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CHAPTER 25. OFFENSES AGAINST THE FAMILY
§ 25.06. HARBORING RUNAWAY CHILD.
(a) A person
commits an offense if he knowingly harbors a child and he is
criminally negligent about whether the child:
(1) is younger than 18 years; and
(2) has escaped from the custody of a peace officer, a
probation officer, the Texas Youth Council, or a detention facility
for children, or is voluntarily absent from the child's home
without the consent of the child's parent or guardian for a
substantial length of time or without the intent to return.
(b) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that
the actor was related to the child within the second degree by
consanguinity or affinity, as determined under Chapter 573,
Government Code.
(c) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that
the actor notified:
(1) the person or agency from which the child escaped
or a law enforcement agency of the presence of the child within 24
hours after discovering that the child had escaped from custody; or
(2) a law enforcement agency or a person at the child's
home of the presence of the child within 24 hours after discovering
that the child was voluntarily absent from home without the consent
of the child's parent or guardian.
(d) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor.
(e) On the receipt of a report from a peace officer,
probation officer, the Texas Youth Council, a foster home, or a
detention facility for children that a child has escaped its
custody or upon receipt of a report from a parent, guardian,
conservator, or legal custodian that a child is missing, a law
enforcement agency shall immediately enter a record of the child
into the National Crime Information Center. |
