By: Madden (Senate Sponsor - Hinojosa) H.B. No. 2889
(In the Senate - Received from the House May 11, 2011;
May 11, 2011, read first time and referred to Committee on Criminal
Justice; May 19, 2011, reported favorably by the following vote:
Yeas 5, Nays 2; May 19, 2011, sent to printer.)
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the expunction of records and files relating to a
person's arrest.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Article 55.01(a), Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) A person who has been placed under a custodial or
noncustodial arrest for commission of either a felony or
misdemeanor is entitled to have all records and files relating to
the arrest expunged if:
(1) the person is tried for the offense for which the
person was arrested and is:
(A) acquitted by the trial court, except as
provided by Subsection (c) of this section; or
(B) convicted and subsequently pardoned; or
(2) each of the following conditions exist:
(A) an indictment or information charging the
person with commission of a felony has not been presented against
the person for an offense arising out of the transaction for which
the person was arrested or, if an indictment or information
charging the person with commission of a felony was presented, the
indictment or information has been dismissed or quashed, and:
(i) the limitations period expired before
the date on which a petition for expunction was filed under Article
55.02; [or]
(ii) the court finds that the indictment or
information was dismissed or quashed because the person completed a
pretrial intervention program authorized under Section 76.011,
Government Code, or because the presentment had been made because
of mistake, false information, or other similar reason indicating
absence of probable cause at the time of the dismissal to believe
the person committed the offense or because it was void; or
(iii) an office of the attorney
representing the state authorized by law to prosecute the offense
for which the person was arrested declines to prosecute the offense
and, after receiving notice of a request or petition for expunction
of all records and files relating to the arrest, does not object to
the court entering an order of expunction under Article 55.02;
(B) the person has been released and the charge,
if any, has not resulted in a final conviction and is no longer
pending and there was no court ordered community supervision under
Article 42.12 for any offense other than a Class C misdemeanor; and
(C) the person has not been convicted of a felony
in the five years preceding the date of the arrest.
SECTION 2. This Act applies to an expunction of arrest
records and files for any criminal offense that occurred before,
on, or after the effective date of this Act.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2011.
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