Allen Family Violence Defense Attorneys

Criminal Charges That Carry a Family Violence Finding

Assault Family Violence — Penal Code § 22.01

The underlying offense in the majority of Collin County family violence prosecutions. A first-offense assault with bodily injury to a family, household, or dating-relationship member is a Class A misdemeanor (up to one year in county jail; fine up to $4,000). The charge is elevated to a third-degree felony on first offense when the state alleges impeding breath or circulation under § 22.01(b)(2)(B) (the statute that covers strangulation and related conduct). The charge is also a third-degree felony when the defendant has any prior family violence conviction or deferred adjudication under § 22.01(b)(2)(A).

Continuous Violence Against the Family — Penal Code § 25.11

Third-degree felony. Two or more acts of family violence within a 12-month period against a family, household, or dating-relationship member. The state can prove this offense with uncharged prior incidents; no prior conviction on the underlying assaults is required.

Aggravated Assault — Penal Code § 22.02

Assault with serious bodily injury or use of a deadly weapon. Second-degree felony (2 to 20 years); first-degree felony (5 to 99 or life) when combined with family violence and serious bodily injury under § 22.02(b)(1).

Violation of a Protective Order — Penal Code § 25.07

Knowing violation of a protective order. Generally a Class A misdemeanor, elevated to a third-degree felony for certain repeat violations, violations accompanied by an act of family violence, or violations involving a firearm.

Stalking — Penal Code § 42.072

A course of conduct that causes reasonable fear. Third-degree felony on first offense; second-degree felony on a second or subsequent offense.

Texas Has No “Domestic Battery” Offense

Clients sometimes ask about “domestic battery” charges. Texas does not have a separate offense with that name. What is often called “domestic battery” in other states, or in media coverage, is charged in Texas as assault under Penal Code § 22.01 with a family violence finding under Family Code Chapter 71. The penalties, procedures, and collateral consequences depend on the § 22.01 charge and not on any battery-specific provision.

Protective Orders in Detail

The protective order component of a family violence case often begins before the criminal case is even filed. Three orders are most common:

Magistrate’s Order for Emergency Protection (MOEP) — CCP Article 17.292

An MOEP is issued by the magistrate at the bond hearing which is typically within 48 hours of arrest. It is effective for 31 to 61 days (91 days if a deadly weapon was used or exhibited). The MOEP can prohibit the defendant from committing family violence, from communicating with the protected person (directly, indirectly, or through third parties), from going near the protected person’s residence or workplace, and from possessing firearms. MOEPs are issued routinely in Collin County on every assault family violence arrest and begin running from the moment they are signed.

Temporary Ex Parte Protective Order — Family Code § 83.001

A complaining party may file an Application for Protective Order in civil court, often contemporaneously with the criminal case. Under § 83.001, the court can enter a temporary ex parte order without notice to the respondent if there is a “clear and present danger of family violence.” The temporary order is typically effective for up to 20 days pending a full hearing. Because temporary ex parte orders are entered without notice, a person can first learn of one when it is served on them.

Final Protective Order — Family Code Chapter 85

After a contested hearing, a civil court can enter a final protective order under Chapter 85 effective for up to two years, with longer durations available in specified circumstances. Under § 85.025(a-1), “lifetime” protective orders are available in cases involving defendants who have caused serious bodily injury, committed an offense against a child under 18, or been convicted of certain serious family violence felonies. A final protective order is enforceable as a criminal matter through § 25.07.

Challenging a Protective Order

A respondent has the right to contest a protective order at the final hearing. The state-appointed burden on the applicant is to establish family violence has occurred. Since 2023 it is no longer necessary to prove family violence is likely to occur in the future. Cross-examination of the applicant, review of the underlying 911 audio and officer reports, and presentation of contrary evidence are all routine defense tools. Default judgments (entered when a respondent fails to appear) are the most common reason people end up with final protective orders, and avoiding a default requires timely notice and counsel.

