What are pretext calls?

Posted By Law Offices of Jeffrey C. Grass || 22-May-2015

The idea of facing a sexual assault charge is likely not something that the average Dallas resident ever anticipates. Yet one never knows when misinterpreted actions or false accusations could leave him or her facing the potential of being charged with such an offense. When one is facing such charges, the stakes can be incredibly high. According to the Penal Code of Offenses shared by the website for the Texas Attorney General, sexual assault cases can result in result in a first degree felony conviction.

If you find yourself facing such an accusation, it's important to remember that any poorly-conceived thoughts or statements that you make could potentially come back to haunt you, no matter how innocent you intended them to be. One way that this can happen is through a pretext call. A pretext call is contact made by an individual purposely trying to engage you in a conversation with hopes of getting you to incriminate yourself. These calls can originate from old acquaintances, strangers, or even law enforcement. Oftentimes this could be a tactic used by accusers to back up their claims, or simply someone trying to insert him or herself into the situation.

If you find it odd that you start receiving calls from strangers or people with whom you haven't spoken with in years following your being accused of sexual assault, your best bet may be to trust your instincts and avoid talking with these callers about your case. It may be wise to even refuse contact with any of these parties until after your legal matters have been settled. While these suggestions should not be mistaken for legal advice, they could potentially help you to avoid having your own words used against you in your case.