Can You Be Charged With Injury to a Child for Failing to Act in Texas?

 Posted on November 04, 2026 in Criminal Defense

When a child is hurt, investigators might question the adults responsible for their care. Even someone who never physically harmed the child could face accusations that they failed to prevent an injury.

Texas allows injury to a child charges based on a failure to act, called an omission. However, prosecutors must prove more than your presence when something went wrong. If you face an injury to a child investigation in 2026, our Plano, TX criminal defense attorneys will explain the allegations and help you respond.

What Does Injury to a Child by Omission Mean in Texas?

Injury to a child by omission means causing harm by failing to provide care or protection you were responsible for giving. The accusation focuses on something you did not do, rather than a physical act such as striking the child.

Under Texas Penal Code § 22.04, this offense covers children age 14 or younger. The harm can include physical pain or illness, as well as serious physical or mental injury.

For example, prosecutors might allege that a caregiver failed to obtain needed treatment and allowed an illness to become more severe. They must connect that lack of care to the child’s injury.

This differs from an allegation that a child was placed in danger. An injury by omission charge requires proof that the failure to act actually caused an injury covered by the law.

Who Has a Duty to Act to Protect a Child in Texas?

A parent has legal duties to protect and support their child. Texas Family Code § 151.001 includes providing food, shelter, and medical care among those duties.

Someone who is not a parent can also face an omission charge if they accepted responsibility for the child’s care. A formal custody order is not always necessary. Their words and conduct could show that they took on that role.

For example, agreeing to care for a child while the parent works could establish responsibility during that period. Simply visiting the home does not, by itself, show the same commitment.

What Must Texas Prosecutors Prove for a Case Involving Injury to a Child?

An intent to hurt the child is not required for every charge. Prosecutors must show what you understood about the possible harm when you failed to act. They will look at your level of awareness and whether it fits within one of these categories:

• Intentional: Your goal was to cause the injury.
• Knowing: You understood that the injury was reasonably certain to result.
• Reckless: You recognized a substantial, unjustified risk of injury and consciously ignored it.

Recklessness requires more than showing that you should have noticed a danger. The state must establish that you actually recognized the risk. Your statements and the surrounding events can help establish what you knew.

Can You Be Charged in Texas if Someone Else Physically Injured the Child?

Another person’s actions do not automatically rule out a charge against a caregiver. Prosecutors could allege that your failure to protect the child or obtain treatment caused additional harm.

However, they must connect the specific omission to the injury being charged. Knowing that another person hurt the child does not, alone, establish that your own conduct caused the claimed harm.

In a delayed-treatment case, medical evidence should address what timely care would have changed. The timeline also needs to show when you learned of the problem and what happened before help arrived. These questions distinguish the original injury from harm allegedly caused by the delay.

What if Family Violence Prevented You From Protecting a Child in Texas?

Texas provides a limited defense for some people accused of an omission who were themselves victims of family violence. It has several requirements, and fear alone does not automatically establish it.

Among other conditions, the accused must have experienced family violence by someone also charged with an offense against the child. The defense also examines whether the accused reasonably believed that trying to prevent the other person’s conduct would have any effect. Earlier awareness of an injury and a failure to report it can affect eligibility.

Tell your attorney about threats or violence that limited your actions. Explain what happened before the incident as well as during it so counsel can assess every requirement.

Contact a Collin County, TX Criminal Defense Lawyer

Being accused of failing to protect a child could put your freedom and future at risk. At The Crowder Law Firm, P.C., our attorneys will help you tell your side of the story and build a defense against the allegations.

Our firm has secured over 300 not-guilty verdicts and acquittals for clients. To schedule a free consultation, contact our Plano, TX criminal defense attorneys or call 214-544-0061.

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