81R7139 KEL-D
By: Creighton H.B. No. 3451
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to procedures regarding the forfeiture and collection of
certain bail bonds.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Article 22.04, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 22.04. REQUISITES OF CITATION. A citation shall be
sufficient if it be in the form provided for citations in other
civil cases in such court; provided, however, that a copy of the
judgment of forfeiture entered by the court, a copy of the forfeited
bond, and a copy of any power of attorney attached to the forfeited
bond shall be attached to the citation and the citation shall notify
the parties cited to appear and show cause why the judgment of
forfeiture should not be made final.
SECTION 2. Article 22.05, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 22.05. CITATION AS IN OTHER CIVIL ACTIONS. If service
of citation is not waived under Article 22.03, a surety is entitled
to notice by service of citation, the length of time and in the
manner required in other civil actions; and the officer executing
the citation shall return the same as in other civil actions. It
shall not be necessary to give notice to the defendant unless he has
furnished his address on the bond, in which event notice to the
defendant shall be deposited in the United States mail directed to
the defendant at the address shown on the bond or the last known
address of the defendant.
SECTION 3. Article 22.06, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 22.06. CITATION BY PUBLICATION. Where the surety is a
nonresident of the State, or where he is a transient person, or
where his residence is unknown, the district or county attorney
may, upon application in writing to the county clerk, stating the
facts, obtain a citation to be served by publication; and the same
shall be served by a publication and returned as in other civil
actions.
SECTION 4. Article 22.10, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 22.10. SCIRE FACIAS DOCKET. When a forfeiture has been
declared upon a bond, the court or clerk shall docket the case upon
the scire facias or upon the civil docket, in the name of the State
of Texas, as plaintiff, and the principal and his sureties, if any,
as defendants; and, except as otherwise provided by this chapter,
the forfeiture proceedings are considered to be civil actions [had
therein shall be] governed by the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure
[same rules governing other civil suits].
SECTION 5. Article 22.13(b), Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
(b) A surety exonerated under Subdivision 5, Subsection
(a), remains obligated to pay all filing fees and costs of court,
any reasonable and necessary costs incurred by a county to secure
the return of the principal, and interest accrued on the bond amount
from the date of the judgement nisi to the date of the principal's
incarceration.
SECTION 6. Article 22.14, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 22.14. JUDGMENT FINAL. When, upon a trial of the
issues presented, no sufficient cause is shown for the failure of
the principal to appear, the judgment shall be made final against
him and his sureties, if any, for the amount in which they are
respectively bound and for all filing fees and costs of court; and
the same shall be collected by execution as in other civil actions.
Separate executions shall issue against each party for the amount
adjudged against him. The filing fees and costs of court shall be
equally divided between the sureties, if there be more than one.
SECTION 7. Article 22.16, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 22.16. REMITTITUR AFTER FORFEITURE. (a) After
forfeiture of a bond and before entry of a final judgment, the court
shall, on written motion, remit to the surety the amount of the
bond, after deducting the filing fees, costs of court, [and] any
reasonable and necessary costs to the county for the return of the
principal, and the interest accrued on the bond amount as provided
by Subsection (c) if the principal is released on new bail in the
case or the case for which bond was given is dismissed.
(b) For other good cause shown and before the entry of a final
judgment against the bond, the court in its discretion may remit to
the surety all or part of the amount of the bond after deducting the
filing fees, costs of court, [and] any reasonable and necessary
costs to the county for the return of the principal, and the
interest accrued on the bond amount as provided by Subsection (c).
(c) For the purposes of this article, interest accrues on the
bond amount from the date of forfeiture in the same manner and at
the same rate as provided for the accrual of prejudgment interest in
other civil cases.
SECTION 8. Article 22.17, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 22.17. SPECIAL BILL OF REVIEW. (a) Not later than two
years after the date a final judgment is entered in a bond
forfeiture proceeding, the surety on the bond may file with the
court a special bill of review. A special bill of review may
include a request, on equitable grounds, that the final judgment be
reformed and that all or part of the bond amount be remitted to the
surety, after deducting the filing fees, costs of court, [any]
reasonable costs to the county for the return of the principal, and
the interest accrued on the bond amount from the date of forfeiture.
The court in its discretion may grant or deny the bill in whole or in
part.
(b) For the purposes of this article, interest accrues on the
bond amount from the date of:
(1) forfeiture to the date of final judgment in the same
manner and at the same rate as provided for the accrual of
prejudgment interest in other civil cases; and
(2) final judgment to the date of the order for
remittitur at the same rate as provided for the accrual of
postjudgment interest in other civil cases.
SECTION 9. Article 103.0031(h), Code of Criminal Procedure,
is repealed.
SECTION 10. The change in law made by this Act in amending
Chapter 22, Code of Criminal Procedure, and in repealing Article
103.0031(h), Code of Criminal Procedure, applies only to a bail
bond that is executed on or after the effective date of this Act. A
bail bond executed before the effective date of this Act is governed
by the law in effect when the bail bond was executed, and the former
law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 11. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.