When you have a felony on your record in Texas, you may not always consider how this will affect your child custody. Usually your particular situation determines whether you can have custody of your child.
Sometimes you can retain custody of child if your felony did not harm your child in some way. According to Livestrong.com, a court usually considers your child’s best interests. If you were convicted of a fraud charge, you can typically still continue to make decisions for your child since this particular felony brought no direct harm to your child. Additionally, if you keep your record clean, it is usually easier to keep your current child custody arrangement.
If the nature of your felony might present a risk to your child, you may sometimes be unable to have physical custody of your child. This is the case when your felony conviction might involve child molestation or abuse. In this situation, though, you usually still need to perform your legal obligations, such as helping pay your child’s health and medical bills. You generally also need to continue with your child support payments.
Sometimes if you are unable to retain custody of your child, you can usually still visit your child. In some situations, you may need to have supervised visits if the nature of your felony could harm your child in some way. Additionally, you may sometimes have a better chance of retaining your child custody if it has been a long time since your felony occurred.
This information is general in nature. It should not be used in place of legal advice.