Tex. Codes » Penal Code · TITLE 2. GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY · CHAPTER 9. JUSTIFICATION EXCLUDING CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY
Texas Codes

Tex. Penal Code § 9.02 (2026)

Justification As A Defense

✓ current as of May 2026
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section TX-LEGstatutes.capitol.texas.gov Justiaon Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

Sec. 9.02. JUSTIFICATION AS A DEFENSE. It is a defense to prosecution that the conduct in question is justified under this chapter.

Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974. Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, Sec. 1.01, eff. Sept. 1, 1994.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 153 cases (39 in the last 5 years), 1996–2026 · leading case: Braughton, Christopher Ernest, 569 S.W.3d 592 (Tex. Crim. App. 2018).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
Braughton, Christopher Ernest, 569 S.W.3d 592 (Tex. Crim. App. 2018). · cites it 2× “" See TEX. PENAL CODE §§ 9.02 ("It is a defense to prosecution that the conduct in question is justified under this chapter.”
Juarez v. State, 308 S.W.3d 398 (Tex. Crim. App. 2010). · cites it 4× “Texas Penal Code § 9.02 provides that "[i]t is a defense to prosecution that the conduct in question is justified under this chapter.”
Gamino, Cesar Alejandro, 537 S.W.3d 507 (Tex. Crim. App. 2017). · cites it 3× “For example, a defendant can “sufficiently admit to the commission of the offense” of murder even when denying an intent to kill.”
Alonzo v. State, 353 S.W.3d 778 (Tex. Crim. App. 2011). · cites it 4× “'"); Tex. Pen. Code § 9.02 ("It is a defense to prosecution that the conduct in question is justified under this chapter.”
Shaw v. State, 243 S.W.3d 647 (Tex. Crim. App. 2007). · cites it 2× “[28] See TEX. PENAL CODE §§ 9.02 & 9.22. [29] TEX.”
Wallace v. State, 75 S.W.3d 576 (Tex. App. 2002). · cites it 2× “at 248 ; Tex. Pen.Code Ann. § 9.02 (Vernon 1994). [3] Tex.”
Vaughn v. State, 931 S.W.2d 564 (Tex. Crim. App. 1996). · cites it 2× “When the evidence raises such a defense, the trial judge shall instruct the jury that the State bears the burden of proving beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant's conduct was not justified.”
Jenschke v. State, 147 S.W.3d 398 (Tex. Crim. App. 2004). · cites it 2× “en previously convicted twice of an offense under that subchapter; (vi) any felony under Chapter 152, Finance Code; or (vii) any felony under Chapter 31, 32, or 37, Penal Code, that involves the state Medicaid program, or any felony under Chapter 36, Human Resources Code; (C)…”
Rogers, William, 550 S.W.3d 190 (Tex. Crim. App. 2018). “" Tex. Penal Code § 9.02. " 'Conduct' means an act or omission and its accompanying mental state.”
Johnson v. State, 271 S.W.3d 359 (Tex. App. 2008). · cites it 2× “"); TEX. PEN.CODE ANN. § 9.02 (Vernon 2003) ("It is a defense to prosecution that the conduct in question is justified under this chapter.”
Dotson v. State, 146 S.W.3d 285 (Tex. App. 2004). “See Tex. Penal Code Ann. §§ 9.02 , 9.22. Conduct is justified under the defense of necessity if (1) the defendant reasonably believed his or her conduct was immediately necessary to avoid imminent harm; (2) the desirability and urgency of avoiding the harm clearly outweighed,…”
Krajcovic v. State, 393 S.W.3d 282 (Tex. Crim. App. 2013). “03(c) of the Penal Code, to show that the legal justification of use of deadly force in self-defense as it existed in the law beginning on September 1, 2007, was raised.”
Show all 153 citing cases →
— Tex. Penal Code § 9.02(c) — 1 case
Raymundo Jimenez Molina v. the State of Texas (Tex. App. 2025).
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.