A Harris County man who worked at a local high school at the time of the alleged incident has been charged with indecency with a child involving sexual contact, according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office. Michael Lynn Jackson Jr., born March 30, 1991, was taken into custody Wednesday and booked into the Harris County Jail, the sheriff's office said.
The arrest was announced in a post from the HCSOTexas account, which was itself a retweet of a message from Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez. According to the post, Detective Cozart and team conducted the investigative work that led to the charge. Jackson was ultimately taken into custody by the Harris County Sheriff's Office Violent Persons Apprehension Team, a specialized tactical unit that routinely executes high-risk felony warrants and locates dangerous suspects across the county.
Jackson was booked into the Harris County Jail on Wednesday. The sheriff's office operates Texas's largest county jail facility at 1200 Baker Street in downtown Houston, a compound that houses an average daily population of roughly 9,000 incarcerated individuals, per the Harris County Sheriff's Office. Sheriff Gonzalez, who won re-election to a third term in 2024, leads an agency that is the largest sheriff's office in Texas and the third-largest in the nation, employing more than 5,000 personnel to serve 4.1 million residents across 1,788 square miles.
What the Charge Means Under Texas Law
Under Texas Penal Code § 21.11, indecency with a child involving sexual contact is a second-degree felony, carrying a punishment range of two to 20 years in state prison and a fine of up to $10,000 upon conviction, according to the Whalen Law Office. Anyone convicted of the offense must serve at least half of the imposed sentence before becoming eligible for parole consideration, the firm notes. Notably, prosecutors are not required to prove that a defendant knew a minor's actual age, and a belief that the minor was 17 or older is explicitly not a valid legal defense under the statute.
A conviction or even a placement on deferred adjudication for the offense also triggers lifetime registration on the state's public sex offender registry under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 62, according to the Ceja Law Firm. Because Jackson worked at a local high school when the alleged incident occurred, the case intersects with a separate track of state oversight tied to his employment. It remains unclear which school district employed him, what his specific role was, or whether the alleged victim was a student there.
Educator Certification and Reporting Rules Now in Play
Texas Education Code § 21.058 requires the State Board for Educator Certification to permanently revoke an educator's teaching certificate upon any conviction or deferred adjudication for indecency with a child, according to L&L Law Group. That administrative revocation happens independently of whatever employment action a local school district might take on its own. Separately, Texas Senate Bill 571, enacted in June 2025, requires school personnel who suspect sexual misconduct involving a minor to notify law enforcement within 24 hours and report the matter to the Texas Education Agency within 48 hours, as detailed by Texas Scorecard.
Jackson's case will now move through the Harris County district court system, where felony sex crime charges must first clear a 12-member grand jury. At least nine of those grand jurors must vote to issue a “true bill” indictment before prosecutors can proceed to trial, according to the Adamo & Adamo Law Firm. Whether a Harris County magistrate has set bond for Jackson has not been confirmed.
Not the First Case Involving a Local Educator
This is not the first time Hoodline has reported on a Houston-area school employee facing child indecency allegations. In January, Hoodline reported that an HISD middle school math teacher was sentenced to seven years in prison after being convicted of indecency with a child and sexual assault of a student. Other recent Harris County arrests on similar felony warrants have also made headlines this year and last.
As with all pending criminal cases, Jackson is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. The sheriff's office account that announced the charge cautioned that it is not monitored 24/7 and advised anyone with an emergency to call 911 rather than attempt to reach deputies through social media.
