Texas 2013 - 83rd Regular

Texas House Bill HB3517 Compare Versions

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1	1	83R8273 MAW-F
2	2	By: Carter H.B. No. 3517
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to requiring a jury to consider a victim impact statement
8	8	before assessing punishment in a criminal case.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Article 56.02(a), Code of Criminal Procedure, is
11	11	amended to read as follows:
12	12	(a) A victim, guardian of a victim, or close relative of a
13	13	deceased victim is entitled to the following rights within the
14	14	criminal justice system:
15	15	(1) the right to receive from law enforcement agencies
16	16	adequate protection from harm and threats of harm arising from
17	17	cooperation with prosecution efforts;
18	18	(2) the right to have the magistrate take the safety of
19	19	the victim or his family into consideration as an element in fixing
20	20	the amount of bail for the accused;
21	21	(3) the right, if requested, to be informed:
22	22	(A) by the attorney representing the state of
23	23	relevant court proceedings, including appellate proceedings, and
24	24	to be informed if those proceedings have been canceled or
25	25	rescheduled prior to the event; and
26	26	(B) by an appellate court of decisions of the
27	27	court, after the decisions are entered but before the decisions are
28	28	made public;
29	29	(4) the right to be informed, when requested, by a
30	30	peace officer concerning the defendant's right to bail and the
31	31	procedures in criminal investigations and by the district
32	32	attorney's office concerning the general procedures in the criminal
33	33	justice system, including general procedures in guilty plea
34	34	negotiations and arrangements, restitution, and the appeals and
35	35	parole process;
36	36	(5) the right to provide pertinent information to a
37	37	probation department conducting a presentencing investigation
38	38	concerning the impact of the offense on the victim and his family by
39	39	testimony, written statement, or any other manner prior to any
40	40	sentencing of the offender;
41	41	(6) the right to receive information regarding
42	42	compensation to victims of crime as provided by Subchapter B,
43	43	including information related to the costs that may be compensated
44	44	under that subchapter and the amount of compensation, eligibility
45	45	for compensation, and procedures for application for compensation
46	46	under that subchapter, the payment for a medical examination under
47	47	Article 56.06 for a victim of a sexual assault, and when requested,
48	48	to referral to available social service agencies that may offer
49	49	additional assistance;
50	50	(7) the right to be informed, upon request, of parole
51	51	procedures, to participate in the parole process, to be notified,
52	52	if requested, of parole proceedings concerning a defendant in the
53	53	victim's case, to provide to the Board of Pardons and Paroles for
54	54	inclusion in the defendant's file information to be considered by
55	55	the board prior to the parole of any defendant convicted of any
56	56	crime subject to this subchapter, and to be notified, if requested,
57	57	of the defendant's release;
58	58	(8) the right to be provided with a waiting area,
59	59	separate or secure from other witnesses, including the offender and
60	60	relatives of the offender, before testifying in any proceeding
61	61	concerning the offender; if a separate waiting area is not
62	62	available, other safeguards should be taken to minimize the
63	63	victim's contact with the offender and the offender's relatives and
64	64	witnesses, before and during court proceedings;
65	65	(9) the right to prompt return of any property of the
66	66	victim that is held by a law enforcement agency or the attorney for
67	67	the state as evidence when the property is no longer required for
68	68	that purpose;
69	69	(10) the right to have the attorney for the state
70	70	notify the employer of the victim, if requested, of the necessity of
71	71	the victim's cooperation and testimony in a proceeding that may
72	72	necessitate the absence of the victim from work for good cause;
73	73	(11) the right to counseling, on request, regarding
74	74	acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and human
75	75	immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and testing for acquired
76	76	immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), human immunodeficiency virus
77	77	(HIV) infection, antibodies to HIV, or infection with any other
78	78	probable causative agent of AIDS, if the offense is an offense under
79	79	Section 21.02, 21.11(a)(1), 22.011, or 22.021, Penal Code;
80	80	(12) the right to request victim-offender mediation
81	81	coordinated by the victim services division of the Texas Department
82	82	of Criminal Justice;
83	83	(13) the right to be informed of the uses of a victim
84	84	impact statement and the statement's purpose in the criminal
85	85	justice system, to complete the victim impact statement, and to
86	86	have the victim impact statement considered:
87	87	(A) by the attorney representing the state and
88	88	the judge or jury before sentencing or before a plea bargain
89	89	agreement is accepted; and
90	90	(B) by the Board of Pardons and Paroles before an
91	91	inmate is released on parole;
92	92	(14) to the extent provided by Articles 56.06 and
93	93	56.065, for a victim of a sexual assault, the right to a forensic
94	94	medical examination if, within 96 hours of the sexual assault, the
95	95	assault is reported to a law enforcement agency or a forensic
96	96	medical examination is otherwise conducted at a health care
97	97	facility; and
98	98	(15) for a victim of an assault or sexual assault who
99	99	is younger than 17 years of age or whose case involves family
100	100	violence, as defined by Section 71.004, Family Code, the right to
101	101	have the court consider the impact on the victim of a continuance
102	102	requested by the defendant; if requested by the attorney
103	103	representing the state or by counsel for the defendant, the court
104	104	shall state on the record the reason for granting or denying the
105	105	continuance.
106	106	SECTION 2. Article 56.03, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
107	107	amended by amending Subsections (e) and (f) and adding Subsection
108	108	(e-1) to read as follows:
109	109	(e) If a judge assesses punishment in a criminal case,
110	110	before assessing punishment and imposing [Prior to the imposition
111	111	of] a sentence [by the court in a criminal case,] the judge shall
112	112	[court], if [it has received] a victim impact statement has been
113	113	received in the case, [shall] consider the information provided in
114	114	the statement. The judge shall have the statement read aloud to the
115	115	jury if the jury assesses punishment in the case, and the jury shall
116	116	consider the information in assessing the punishment.
117	117	(e-1) Before punishment is assessed in a criminal case in
118	118	which a victim impact statement has been received [sentencing the
119	119	defendant], the judge [court] shall permit the defendant or the
120	120	defendant's [his] counsel a reasonable time to read the statement,
121	121	excluding the victim's name, address, and telephone number, comment
122	122	on the statement, and, with the approval of the judge [court],
123	123	introduce testimony or other information alleging a factual
124	124	inaccuracy in the statement. If the judge [court] sentences the
125	125	defendant to a term of community supervision, the judge [court]
126	126	shall forward any victim [victim's] impact statement received in
127	127	the case to the community supervision and corrections department
128	128	supervising the defendant, along with the papers in the case.
129	129	(f) The judge or a jury [court] may not inspect or receive
130	130	information from a victim impact statement until after a finding of
131	131	guilt or until deferred adjudication is ordered and the contents of
132	132	the statement may not be disclosed to any person unless:
133	133	(1) the defendant pleads guilty or nolo contendere or
134	134	is convicted of the offense; or
135	135	(2) the defendant in writing authorizes the judge or
136	136	jury [court] to inspect or receive information from the statement.
137	137	SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only
138	138	to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
139	139	An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
140	140	governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,
141	141	and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For
142	142	purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the
143	143	effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred
144	144	before that date.
145	145	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.