Thompson v. State
Texas Court of Appeals
44 S.W.3d 171 (2001)

- Written by Carolyn Strutton, JD
Facts
Amanda Thompson (defendant) was a dancer at a sexually oriented business. The city of Houston had enacted a city ordinance that required all entertainers at such businesses to conspicuously display a permit on their person. The ordinance provided that failure to comply would be a misdemeanor punishable by a fine and/or up to one year in jail but did not state whether a particular culpable mental state was an element of the offense. Thompson was arrested and charged for failing to properly display a permit. She pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two days’ confinement in the county jail and fined. Thompson later appealed, alleging that the charge was flawed because the prosecution had failed to allege or prove any culpable mental state.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Frost, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,500 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.