I know continuous SXAB requires two or more acts of sexual abuse against a child under 14 over a period of at least 30 days.

My question: do both of the acts need to be in the same county? Or if the acts are committed in two different counties, am I not able to prosecute the defendant for continuous SXAB?

The venue statute (article 13.18, CCP) says that you may prosecute a crime if any element of the crime is committed in your county. So, yes, you can prosecute if only one act of sexual abuse is committed in your county. (Compare this to the way in which we sometimes aggregate theft offenses into a single case, even if the multiples thefts are committed in multiple counties. See State v. Weaver, 982 SW2d 892. We also do the same with engaging in organized criminal activity.)

Incidentally, TDCAA published an article on this new offense. To read that article, click here.

[This message was edited by JB on 06-13-09 at .]

[This message was edited by JB on 06-13-09 at .]

[This message was edited by JB on 06-13-09 at .]

[This message was edited by JB on 06-13-09 at .]

Allison, we are currently prosecuting 2 Continuous Sexual Abuse cases using the statute John cites where the other incidents occurred in a neighboring county. We worked with the DA next door and agreed we had the strongest incidents so we would prosecute in my county. I felt it was important to work with our neighbor because the prosecution of the case would bar prosecution of the crimes in his county.

To that end, I have noticed one potential "political" problem with this statute; "forum shopping" by investigators. We need to be conscious of the effect of trying these cases on cases in other jurisdictions.

Yes, I recommend contacting the prosecutor in the other county or counties and seeking a letter of consent to consolidate the cases. That way you maintain harmony and avoid any double jeopardy issues arising.

By the way, those other cases could even involve other victims.

The fact the statute allows forum shopping is not a weakness; in fact, I consider it a great strength to the statute.

The fact is, some jurisdictions are stronger than others. It may be that the judge in one jurisdiction doesn't understand child sex cases, and makes them difficult to try, or it may be because the D.A. in a jurisdiction doesn't give a fig newton. Recall all those abuse cases in the TYC which languished on the responsible D.A.'s desk for years? Too bad the investigators couldn't have done some forum shopping and found someone interested in doing his job.

That D.A. is hardly alone. All you have to do is read the rap sheets of active criminals to notice that in some jurisdictions there are a lot of arrests, but few cases accepted for prosecution.

Sometimes its not the fault of the DAs or the judges. Some jurisdictions have weak jurors and acquit no matter what the evidence shows to the contrary. Perhaps they burnt their brains out watching too many lawyer shows on TV, or perhaps they grew up in a deprived home that never taught them anything about the importance of civic responsibility, and the importance of doing right. Or maybe the people in that jurisdiction just have a high percent of fools. Or maybe it's just something in the water.

I've never worked in an office that was annoyed because another DA's Office took a case we could have prosecuted, nor have I known of another DA's Office that took offense when we picked up the ball and ran with it. Most DA's Offices have plenty to do and are happy if another outfit wants to take the case.