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Texas Crimes Against Children Defense Lawyers

There is no criminal accusation more devastating than one involving a child. The moment the allegation is made, everything changes. Your name may be publicly associated with the charge. Your access to your own children may be restricted. Your employer, your neighbors and your community all may treat you as guilty before a single piece of evidence has been tested in court. Texas law imposes some of its harshest penalties on crimes against children. A conviction for aggravated sexual assault of a child carries 25 years to life in prison with no possibility of parole. But severity of punishment does not equal certainty of guilt. These cases are built on evidence that must be collected, analyzed, and interpreted correctly and, when it is not, innocent people face catastrophic consequences. At Deandra Grant Law, Attorney Douglas Huff leads our defense of clients accused of crimes against children. Douglas holds the ACS-CHAL Forensic Lawyer-Scientist designation, spent years as a public defender handling the most serious felony cases in the system, and brings published scholarship and scientific training to a category of cases where the quality of evidence matters more than anywhere else in criminal law.

Charges Involving Children That We Defend

Sexual Abuse of a Child

Sexual abuse allegations involving children include sexual assault of a child, aggravated sexual assault of a child, indecency with a child, and continuous sexual abuse of a child. Continuous sexual abuse of a child (Texas Penal Code § 21.02) is a first-degree felony carrying a mandatory minimum of 25 years with no parole eligibility. These cases almost always depend on a child’s disclosure, often made during a forensic interview, and the forensic evidence (or lack thereof) that supports or contradicts that disclosure. Our defense begins with a forensic evaluation of the evidence itself.

Injury to a Child (Texas Penal Code § 22.04)

Injury to a child charges range from state jail felonies to first-degree felonies depending on the severity of injury and the defendant’s mental state. These cases frequently involve competing medical interpretations: the prosecution’s medical expert says the injuries are consistent with abuse, while the defense’s expert identifies alternative medical explanations. Douglas Huff’s scientific training allows him to evaluate the medical evidence critically, identify methodological weaknesses in the prosecution’s expert opinions, and retain and prepare defense experts effectively.

Child Endangerment

Child endangerment charges under Texas Penal Code § 22.041 can be filed when a parent or caretaker allegedly placed a child in imminent danger of death, bodily injury, or physical or mental impairment. These charges often arise alongside DWI arrests (a child in the vehicle), drug possession cases, or situations involving alleged neglect. Because Deandra Grant Law has deep expertise in both DWI defense and criminal defense, we are uniquely positioned to defend cases that sit at the intersection of both.

Online Sex Crimes and Child Exploitation Material

Possession, promotion, or production of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) carries severe penalties at both the state and federal level. These cases are built on digital forensic evidence: device imaging, file metadata, IP address attribution, hash value comparisons, and network activity logs. The technical complexity of this evidence is significant, and many defense attorneys lack the training to evaluate it critically. Douglas Huff’s forensic credentials give our team the ability to assess whether the digital evidence was collected properly, whether the forensic examiner’s conclusions are supported by the data, and whether alternative explanations exist for the presence of material on a device.

Child Trafficking and Exploitation

Child trafficking and exploitation charges under Texas Penal Code § 20A.02 and federal statutes carry first-degree felony and federal mandatory minimum penalties. These cases typically involve extensive investigations by federal agencies (FBI, HSI) and produce massive volumes of digital evidence, surveillance records, and communications intercepts. Our defense approach combines forensic evidence analysis with strategic litigation planning to challenge both the sufficiency and the reliability of the government’s case.