Firearm Consequences

The most consequential single issue in most family violence cases is firearm rights. Three separate prohibitions may apply:

• Federal Lautenberg Amendment — 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9). A permanent, lifetime federal prohibition on firearm and ammunition possession following any conviction for a “misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.” The ban applies regardless of how minor the Texas penalty was and regardless of whether the conviction is decades old.
• Federal protective order prohibition — 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(8). A prohibition in effect while a qualifying protective order is active against the defendant. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld this provision in United States v. Rahimi, 602 U.S. 680 (2024).
• Texas firearm prohibition — Penal Code § 46.04(b). A five-year state-law prohibition following release from confinement or supervision for a misdemeanor family violence conviction. The federal Lautenberg ban continues after the Texas five-year period expires.

Deferred adjudication is often treated as a “conviction” under federal law for Lautenberg purposes when it follows a plea of guilty or no contest. A Texas-specific outcome that technically avoids a Texas “conviction” may not escape the federal firearm ban. Any plea negotiation in a family violence case has to be evaluated with this in mind.

Why the Alleged Victim Cannot “Drop the Charges”

One of the most common questions in family violence cases is whether the complainant can “drop the charges.” The short answer is no. A criminal case in Texas is filed by the State of Texas, not by the alleged victim. Once a case is filed, the decision to proceed rests with the prosecutor.

An alleged victim can provide an affidavit of non-prosecution asking the state not to proceed. The prosecutor’s office considers the affidavit but is not bound by it. The Collin County Criminal District Attorney’s Office routinely proceeds with family violence cases over the complainant’s objection, relying on 911 calls, body-worn camera video, photographs of injuries, officer testimony, and other admissible evidence to prove the case without the complainant’s cooperation.

Warrantless Arrest and Article 38.371

Under Code of Criminal Procedure Article 14.03(a)(4), peace officers responding to a family violence call have broad authority to make a warrantless arrest based on probable cause. The statute was designed specifically to allow officers to remove the alleged aggressor from the home without having to obtain a warrant.

At trial, Article 38.371 permits the state to introduce evidence of “all relevant facts and circumstances that would assist the trier of fact in determining whether the actor committed the offense,” including prior relationship history. This provision significantly expands the admissible evidence in family violence trials and shapes defense strategy from the outset.

How Family Violence Cases Are Defended

Self-Defense — Penal Code §§ 9.31, 9.32

Self-defense is available in family violence cases on the same terms as in other assault cases. Mutual combat, first-aggressor analysis, and proportionate response are all live issues when both parties were involved in a physical altercation.

Credibility and Inconsistency

Family violence cases often turn on the credibility of the complainant, whose account may evolve between the 911 call, the scene interview, the follow-up statement, and trial testimony. Locking in the inconsistencies early (before recollections are refreshed by contact with advocates or prosecutors) is a core defense task.

Evidence Preservation

Body-worn camera video, 911 audio, medical records, text messages, and social media content are often time-limited. Preservation requests and targeted discovery early in the case preserve defense options that disappear as the case ages.

Negotiation Against the Lautenberg Trap

Because deferred adjudication still triggers the federal firearm ban, the defense goal in many cases is not deferred adjudication. It is a dismissal, a reduction to a non-§ 922(g)(9) offense, or an acquittal. A plea that looks favorable on the surface but permanently ends firearm rights is not a favorable plea for most defendants.

Affidavit of Non-Prosecution

Where the complainant seeks to end the prosecution, a well-prepared affidavit of non-prosecution presented to the Collin County Criminal District Attorney’s Office at the right time in the right form may influence charging decisions, though it does not bind the state.

