Rockwall County Jail book-in photo of Defendant Robert Throgmorton
ROCKWALL, TX (Nov. 4. 2025) A Rockwall County man has been sentenced to 55 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice after pleading guilty to sexually abusing a child.
On Thursday, October 30, 2025, 382nd Judicial District Judge Brett Hall sentenced Robert Owen Throgmorton, age 63, to fifty-five years in prison for Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child and twenty years in prison for Promotion of Child Pornography. Throgmorton waived his right to appeal, and, because there was no trial, the child victim was not required to testify.
The investigation began in December 2022, when a family member called 911 to report that the defendant Throgmorton had been caught in the act of molesting a 10-year-old child. Fate Department of Public Safety patrol officers rushed to the home, but the defendant had fled the scene after threatening to kill the eyewitness. Officers then conducted a thorough search for Throgmorton and found him hiding in a construction porta-potty.
The child was taken to the Children’s Advocacy Center for Rockwall County where she disclosed in a forensic interview that Throgmorton had repeatedly sexually abused her and paid her $2.00 to take nude photographs of her with his cell phone. A sexual assault nurse examiner at Texas Health Hospital in Rockwall also conducted a medical evaluation of the victim and recovered Throgmorton’s DNA from her body. Fate DPS Det. Caleb Pippin obtained a search warrant to search Throgmorton’s cell phone, and a Wylie Police Department forensic examiner located child sexual abuse images that Throgmorton had taken of the child.
After Throgmorton’s arrest, the Rockwall County DA’s Office collaborated with the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas to co-prosecute the defendant and encouraged AUSA’s to first prosecute Throgmorton for the federal offense of producing child pornography. In August 2025, Throgmorton was sentenced to thirty years in federal prison.
“This family did the right thing when they called 911,” said lead state prosecutor Justin Almand. “That call for help set in motion the multi-disciplinary team of professionals who worked together to gather evidence and end this child’s nightmare.”
“This is a great example of federal/state collaboration,” said Rockwall County District Attorney Kenda Culpepper. “While state law enforcement investigated the crimes in tandem with local resources, state and federal prosecutors were able to work together to get a significant amount of prison time for this dangerous offender. He deserves every year he got.”
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