding or a protective order can bring firearm limits that sit apart from the criminal case. Under Family Code § 71.004, family violence includes an act by a family or household member intended to result in physical harm, bodily injury or assault. It also includes a threat that reasonably places someone in fear of imminent harm, excluding defensive measures.

Under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure art. 42.013, in the trial of an offense under Title 5, Penal Code, if the court determines that the offense involved family violence, as defined by Section 71.004, Family Code, the court shall make an affirmative finding of that fact and enter the affirmative finding in the judgment of the case.

Protective orders carry their own firearm rule. Under Penal Code § 46.04(c), with an exception for peace officers (as defined by Penal Code § 1.07) actively engaged in employment as sworn, full-time paid employees of a state agency or political subdivision, a person subject to certain protective orders (including orders under Chapter 85, Family Code, and orders under Article 17.292, Code of Criminal Procedure) commits an offense if the person possesses a firearm after receiving notice of the order and before it expires.

Barbieri Law Firm defends family violence and aggravated assault charges. When those charges overlap with an online sex crime case, the firearm questions can overlap too, so they’re reviewed together.

Questions to Bring to a Consultation

Start with the paperwork. Gather the exact charge and subsection, the court and county, the plea or order you signed, and the release and supervision dates. Note any protective order and what firearms are in the home. Having these ready helps the review move faster.

If your charge is still pending, or your case has closed and gun questions remain, you don’t have to work through them alone. Reach out through our contact page or call (972) 424-1902 for a free initial consultation, which is confidential and has no obligation to continue. No lawyer can say how a case will turn out.

About Barbieri Law Firm and Responsible Attorney

Barbieri Law Firm is an all-women criminal defense firm in Frisco, Texas. The firm defends people accused of sex crimes and assaultive offenses across Collin County, Dallas-Fort Worth and Texas. Its lawyers include Heather Barbieri and Carrie Thomas, and the firm’s team supports them.

Heather Jean Barbieri, Board Certified, Criminal Law — Texas Board of Legal Specialization.

Attorney responsible for this site: Heather Barbieri, Barbieri Law Firm, Frisco, Texas.