84R548 MEW-D
By: Farrar H.B. No. 1527
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to abolishing the death penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 12.31, Penal Code, is amended to read as
follows:
Sec. 12.31. CAPITAL FELONY. (a) An individual adjudged
guilty of a capital felony [in a case in which the state seeks the
death penalty shall be punished by imprisonment in the Texas
Department of Criminal Justice for life without parole or by
death. An individual adjudged guilty of a capital felony in a case
in which the state does not seek the death penalty] shall be
punished by imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal
Justice for:
(1) life, if the individual committed the offense when
younger than 18 years of age; or
(2) life without parole, if the individual committed
the offense when 18 years of age or older.
(b) In a capital felony trial [in which the state seeks the
death penalty, prospective jurors shall be informed that a sentence
of life imprisonment without parole or death is mandatory on
conviction of a capital felony. In a capital felony trial in which
the state does not seek the death penalty], prospective jurors
shall be informed [that the state is not seeking the death penalty
and] that:
(1) a sentence of life imprisonment is mandatory on
conviction of the capital felony, if the individual committed the
offense when younger than 18 years of age; or
(2) a sentence of life imprisonment without parole is
mandatory on conviction of the capital felony, if the individual
committed the offense when 18 years of age or older.
SECTION 2. Articles 1.13(a) and (b), Code of Criminal
Procedure, are amended to read as follows:
(a) Subject to Subsection (b), the [The] defendant in a
criminal prosecution for any offense is entitled [other than a
capital felony case in which the state notifies the court and the
defendant that it will seek the death penalty shall have the right],
upon entering a plea, to waive the right of trial by jury,
conditioned, however, that, except as provided by Article 27.19,
the waiver must be made in person by the defendant in writing in
open court with the consent and approval of the court, and the
attorney representing the state. The consent and approval by the
court shall be entered of record on the minutes of the court, and
the consent and approval of the attorney representing the state
shall be in writing, signed by that attorney, and filed in the
papers of the cause before the defendant enters the defendant's
plea.
(b) In a capital felony case [in which the attorney
representing the State notifies the court and the defendant that it
will not seek the death penalty], the defendant may waive the right
to trial by jury but only if the attorney representing the State, in
writing and in open court, consents to the waiver.
SECTION 3. Article 4.03, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 4.03. COURTS OF APPEALS. The Courts of Appeals shall
have appellate jurisdiction coextensive with the limits of their
respective districts in all criminal cases [except those in which
the death penalty has been assessed]. This article may [Article
shall] not be so construed as to embrace any case which has been
appealed from any inferior court to the county court, the county
criminal court, or county court at law, in which the fine imposed or
affirmed by the county court, the county criminal court or county
court at law does not exceed one hundred dollars, unless the sole
issue is the constitutionality of the statute or ordinance on which
the conviction is based.
SECTION 4. Section 2, Article 4.04, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 2. The Court of Criminal Appeals shall have, and is
hereby given, final appellate and review jurisdiction in criminal
cases coextensive with the limits of the state, and its
determinations shall be final. [The appeal of all cases in which
the death penalty has been assessed shall be to the Court of
Criminal Appeals.] In addition, the Court of Criminal Appeals may,
on its own motion, with or without a petition for such discretionary
review being filed by one of the parties, review any decision of a
court of appeals in a criminal case. Discretionary review by the
Court of Criminal Appeals is not a matter of right, but of sound
judicial discretion.
SECTION 5. The heading to Article 11.07, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
Art. 11.07. PROCEDURE AFTER FELONY CONVICTION [WITHOUT
DEATH PENALTY]
SECTION 6. Sections 1 and 2, Article 11.07, Code of Criminal
Procedure, are amended to read as follows:
Sec. 1. This article establishes the procedures for an
application for writ of habeas corpus in which the applicant seeks
relief from a felony judgment [imposing a penalty other than
death].
Sec. 2. After indictment found in any felony case[, other
than a case in which the death penalty is imposed,] and before
conviction, the writ must be made returnable in the county where the
offense has been committed.
SECTION 7. Section 3(b), Article 11.07, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
(b) An application for writ of habeas corpus filed after
final conviction in a felony case[, other than a case in which the
death penalty is imposed,] must be filed with the clerk of the court
in which the conviction being challenged was obtained, and the
clerk shall assign the application to that court. When the
application is received by that court, a writ of habeas corpus,
returnable to the Court of Criminal Appeals, shall issue by
operation of law. The clerk of that court shall make appropriate
notation thereof, assign to the case a file number (ancillary to
that of the conviction being challenged), and forward a copy of the
application by certified mail, return receipt requested, by secure
electronic mail, or by personal service to the attorney
representing the state in that court, who shall answer the
application not later than the 15th day after the date the copy of
the application is received. Matters alleged in the application
not admitted by the state are deemed denied.
