Juvenile Justice Handbook - Texas Attorney General

If a parent is filed on for contributing to nonattendance, an attendance officer or any other
appropriate school official will file a complaint against the parent in a county, justice or municipal
court, either where the parent resides or where the school is located. Each day the child remains out
of school may constitute a separate offense and two or more offenses may be consolidated and
prosecuted in a single action. (§25.093(b) and (c), E.C.) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution
that one or more of the absences required to be proven was excused by a school official or should
be excused by the court and the new number of unexcused or involuntary absences is less than the
truancy minimum. (§51.03(d), F.C.). The burden is on the parent to show that the absence has been
or should be excused. (§25.093(h), E.C.)
If a parent is convicted or placed on probation for contributing to nonattendance, a justice or
municipal court may order the parent to attend a program for parents of students with unexcused
absences designed to help identify problems that contribute to the student’s unexcused absences and
to develop strategies for a solution, if such a program is available. (§25.093(f), E.C.) If a parent
refuses to obey a court order, the violation is punishable by contempt. (§21.002, G.C.)
Juvenile Justice Handbook 39
Office of the Attorney General