Disorderly Conduct § 42.01 vs. Simple Assault vs. Assault Causing Bodily Injury.

– All three charges are misdemeanor offenses
Below are just some of the ways that the Texas Penal Code requires that disorderly conduct be proven:
(a) A person commits an offense if he intentionally or knowingly:
(1) uses abusive, indecent, profane, or vulgar language in a public place, and the language by its very utterance tends to incite an immediate breach of the peace;
(2) makes an offensive gesture or display in a public place, and the gesture or display tends to incite an immediate breach of the peace;
(3) creates, by chemical means, a noxious and unreasonable odor in a public place;
(4) abuses or threatens a person in a public place in an obviously offensive manner;
(5) makes unreasonable noise in a public place other than a sport shooting range, as defined by Section 250.001, Local Government Code, or in or near a private residence that he has no right to occupy;
(6) fights with another in a public place;
(7) discharges a firearm in a public place other than a public road or a sport shooting range, as defined by Section 250.001, Local Government Code ;
(8) displays a firearm or other deadly weapon in a public place in a manner calculated to alarm;
(9) discharges a firearm on or across a public road;

Simple Assault is defined in Section § 22.01 of the Texas Penal Code. It is defined as when a person either:
intentionally or knowingly threatens another with imminent bodily injury, including the person’s spouse;  or intentionally or knowingly causes physical contact with another when the person knows or should reasonably believe that the other will regard the contact as offensive or provocative.
Assault Causing Bodily Injury is found in the same section of the Texas Penal Code as Simple Assault but it is a Class A misdemeanor so the range of punishment is up to a $4,000 fine and up to 1 year in county jail. Assault causing bodily injury is defined as:
intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causes bodily injury to another, including the person’s spouse

Below are just a few examples of felony assaultive offenses:

Assault Family Member with Previous Conviction

See Texas Penal Code §22.01. Assault:

it is shown on the trial of the offense that the defendant has been previously convicted of an offense under this chapter, Chapter 19, or Section 20.03, 20.04, 21.11, or 25.11 against a person whose relationship to or association with the defendant is described by Section 71.0021(b) , 71.003, or 71.005, Family Code

Continuous Family Violence (2 or more Occurrences within 12 months)

See Texas Penal Code §25.11:
Continuous Violence Against the Family (a) A person commits an offense if, during a period that is 12 months or less in duration, the person two or more times engages in conduct that constitutes an offense under Section 22.01(a)(1) against another person or persons whose relationship to or association with the defendant is described by Section 71. 0021(b), 71.003, or 71.005, Family Code.
(b) If the jury is the trier of fact, members of the jury are not required to agree unanimously on the specific conduct in which the defendant engaged that constituted an offense under Section 22.01(a)(1) against the person or persons described by Subsection (a), the exact date when that conduct occurred, or the county in which each instance of the conduct occurred.  The jury must agree unanimously that the defendant, during a period that is 12 months or less in duration, two or more times engaged in conduct that constituted an offense under Section 22.01(a)(1) against the person or persons described by Subsection (a).

Assault Impeding Breath or Circulation (often referred to as choking)

See Texas Penal Code §22.01. Assault:
the offense is committed by intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly impeding the normal breathing or circulation of the blood of the person by applying pressure to the person’s throat or neck or by blocking the person’s nose or mouth;

Assaultive Offenses on a Pregnant Person

See Texas Penal Code §22.01. Assault:
a person the actor knows is pregnant at the time of the offense

Assaultive Offenses on a Public Servant

See Texas Penal Code §22.01. Assault:
a person the actor knows is a public servant while the public servant is lawfully discharging an official duty, or in retaliation or on account of an exercise of official power or performance of an official duty as a public servant

When dealing with Assaultive offenses, they are often categorized as aggravated offenses. This means that if an individual is sentenced to prison time for such an offense, one’s eligibility for parole is affected among other things. This means, for example, for the average non aggravated offense, a person may be eligible for parole after serving 15% of their sentence plus good time while with an aggravated offense an individual would not be eligible for parole until they have served half of their sentence or a minimum of two years, whichever is greater (regardless of a good time). This collateral consequence is one of the many things to consider.

Assaultive offenses may also negatively affect one’s parental rights. Unfortunately, all too often, criminal cases coincide with custody cases or divorce cases. A criminal conviction for assault can permanently affect an individual’s ability to obtain status as a join managing conservator or have summer visitation with one’s children.