Texas statute
Tex. Penal Code § 36.06 — Obstruction or retaliation
Current through 89th Legislature, 2nd Called Session (2025)
Part of Chapter 36: BRIBERY AND CORRUPT INFLUENCE, Texas Penal Code.
Full text of Tex. Penal Code § 36.06
Statutory text current through the 89th Legislature, 2nd Called Session (2025). This publication reproduces the official statutory text; it is not the official statutes of the State of Texas.
(a) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally or knowingly harms or threatens to harm another by an unlawful act: (1) in retaliation for or on account of the service or status of another as a: (A) public servant, witness, prospective witness, or informant; or (B) person who has reported or who the actor knows intends to report the occurrence of a crime; or (2) to prevent or delay the service of another as a: (A) public servant, witness, prospective witness, or informant; or (B) person who has reported or who the actor knows intends to report the occurrence of a crime. (a-1) A person commits an offense if the person posts on a publicly accessible website or discloses through an electronic communication the residence address or telephone number of an individual the actor knows is a public servant or a member of a public servant's family or household with the intent to cause harm or a threat of harm to the individual or a member of the individual's family or household in retaliation for or on account of the service or status of the individual as a public servant. (b) In this section: (1) "Electronic communication" has the meaning assigned by Section 42.07 . (1-a) "Honorably retired peace officer" means a peace officer who: (A) did not retire in lieu of any disciplinary action; (B) was eligible to retire from a law enforcement agency or was ineligible to retire only as a result of an injury received in the course of the officer's employment with the agency; and (C) is entitled to receive a pension or annuity for service as a law enforcement officer or is not entitled to receive a pension or annuity only because the law enforcement agency that employed the officer does not offer a pension or annuity to its employees. (2) "Informant" means a person who has communicated information to the government in connection with any governmental function. (3) "Public servant" has the meaning assigned by Section 1.07 , except that the term also includes: (A) an honorably retired peace officer; and (B) a person who contracts with the state to perform a service in a civil commitment facility or an employee of that person. (c) An offense under this section is a felony of the third degree, except that the offense is a felony of the second degree if: (1) the victim of the offense was harmed or threatened because of the victim's service or status as a juror; or (2) the actor's conduct is described by Subsection (a-1) and results in the bodily injury of a public servant or a member of a public servant's family or household. (d) For purposes of an offense under Subsection (a-1) involving the posting of a residence address or telephone number on a publicly accessible website, it is prima facie evidence of the intent to cause harm or a threat of harm to an individual the person knows is a public servant or a member of a public servant's family or household if the actor: (1) receives a written demand from the individual to not disclose the address or telephone number for reasons of safety; and (2) either: (A) fails to remove the address or telephone number from the publicly accessible website within a period of 48 hours after receiving the demand; or (B) reposts the address or telephone number on the same or a different publicly accessible website, or makes the information publicly available through another medium, within a period of four years after receiving the demand, regardless of whether the individual is no longer a public servant.
Official sources
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