By: Madden (Senate Sponsor - Whitmire) H.B. No. 3224
(In the Senate - Received from the House May 13, 2009;
May 14, 2009, read first time and referred to Committee on Criminal
Justice; May 23, 2009, reported adversely, with favorable
Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 6, Nays 0;
May 23, 2009, sent to printer.)
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 3224 By: Seliger
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the prosecution and punishment of the offense of arson.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 28.02, Penal Code, is amended by adding
Subsections (a-2) and (h) and amending Subsections (f) and (g) to
read as follows:
(a-2) A person commits an offense if the person
intentionally starts a fire or causes an explosion and in so doing:
(1) recklessly damages or destroys a building
belonging to another; or
(2) recklessly causes another person to suffer bodily
injury or death.
(f) An offense under Subsection (a-2) is a state jail felony
[It is a felony of the third degree if a person commits an offense
under Subsection (a)(2) of this section and the person
intentionally starts a fire in or on a building, habitation, or
vehicle, with intent to damage or destroy property belonging to
another, or with intent to injure any person, and in so doing,
recklessly causes damage to the building, habitation, or vehicle].
(g) If conduct that constitutes an offense under Subsection
(a-1) or that constitutes an offense under Subsection (a-2) [(f)]
also constitutes an offense under another subsection of this
section or another section of this code, the actor may be prosecuted
under Subsection (a-1) or Subsection (a-2) [(f)], under the other
subsection of this section, or under the other section of this code.
(h) With the consent of the appropriate local county or
district attorney, the attorney general has concurrent
jurisdiction with that consenting local prosecutor to prosecute an
offense under this section.
SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed, and the
former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of
this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of
this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
* * * * *