Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB48 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Zaffirini S.B. No. 48
2	2	(In the Senate - Filed November 10, 2008; February 10, 2009,
3	3	read first time and referred to Committee on Higher Education;
4	4	March 23, 2009, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 5,
5	5	Nays 0; March 23, 2009, sent to printer.)
6	6
7	7
8	8	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
9	9	AN ACT
10	10	relating to the offense of hazing.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Subdivision (6), Section 37.151, Education Code,
13	13	is amended to read as follows:
14	14	(6) "Hazing" means any intentional, knowing, or
15	15	reckless act, occurring on or off the campus of an educational
16	16	institution, by one person alone or acting with others, directed
17	17	against a student[, that endangers the mental or physical health or
18	18	safety of a student] for the purpose of pledging, being initiated
19	19	into, affiliating with, holding office in, or maintaining
20	20	membership in an organization if the act:
21	21	(A) is[. The term includes:
22	22	[(A)] any type of physical brutality, such as
23	23	whipping, beating, striking, branding, electronic shocking,
24	24	placing of a harmful substance on the body, or similar activity;
25	25	(B) involves [any type of physical activity, such
26	26	as] sleep deprivation, exposure to the elements, confinement in a
27	27	small space, calisthenics, or other similar activity that subjects
28	28	the student to an unreasonable risk of harm or that adversely
29	29	affects the mental or physical health or safety of the student;
30	30	(C) involves [any activity involving]
31	31	consumption of a food, liquid, alcoholic beverage, liquor, drug, or
32	32	other substance, other than as described by Paragraph (F), that
33	33	subjects the student to an unreasonable risk of harm or that
34	34	adversely affects the mental or physical health or safety of the
35	35	student;
36	36	(D) is any activity that:
37	37	(i) a reasonable person would believe
38	38	intimidates or threatens the student with ostracism, [that]
39	39	subjects the student to extreme mental stress, shame, or
40	40	humiliation, [that] adversely affects the mental health or dignity
41	41	of the student, or discourages the student from entering or
42	42	remaining registered in an educational institution;[,] or
43	43	(ii) [that] may reasonably be expected to
44	44	cause the [a] student to leave the organization or the institution
45	45	rather than submit to the activity [acts described in this
46	46	subdivision]; [and]
47	47	(E) is any activity that induces, causes, or
48	48	requires the student to perform a duty or task that involves a
49	49	violation of a state or federal penal law or a penal ordinance of a
50	50	political subdivision; or
51	51	(F) involves coercing, as defined by Section
52	52	1.07, Penal Code, the student to consume an alcoholic beverage,
53	53	liquor, or drug or that creates an environment in which the student
54	54	reasonably feels coerced to consume any of those substances [the
55	55	Penal Code].
56	56	SECTION 2. Section 37.155, Education Code, is amended to
57	57	read as follows:
58	58	Sec. 37.155. IMMUNITY FROM PROSECUTION OR CIVIL LIABILITY
59	59	AVAILABLE. (a) In the prosecution of an offense under this
60	60	subchapter, the court may grant immunity from prosecution for the
61	61	offense to each person who is subpoenaed to testify for the
62	62	prosecution and who does testify for the prosecution.
63	63	(b) Any person who voluntarily reports [reporting] a
64	64	specific hazing incident involving a student in an educational
65	65	institution to the dean of students or other appropriate official
66	66	of the institution is immune from civil [or criminal] liability
67	67	that might otherwise be incurred [or imposed] as a result of the
68	68	reported hazing incident if the person:
69	69	(1) reports the incident before being contacted by the
70	70	institution concerning the incident or otherwise being included in
71	71	the institution's investigation of the incident; and
72	72	(2) as determined by the dean of students or other
73	73	appropriate official of the institution designated by the
74	74	institution, cooperates in good faith throughout any institutional
75	75	process regarding the incident [report].
76	76	(c) Immunity under Subsection (b) extends to participation
77	77	in any judicial proceeding resulting from the report.
78	78	(d) A person is not immune under Subsection (b) if the
79	79	person:
80	80	(1) reports the person's own act of hazing; or
81	81	(2) reports an incident of hazing [reporting] in bad
82	82	faith or with malice [is not protected by this section].
83	83	SECTION 3. Subchapter F, Chapter 37, Education Code, is
84	84	amended by adding Section 37.158 to read as follows:
85	85	Sec. 37.158. VENUE. (a) In this section, "prosecuting
86	86	attorney" means a county attorney, district attorney, or criminal
87	87	district attorney.
88	88	(b) An offense under this subchapter may be prosecuted:
89	89	(1) in any county in which the offense may be
90	90	prosecuted under other law; or
91	91	(2) if the consent required by Subsection (c) is
92	92	provided, in a county, other than a county described by Subdivision
93	93	(1), in which is located the educational institution campus at
94	94	which a victim of the offense is enrolled.
95	95	(c) An offense under this subchapter may be prosecuted in a
96	96	county described by Subsection (b)(2) only with the written consent
97	97	of a prosecuting attorney of a county described by Subsection
98	98	(b)(1) who has authority to prosecute an offense under this
99	99	subchapter.
100	100	SECTION 4. Subsection (c), Section 51.936, Education Code,
101	101	is amended to read as follows:
102	102	(c) Not later than the 21st day of each semester,
103	103	each [Each] postsecondary educational institution shall distribute
104	104	to each student enrolled at the institution [during the first three
105	105	weeks of each semester]:
106	106	(1) a summary of the provisions of Subchapter F,
107	107	Chapter 37; and
108	108	(2) a list of organizations that have been disciplined
109	109	for hazing or convicted for hazing on or off the campus of the
110	110	institution during the preceding three years.
111	111	SECTION 5. The change in law made by this Act applies only
112	112	to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
113	113	An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
114	114	governed by the law in effect when the offense was committed, and
115	115	the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For
116	116	purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the
117	117	effective date of this Act if any element of the offense was
118	118	committed before that date.
119	119	SECTION 6. Section 37.155, Education Code, as amended by
120	120	this Act, applies only to a civil cause of action that accrues on or
121	121	after the effective date of this Act. An action that accrued before
122	122	the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect at
123	123	the time the action accrued, and that law is continued in effect for
124	124	that purpose.
125	125	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
126	126	* * * * *