Two people are arrested in Houston on the same night for the same conduct — a shove that caused pain. One is charged with assault; the other with assault family member. Same statute, very different cases. Brian Foley, a former member of the Harris County DA's Domestic Violence Unit, explains why in this video.
The elements of assault
Texas Penal Code § 22.01 defines three kinds of assault: intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causing bodily injury to another (a Class A misdemeanor); intentionally or knowingly threatening another with imminent bodily injury (Class C); and intentionally or knowingly causing offensive or provocative physical contact (Class C). Bodily injury means physical pain, illness, or any impairment — a low bar that turns most physical altercations into a Class A charge. See assault — bodily injury and assault by threat or offensive contact.
What "family member" changes
The offense level for a first assault family member is the same Class A misdemeanor. What changes is everything around it:
- An emergency protective order is issued at magistration, typically keeping you out of your home and away from the complainant for 31 to 91 days.
- Bond conditions — no contact, no weapons, sometimes GPS monitoring — last for the life of the case.
- A family-violence finding in the judgment triggers a federal firearms ban and makes any future assault family member a third-degree felony under § 22.01(b)(2).
- Specialized prosecutors in the DA's Family Violence Division handle the case and are trained to proceed without the complainant's cooperation.
- Strangulation — impeding breath or circulation — is a felony on the first offense.
The defenses
Most assault cases turn on one of three things: self-defense under § 9.31 (you reasonably believed force was immediately necessary to protect yourself), consent under § 22.06 (mutual combat), or credibility — the complainant's account changes between the 911 call, the scene, and the written statement. Body-camera footage, photographs, injuries on your body, and witnesses who saw what happened before the police arrived are the evidence that decides these cases. The self-defense page explains the justification framework in detail.
Resolution
Dismissals, reductions to Class C offenses without a family-violence finding, and pretrial intervention programs are all realistic outcomes in Harris County — but only when the case is defended from the first setting rather than pleaded out to get the protective order lifted.
Our Houston assault attorneys are former prosecutors who know how these cases are built and how they fall apart. Call or text (713) 703-1718 for a free, confidential consultation.