by | Published
GALVESTON, TX — A Canyon Lake man serving a life sentence for the aggravated sexual assault of a child has died in custody, according to a custodial death report released by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ). Troy Allen Dennis, 61, was pronounced deceased on April 26, 2026, at Hospital Galveston.
According to the state’s report, Dennis had been admitted to the facility on April 13 for an undisclosed medical condition. His cause of death was listed as cardiopulmonary arrest and acute hypoxic respiratory failure.
Dennis was convicted in 2022 following a harrowing trial in Comal County. The investigation into his actions began when a five-year-old family member disclosed the abuse to her parents. While the parents did not immediately alert authorities, a second family member, now an adult, came forward to law enforcement after learning that Dennis was still active.
That second victim testified that Dennis had sexually assaulted her for seven years, starting when she was five years old. She told the jury she intended to take the secret to her grave, but felt compelled to speak out to protect the younger child.
During the trial, Dennis took the stand and offered a defense that was widely characterized as callous. He claimed the five-year-old victim was a "burden" and famously testified to law enforcement that the child had "the devil in her."
Dennis and his wife attempted to shift blame to the victim's father, suggesting he had coached the child to make the allegations. However, they could provide no explanation for why the child would fabricate such detailed accounts of abuse.
During closing arguments, Assistant District Attorney Daniel Floyd described Dennis as an "opportunist" who targeted the only two females in the family he could access. The jury took only 15 minutes to deliberate before sentencing Dennis to life in prison.
At the time of his death, Dennis was serving his sentence out of the 207th District Court of Comal County. He would not have been eligible for parole until 2052.
