Online Solicitation of a Minor

Online Solicitation of a Minor Defense Attorney Serving Denton and Collin County

Online solicitation of a minor is a felony in Texas, and Collin County law enforcement actively investigates it. Many of these cases come from undercover operations, where officers pose as teenagers on dating apps, social media, or chat sites and arrest people who arrange to meet. A charge under Texas Penal Code § 33.021 carries a possible prison sentence, and a conviction generally requires sex offender registration.

The Law Office of Al Rowland, PLLC, has represented people accused of crimes in Collin and Denton County since 2015. Attorney Al Rowland is a former police officer and prosecutor, so he knows how these cases are investigated and charged, and where they tend to be weakest. If you have been charged with online solicitation of a minor in Frisco, McKinney, Plano, Denton, or anywhere in North Texas, call (469) 895-6555 for a free, confidential consultation.

Why You Need a Defense Lawyer Right Away

Online solicitation cases are usually built almost entirely on digital evidence: chat logs, screenshots, app records, and phone data. In sting cases, the officer controlled the conversation from the start, and the full record of what was said, and who said it first, matters. Statements you make after an arrest are often the strongest evidence the State has, so don’t try to explain the conversation to investigators.

A defense lawyer can:

Obtain and review the complete chat history, not just the excerpts in the police report
Examine how the undercover officer started and steered the conversation
Challenge whether the State can prove your intent
Review how your phone and accounts were searched, and whether the searches were lawful
Evaluate an entrapment defense where the facts support it
Negotiate with prosecutors or prepare the case for trial

Texas Online Solicitation Laws

Under Texas Penal Code § 33.021, a “minor” is someone younger than 17, or someone the accused believes is younger than 17. That second part is why sting cases can be prosecuted even though no actual child was involved. The law covers two main kinds of conduct:

Sexually explicit communication: A person 17 or older who, with intent to commit certain sex offenses, uses the internet, email, text messages, or an online service to communicate in a sexually explicit way with a minor, or to send a minor sexually explicit material.
Soliciting a meeting: Knowingly soliciting a minor online to meet, with the intent that the minor engage in sexual contact or intercourse. It is not a defense that the meeting never happened.

Penalties for Online Solicitation of a Minor

Online solicitation is always a felony. The level depends on the type of conduct and the age involved:

Sexually explicit communication: Third-degree felony, 2 to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000
Sexually explicit communication with a minor under 14 (or someone believed to be under 14): Second-degree felony, 2 to 20 years in prison
Soliciting a meeting: Second-degree felony, 2 to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000

The punishment can be increased to the next level if the offense happened during regular school hours and the accused knew or should have known the minor was a student. A conviction generally requires sex offender registration and can affect your job, your housing, your professional licenses, and your contact with your own children.

Defenses to Online Solicitation Charges

Every case depends on its facts, and these cases deserve a careful, line-by-line review. Depending on the evidence, defenses may include:

Entrapment: Texas law provides a defense when law enforcement induces someone to commit a crime using persuasion likely to cause a person to commit an offense they otherwise would not have.
Lack of intent: The State must prove you acted with the required intent, not just that a conversation took place.
Identity: The State must prove you were the person using the account or device.
Incomplete or misleading records: Missing messages, edited screenshots, or deleted context can change what a conversation shows.
Unlawful searches: Evidence from an improper search of your phone, computer, or accounts may be excluded.
Statutory defenses: For the meeting offense, the law provides a defense if the accused was married to the minor, or was no more than three years older and the minor consented.

Contact a Frisco Sex Crimes Defense Lawyer Now

If you have been arrested or contacted by investigators about online communications with a minor, don’t talk to police and don’t delete anything. Contact the Law Office of Al Rowland, PLLC, at (469) 895-6555 or online for a free, confidential consultation. Learn more about our sex crimes defense practice. We defend these charges throughout Collin County and Denton County.

Online Solicitation of a Minor