The Critical Role of Forensic Interviews — And Where They Go Wrong

In many child abuse and child sexual assault cases, the single most important piece of evidence is a child’s recorded forensic interview. Prosecutors treat these recordings as near-unimpeachable. Juries tend to believe children. And many defense attorneys do not have the training to identify the problems that can render a forensic interview unreliable. Douglas Huff does. He evaluates forensic interviews against recognized scientific protocols, looking for:

• Leading and suggestive questions: Did the interviewer introduce information the child had not volunteered? Did the interviewer’s phrasing guide the child toward a particular answer?
• Source monitoring failures: Can the child distinguish between events they experienced, events they were told about, and events they imagined or saw on a screen? Young children are particularly susceptible to source confusion.
• Multiple interview contamination: Was the child interviewed multiple times by different adults (parents, therapists, investigators, forensic interviewers) before the recorded interview? Each conversation can introduce or reinforce details that did not originate with the child.
• Protocol deviations: Was the interview conducted according to an evidence-based protocol (NICHD, CornerHouse, Finding Words/ChildFirst)? Were rapport-building, ground rules, and narrative practice phases completed before substantive questioning began?
• Developmental appropriateness: Were the questions appropriate for the child’s age and developmental stage? Were the child’s responses interpreted in context, or were ambiguous statements given definitive meaning by adults after the fact?

When a forensic interview is flawed, the entire evidentiary foundation of the prosecution’s case may be compromised. This is where forensic science training and trial experience converge and it is where Douglas Huff’s defense work is most impactful.

Challenging Medical Evidence in Child Abuse Cases

Prosecution experts in child abuse cases frequently testify that a child’s injuries are “consistent with abuse” or “inconsistent with the explanation provided.” These opinions carry enormous weight with juries. But the medical literature is more nuanced than many prosecutors acknowledge. Normal anatomical variants are sometimes misidentified as signs of trauma. Accidental injuries can produce findings that mimic abuse. Certain medical conditions such as bleeding disorders, bone fragility conditions and dermatological conditions can produce findings that look like intentional harm. And in sexual abuse cases specifically, the peer-reviewed research has established that the vast majority of children who have been sexually abused have normal physical examination findings. Douglas Huff works with qualified defense medical experts to ensure that the court hears the full picture and not just the prosecution’s interpretation. His forensic science training gives him the ability to read and understand the medical literature, cross-examine prosecution experts on their methodology, and present alternative explanations that are grounded in science.

Sentencing Mitigation in Cases Involving Children

Cases involving children carry some of the harshest sentencing ranges in Texas and federal law. If a case reaches the sentencing phase, whether through plea agreement or conviction after trial, the quality of sentencing preparation is critical. Deandra Grant Law’s in-house mitigation team prepares comprehensive biographical sentencing reports that present the full context of a client’s life to the court. In federal cases, where sentencing is governed by the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, a strong mitigation presentation can influence the court’s calculation of the appropriate sentence within or below the Guidelines range.

Your Defense Attorney: Douglas Huff

Douglas Huff’s career in criminal defense began where the stakes are highest and the resources are lowest: the public defender’s office. For years, he represented clients accused of the most serious felonies, such as murder, aggravated sexual assault, child abuse, and learning how to build a defense with intensity and precision even when the system is stacked against you. He then pursued what very few defense attorneys pursue: scientific training. The ACS-CHAL Forensic Lawyer-Scientist designation required graduate-level coursework in forensic science, laboratory training, and demonstrated competency in evaluating scientific evidence. Douglas is one of two ACS-CHAL attorneys at Deandra Grant Law making our firm the only law firm in Texas where two attorneys hold this credential. Douglas also holds Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) training, has published legal scholarship, and served as President of the Dallas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association in 2023 and currently serves as President of the Dallas Criminal Defense Bar. He approaches every case involving a child with the seriousness it demands, the scientific rigor the evidence requires, and the compassion that clients in crisis deserve.

Facing Charges Involving a Child? Contact Us Now.

If you or someone you love has been accused of a crime against a child, you need a defense team that will not flinch and will not cut corners. You need attorneys who can evaluate the forensic evidence, challenge the prosecution’s experts, and present your case with the scientific and legal depth it requires. Contact Deandra Grant Law for a free, confidential consultation. We defend clients across Texas, including Dallas, Collin, Tarrant County, Denton, Rockwall and McLennan County, and cases in the Northern and Eastern Federal Districts of Texas. Call (214) 225-7117 or schedule an appointment online.