Where Collin County Family Violence Cases Are Heard

Class A misdemeanor family violence assault cases in Collin County are filed in the Collin County Courts at Law. Felony family violence cases (third-degree felony enhanced assault, § 22.01(b)(2)(B) strangulation, § 25.11 continuous violence, § 22.02 aggravated assault) are filed in the Collin County Criminal District Courts. Both sit at the Collin County Courthouse, 2100 Bloomdale Road, McKinney. The Collin County Criminal District Attorney’s Office prosecutes all criminal cases in Collin County. Family Code protective orders are heard in the Collin County District Courts or the County Courts at Law with civil jurisdiction.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can the alleged victim drop the charges?

No. The criminal case is filed by the State of Texas, not by the alleged victim. The complainant can ask the prosecutor to dismiss through an affidavit of non-prosecution, but the prosecutor decides whether to proceed. The Collin County Criminal District Attorney’s Office routinely proceeds with family violence cases over the complainant’s objection.

Will this affect my gun rights?

Yes and potentially permanently. A conviction for a Class A misdemeanor family violence assault under Penal Code § 22.01 can qualify as a “misdemeanor crime of domestic violence” under 18 U.S.C. § 921(a)(33) and trigger the lifetime federal firearm prohibition under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9). A deferred adjudication on a plea of guilty or no contest still counts as a conviction for federal Lautenberg purposes. Preserving firearm rights requires a dismissal, an acquittal, or a reduction to a non-qualifying offense and not a deferred adjudication.

The other person started it. Why was I arrested?

Under CCP Article 14.03(a)(4), Texas officers have broad warrantless-arrest authority in family violence cases and are instructed to identify the “primary aggressor” at the scene, often on incomplete information. An arrest is not the end of the analysis. Self-defense under Chapter 9 is fully available as a defense, and the state bears the burden of disproving it once raised.

What is a MOEP and how long does it last?

A Magistrate’s Order of Emergency Protection under CCP Article 17.292 is entered by the magistrate at initial appearance in most family violence cases. It typically lasts 61 to 91 days and prohibits contact, firearm possession, and proximity to the protected person. Longer terms are available if a firearm was used or exhibited during the offense.

Can I get the case dismissed if the complainant doesn’t want to proceed?

Sometimes, but not automatically. The Collin County Criminal District Attorney’s Office considers an affidavit of non-prosecution as part of its overall evaluation of the case, but it also considers independent evidence: 911 audio, body-worn camera video, photographs, prior history, and officer observations. Whether the case is dismissed depends on the totality of the evidence.

About Deandra Grant Law

Deandra Grant Law is a Texas criminal defense firm with offices in Allen, Dallas, Fort Worth, Denton, Waco, and Rockwall.

Deandra M. Grant, Managing Partner

• More than 30 years in practice, focused on criminal defense and DWI
• Former prosecutor, now dedicated to criminal defense
• J.D.; M.S. in Pharmaceutical Sciences
• Graduate Certificate in Forensic Toxicology
• ACS-CHAL Forensic Lawyer-Scientist
• Texas Super Lawyer since 2011
• Author of 17 law books including Assault Charges in Texas
• AV Preeminent rated by Martindale-Hubbell

Douglas E. Huff, Partner

• ACS-CHAL Forensic Lawyer-Scientist
• Digital forensics and electronic evidence training
• Extensive North Texas trial experience

James Lee Bright, Of Counsel

• National federal criminal defense practice
• Admitted to all four Texas federal districts, the District of Columbia, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court of the United States

Contact Our Allen Family Violence Defense Attorneys

Family violence cases need early attention. The MOEP is entered within hours of arrest. Body-worn camera video exists for limited retention periods. Witness memories decay. And the plea that looks good at the first setting (deferred adjudication) usually triggers exactly the firearm consequence a defendant is trying to avoid. Getting the strategy right from the start, with counsel who understands both the criminal case and the federal collateral framework, materially affects outcomes.

Call Deandra Grant Law at (214) 225-7117 to schedule a consultation. We serve Allen, Plano, McKinney, Frisco, and all of Collin County from our Allen office.