A new law aimed at protecting children from predators was signed by Governor Greg Abbott on May 24. House Bill 2000, known as Audrii’s Law, will officially go into effect on Sept. 1.
Named for 11-year-old Audrii Cunningham, the law will close a legal loophole that prevented child grooming convictions from triggering sex offender registration and will ensure that those individuals convicted of child grooming will now be added to the state’s sex offender registry.
The legislation, authored by Rep. Trent Ashby and carried in the Senate by Sen. Robert Nichols, expands the list of crimes requiring mandatory sex offender registration in Texas.
Under Audrii’s Law, the offense of child grooming will now carry that requirement, a change Cunningham’s family and victim advocates say was long overdue.
“This bill carries the weight of the devastating tragedy in East Texas,” Nichols said during a committee hearing earlier this year. “We must do everything we can to protect our children from predators.”
Cunningham was kidnapped, sexually assaulted and murdered in February 2024 by Don Steven McDougal, a family friend with a lengthy criminal history. Following a five-day search, law enforcement officials located the 11-year-old’s remains in the Trinity River under U.S. Hwy. 59.
McDougal was living in a trailer on the child’s grandparents’ property near Lake Livingston at the time of her death. McDougal had previously taken a plea deal in a separate case involving a minor and, because of a legal loophole, was not required to register as a sex offender.
Cunningham’s family has spent the past year urging lawmakers to close that loophole, testifying in Austin about their loss and the changes they hoped to see.
“Had this bill been in place, he would never have been near our sweet baby,” Audrii‘s grandmother, Tabitha Munsch, told lawmakers in March. “I’m not asking, I’m begging that we close this loophole.”
“It irks me to no end that we had a lack thereof a statute or a law that allowed this gentleman to walk our streets and the public not know of his history,” Ashby said previously. “Mr. McDougal would’ve been required to register as a sex offender and the people in Livingston and Polk County would have known he was in their community.”
With Audrii’s Law now signed, supporters hope it will prevent other families from experiencing a similar tragedy.
“We know this incident had a far-reaching impact across East Texas and the entire state,” Andy Kahan, Director of Victim Services at Crime Stoppers of Houston, said. “The Sex Offender Registry is one of the only tools families have to protect innocent children. This law strengthens that.”
