Gov. Greg Abbott wants educators convicted of sexually assaulting students or having improper relationships with them to serve at least 10 years in prison, with no probation and no early parole. The proposal, announced Wednesday, Aug. 12, at a roundtable in Lubbock, comes days after former Friendswood Galloway School teacher Lewis Stott was arrested on a charge of continuous sexual abuse of a child.
Stott's case is among a wave of Houston-area educator misconduct arrests that Abbott cited as the catalyst for the proposal, according to KPRC. As we reported Aug. 8, Stott, 32, of Seabrook, was charged with continuous sexual abuse of a young child under 14, a first-degree felony. Police allege the abuse occurred over six years while Stott worked at The Galloway School, 3200 W. Bay Area Blvd., where he served as a PE teacher, second-grade teacher, substitute and soccer club coach.
Friendswood Police have said they believe there may be additional victims.
What the proposal would change
Under current Texas law, an improper relationship between an educator and a student is a second-degree felony punishable by two to 20 years in prison. Defendants can receive probation or deferred adjudication instead of incarceration.
Abbott's proposal would:
- Require a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison
- Prohibit probation, community supervision or deferred adjudication in place of incarceration
- Block parole or mandatory supervision before an offender has served at least 10 years
- Require convicted offenders to register as sex offenders
"In the past, some teachers have had sex with students and got only probation. Not anymore in Texas," Abbott said at the Lubbock event.
Prosecutors could still negotiate plea agreements, but any conviction covered by the proposed law would have to result in at least a decade behind bars.
Statewide surge in allegations
Texas Education Agency data shows 1,772 reports of inappropriate relationships, communication or sexual offenses involving educators during the 2025–2026 school year, according to ABC13. That is more than triple the 580 such reports filed during the 2024–2025 school year. The TEA has opened nearly 1,800 investigations into alleged inappropriate educator-student relationships during the current fiscal year.
Two completed Houston-area cases illustrate the sentencing gaps Abbott wants to close: former Brazoswood High School teacher Brandyn Hargrove received 10 years of probation and no prison time after pleading guilty to 12 felony counts of sexual assault and indecency involving a student; former Houston ISD teacher Dale Vanwright received 10 years of deferred-adjudication probation after pleading guilty to indecency with a child.
Advocate: Penalties alone won't stop abuse
Terri Miller, president of the National Center to Stop Educator Sexual Abuse, Misconduct and Exploitation, said stronger penalties matter but called the proposal "reactionary" because a sentence can only be imposed after a child has already been harmed. Miller wants Texas to adopt comprehensive employment-history reviews and require districts to share information about misconduct allegations, a practice meant to stop what advocates call "passing the trash," where employees suspected of misconduct quietly resign and get hired elsewhere.
What comes next
The proposal is not yet law. Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows joined Abbott at the announcement and pledged the House would work with the governor during the next legislative session, expected in 2027, according to Texas Scorecard. Earlier in 2026, Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath appointed Levi Fuller as the state's first Inspector General for Educator Misconduct.
Parents or guardians whose children may have had contact with Stott can contact Friendswood Police at 281-996-3300.
