Under Texas law, it is sexual assault if anyone, male or female, made you have sex by using force or threatening to hurt you or someone close to you. Specifically, this can mean:

• Someone put their penis, finger or other object in your vagina or anus by using force or harm;
• Someone put their penis in your mouth by using force or threat of harm;
• Someone put your penis or vagina in contact with the mouth, anus, penis or vagina of any other person, by using force or threat of harm.

It is also sexual assault if anyone ever made you do any of these things while you were unconscious, drunk or otherwise incapacitated.

Furthermore, it is sexual assault if any adult (a person older than 18) had sexual contact with you when you were under the age of 17.

No. However, if you did file a report, include that information in your petition.

• Yes. You can request that your home, work, school and daycare addresses and phone numbers be kept confidential. However, your county of residence will be disclosed through the application process.
• To make your information confidential, you should file a document called “Confidential Information Not to be Disclosed” and list the information you want kept confidential. This document is included in the Sexual Assault Protective Order Kit. 

The protective order is a civil lawsuit and criminal charges are separate, criminal court actions. Each case has different requirements and one does not affect the other, except that if a record is made in the protective order hearing, the criminal court can introduceyour previous sworn testimony into evidence.

For this reason, it is important to contact an attorney before filing a protective order. It is also important to review your statements before court and make sure you are consistent with each one. Court can be stressful, especially is your abuser is present. The more you review your statement before court, the better prepared you will be.

Also note, it is OK to say you don’t remember something if you really don’t remember it. Attorneys in court may ask you for many details that you cannot remember. It is better to say you don’t remember than to try and guess.