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I guess, now, I'm just curious if a prosecuter has ever charged someone with that statute violation. Ever. Filing a false report aside, of course.

Fair 'nuff. I stand corrected.

Although I would submit that a cop having pulled you over for speeding is not conducting a criminal investigation when he asks you "do you have any guns in the car?"

Maybe he is, I don't know.

Now if he came upon me slinking around someone's house and asked if I was in the process of buglarizing the premises the false statement during the investigation might stick if I said "no" and he could then prove that I was, in fact, burglarizing the place. Or, if he got called to my house for a disturbance and I told him I didn't hit my wife when all evidence and witnesses testified otherwise. But, again, as you said, I'd still only get charge with the DV Battery and not the lie. So, it seems that lying to a cop is illegal. It also seems it's impossible to or unlikely you'll be prosecuted, in Texas.

Cops ask a lot of questions to test waters or continue the "contact" in an effort to feel you out. I'm not sure that would qualify as an actual investigation though.

I'm not really arguing with you. You've shown you know what you're talking about. I'm just thinking out loud.

seamusTX wrote: (though it is illegal to lie to an officer)

I can't for a minute imagine that's actually true. If it were wouldn't everyone who said "I ain't got nuthin" and "It wasn't me" be up on an extra charge? I mean the sheer volume of people that a police officer comes into to contact with in "other than honorable" circumstances would surely mean that during the course of any investigation someone would invariably lie about something. You wouldn't think any criminal defendant would ever go scot free. They'd all, every one of them, be doing at least some time for fibbing to the po-po.

I don't think it's actually against the law to lie to a cop. Could you please point me to the relevant statute?