Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB937 Compare Versions

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Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Carona S.B. No. 937
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the prosecution of and punishment for certain criminal
7	7	offenses involving a criminal street gang.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Subsection (e), Section 15.031, Penal Code, is
10	10	amended to read as follows:
11	11	(e) An offense under this section is one category lower than
12	12	the solicited offense, except that an offense under this section is
13	13	the same category as the solicited offense if it is shown on the
14	14	trial of the offense that the actor:
15	15	(1) was at the time of the offense 17 years of age or
16	16	older and a member of a criminal street gang, as defined by Section
17	17	71.01; and
18	18	(2) committed the offense with the intent to:
19	19	(A) further the criminal activities of the
20	20	criminal street gang; or
21	21	(B) avoid detection as a member of a criminal
22	22	street gang.
23	23	SECTION 2. Subsection (a), Section 22.015, Penal Code, is
24	24	amended by adding Subdivision (3) to read as follows:
25	25	(3) "Family" has the meaning assigned by Section
26	26	71.003, Family Code.
27	27	SECTION 3. Subsection (b), Section 22.015, Penal Code, is
28	28	amended to read as follows:
29	29	(b) A person commits an offense if, with intent to coerce,
30	30	induce, or solicit a child to actively participate in the
31	31	activities of a criminal street gang, the person:
32	32	(1) threatens the child or a member of the child's
33	33	family with imminent bodily injury; or
34	34	(2) causes bodily injury to the child or a member of
35	35	the child's family.
36	36	SECTION 4. Chapter 33, Penal Code, is amended by adding
37	37	Section 33.06 to read as follows:
38	38	Sec. 33.06. ONLINE HARASSMENT TO FURTHER INTERESTS OF
39	39	CRIMINAL STREET GANG. (a) In this section:
40	40	(1) "Commercial social networking site" means any
41	41	business, organization, or other similar entity operating a website
42	42	that permits persons to become registered users for the purpose of
43	43	establishing personal relationships with other users through
44	44	direct or real-time communication with other users or the creation
45	45	of web pages or profiles available to the public or to other users.
46	46	The term does not include an electronic mail program.
47	47	(2) "Criminal street gang" has the meaning assigned by
48	48	Section 71.01.
49	49	(3) "Electronic communication" means the transmission
50	50	of a sign, signal, writing, image, sound, text, or other data
51	51	through the use of an electronic device, including a telephone,
52	52	cellular telephone, text messaging device, personal data
53	53	assistant, computer, or wireless communications device.
54	54	(b) A person commits an offense if the person sends an
55	55	electronic communication or posts a message on an electronic
56	56	message board or commercial social networking site with the intent
57	57	to:
58	58	(1) abuse, intimidate, harass, alarm, or threaten
59	59	another person; and
60	60	(2) benefit, promote, or further the interests of a
61	61	criminal street gang.
62	62	(c) An offense under this section is a Class B misdemeanor,
63	63	except that the offense is a Class A misdemeanor if the actor has
64	64	previously been convicted under this section.
65	65	SECTION 5. The change in law made by this Act applies only
66	66	to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
67	67	An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
68	68	covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed, and the
69	69	former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of
70	70	this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of
71	71	this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date.
72	72	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.