Court Opinion

ID: 9770559
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 16:09:26.330206+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:31:18.388944
License: Public Domain

KELLER, Judge,
dissenting.
This case involves four indictments that allege that Appellant engaged in various acts of sexual misconduct with a child under fourteen years of age. The alleged dates for the offenses are all prior to the effective date of Texas Penal Code § 22.021. At the time the offenses were committed, the applicable statute was the now repealed § 21.05(a)(5) (West Supp.1981), which penalized “sexual abuse of a child.” The definition of “sexual abuse of a child” under then § 21.10 (West 1974) contained the phrase “with the intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any person.” The indictments do not contain this phrase but otherwise satisfy the elements of the offense in § 21.05.
All defects of form or substance in an indictment are waived unless the defendant lodges a pretrial objection. Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, Article 1.14(b). The omission of an element of the offense is a defect of substance which is waived by the failure to object in a timely manner. Studer v. State, 799 S.W.2d 263, 272-3 (Tex.Crim.App.1990).
The majority is absolutely correct in its assertion that convictions under § 22.021 would be barred by ex post facto considerations, but § 22.021 has nothing to do with this ease. § 21.05 is the statute that appellant violated and under which he should have been charged. The indictments do in fact charge offenses under § 21.05. The omission of an element of § 21.05 is a waivable error, and appellant did waive error by failing to object.1
For these reasons, I respectfully dissent.

. In Thomason v. State, 892 S.W.2d 8, 11 n. 5 (Tex.Crim.App.1994) we stated that when an indictment charges a facially complete offense we do not presume a defect exists, and Studer is simply not applicable. In other words, Studer . applies only to cases involving indictments that are facially defective. On its face, the indictment in the present case alleges a date of commission inconsistent with a prosecution under § 22.021. This intrinsic inconsistency is a defect which authorizes application of Studer.