Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HB2630 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	81R9414 JSC-D
2	2	By: Truitt H.B. No. 2630
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to enhanced penalties for assault of a health care
8	8	services provider or a mental health services provider.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 22.01(b), Penal Code, is amended to read
11	11	as follows:
12	12	(b) An offense under Subsection (a)(1) is a Class A
13	13	misdemeanor, except that the offense is a felony of the third degree
14	14	if the offense is committed against:
15	15	(1) a person the actor knows is a public servant while
16	16	the public servant is lawfully discharging an official duty, or in
17	17	retaliation or on account of an exercise of official power or
18	18	performance of an official duty as a public servant;
19	19	(2) a person whose relationship to or association with
20	20	the defendant is described by Section 71.0021(b), 71.003, or
21	21	71.005, Family Code, if it is shown on the trial of the offense that
22	22	the defendant has been previously convicted of an offense under
23	23	this chapter, Chapter 19, or Section 20.03, 20.04, or 21.11 against
24	24	a person whose relationship to or association with the defendant is
25	25	described by Section 71.0021(b), 71.003, or 71.005, Family Code;
26	26	(3) a person who contracts with government to perform
27	27	a service in a facility as defined by Section 1.07(a)(14), Penal
28	28	Code, or Section 51.02(13) or (14), Family Code, or an employee of
29	29	that person:
30	30	(A) while the person or employee is engaged in
31	31	performing a service within the scope of the contract, if the actor
32	32	knows the person or employee is authorized by government to provide
33	33	the service; or
34	34	(B) in retaliation for or on account of the
35	35	person's or employee's performance of a service within the scope of
36	36	the contract;
37	37	(4) a person the actor knows is a security officer
38	38	while the officer is performing a duty as a security officer; [or]
39	39	(5) a person the actor knows is emergency services
40	40	personnel while the person is providing emergency services;
41	41	(6) a person the actor knows is a health care services
42	42	provider while the person is providing health care services; or
43	43	(7) a person the actor knows is a mental health
44	44	services provider while the person is providing mental health
45	45	services.
46	46	SECTION 2. Section 22.01, Penal Code, is amended by adding
47	47	Subsection (d-1) to read as follows:
48	48	(d-1) For purposes of Subsection (b), the actor is presumed
49	49	to have known the person assaulted was a health care services
50	50	provider or a mental health services provider if the person was
51	51	wearing a conspicuous badge or name tag or distinctive clothing
52	52	that would identify the person as a health care services provider or
53	53	a mental health services provider.
54	54	SECTION 3. Section 22.01(e), Penal Code, is amended by
55	55	adding Subdivision (2) to read as follows:
56	56	(2) "Health care services provider" and "mental health
57	57	services provider" have the meanings assigned by Section 22.011.
58	58	SECTION 4. The change in law made by this Act applies only
59	59	to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
60	60	An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
61	61	covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed, and the
62	62	former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of
63	63	this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of
64	64	this Act if any element of the offense was committed before that
65	65	date.
66	66	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.