| 1 | 1 | | 81R8393 JRH-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Hughes H.B. No. 1321 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the discharge of a jury under certain circumstances in a |
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| 8 | 8 | | criminal case. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Article 36.29(c), Code of Criminal Procedure, is |
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| 11 | 11 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | (c) After the charge of the court is read to the jury, if a |
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| 13 | 13 | | juror [any one of them] becomes so sick as to prevent the |
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| 14 | 14 | | continuance of the juror's [his] duty and an alternate juror is not |
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| 15 | 15 | | available, or if any accident of circumstance occurs to prevent the |
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| 16 | 16 | | jury from [their] being kept together under circumstances under |
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| 17 | 17 | | which the law or the instructions of the court requires that the |
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| 18 | 18 | | jury [they] be kept together, the jury shall be discharged, except |
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| 19 | 19 | | that on agreement on the record by the defendant, the defendant's |
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| 20 | 20 | | counsel, and the attorney representing the state 11 members of a |
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| 21 | 21 | | jury may render a verdict and, if punishment is to be assessed by |
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| 22 | 22 | | the jury, assess punishment. If a verdict is rendered by less than |
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| 23 | 23 | | the whole number of the jury, each member of the jury shall sign the |
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| 24 | 24 | | verdict. |
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| 25 | 25 | | SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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| 26 | 26 | | to a trial that commences on or after the effective date of this |
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| 27 | 27 | | Act. A trial that commenced before the effective date of this Act |
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| 28 | 28 | | is covered by the law in effect on the date the trial commenced, and |
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| 29 | 29 | | the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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| 30 | 30 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |
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