SECTION 8. Articles 11.073(b) and (c), Code of Criminal
Procedure, are amended to read as follows:
(b) A court may grant a convicted person relief on an
application for a writ of habeas corpus if:
(1) the convicted person files an application, in the
manner provided by Article 11.07[, 11.071,] or 11.072, containing
specific facts indicating that:
(A) relevant scientific evidence is currently
available and was not available at the time of the convicted
person's trial because the evidence was not ascertainable through
the exercise of reasonable diligence by the convicted person before
the date of or during the convicted person's trial; and
(B) the scientific evidence would be admissible
under the Texas Rules of Evidence at a trial held on the date of the
application; and
(2) the court makes the findings described by
Subdivisions (1)(A) and (B) and also finds that, had the scientific
evidence been presented at trial, on the preponderance of the
evidence the person would not have been convicted.
(c) For purposes of Section 4(a)(1), Article 11.07,
[Section 5(a)(1), Article 11.071,] and Section 9(a), Article
11.072, a claim or issue could not have been presented previously in
an original application or in a previously considered application
if the claim or issue is based on relevant scientific evidence that
was not ascertainable through the exercise of reasonable diligence
by the convicted person on or before the date on which the original
application or a previously considered application, as applicable,
was filed.
SECTION 9. The heading to Article 11.65, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
Art. 11.65. BOND FOR [CERTAIN] APPLICANTS.
SECTION 10. Article 11.65(a), Code of Criminal Procedure,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) This article applies to an applicant for a writ of
habeas corpus seeking relief from the judgment in a criminal case[,
other than an applicant seeking relief from a judgment imposing a
penalty of death].
SECTION 11. Section 6, Article 24.29, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 6. EXCEPTIONS. This Act does not apply to a person in
this state who is confined as mentally ill [or who is under sentence
of death].
SECTION 12. Articles 26.04(b) and (g), Code of Criminal
Procedure, are amended to read as follows:
(b) Procedures adopted under Subsection (a) shall:
(1) authorize only the judges of the county courts,
statutory county courts, and district courts trying criminal cases
in the county, or the judges' designee, to appoint counsel for
indigent defendants in the county;
(2) apply to each appointment of counsel made by a
judge or the judges' designee in the county;
(3) ensure that each indigent defendant in the county
who is charged with a misdemeanor punishable by confinement or with
a felony and who appears in court without counsel has an opportunity
to confer with appointed counsel before the commencement of
judicial proceedings;
(4) [require appointments for defendants in capital
cases in which the death penalty is sought to comply with any
applicable requirements under Articles 11.071 and 26.052;
[(5)] ensure that each attorney appointed from a
public appointment list to represent an indigent defendant perform
the attorney's duty owed to the defendant in accordance with the
adopted procedures, the requirements of this code, and applicable
rules of ethics; and
(5) [(6)] ensure that appointments are allocated
among qualified attorneys in a manner that is fair, neutral, and
nondiscriminatory.
(g) A countywide alternative program for appointing counsel
for indigent defendants in criminal cases is established by a
formal action in which two-thirds of the judges of the courts
designated under this subsection vote to establish the alternative
program. An alternative program for appointing counsel in
misdemeanor and felony cases may be established in the manner
provided by this subsection by the judges of the county courts,
statutory county courts, and district courts trying criminal cases
in the county. An alternative program for appointing counsel in
misdemeanor cases may be established in the manner provided by this
subsection by the judges of the county courts and statutory county
courts trying criminal cases in the county. An alternative program
for appointing counsel in felony cases may be established in the
manner provided by this subsection by the judges of the district
courts trying criminal cases in the county. In a county in which an
alternative program is established:
(1) the alternative program may:
(A) use a single method for appointing counsel or
a combination of methods; and
(B) use a multicounty appointment list using a
system of rotation; and
(2) the procedures adopted under Subsection (a) must
ensure that:
(A) attorneys appointed using the alternative
program to represent defendants in misdemeanor cases punishable by
confinement:
(i) meet specified objective
qualifications for that representation, which may be graduated
according to the degree of seriousness of the offense and whether
representation will be provided in trial court proceedings,
appellate proceedings, or both; and
(ii) are approved by a majority of the
judges of the county courts and statutory county courts trying
misdemeanor cases in the county;
(B) attorneys appointed using the alternative
program to represent defendants in felony cases:
(i) meet specified objective
qualifications for that representation, which may be graduated
according to the degree of seriousness of the offense and whether
representation will be provided in trial court proceedings,
appellate proceedings, or both; and
(ii) are approved by a majority of the
judges of the district courts trying felony cases in the county; and
(C) [appointments for defendants in capital
cases in which the death penalty is sought comply with the
requirements of Article 26.052; and
[(D)] appointments are reasonably and
impartially allocated among qualified attorneys.
SECTION 13. Article 26.05(d), Code of Criminal Procedure,
is amended to read as follows:
(d) A counsel in a criminal [noncapital] case, other than an
attorney with a public defender's office, appointed to represent a
defendant under this code shall be reimbursed for reasonable and
necessary expenses, including expenses for investigation and for
mental health and other experts. Expenses incurred with prior
court approval shall be reimbursed in the [same] manner provided
[for capital cases] by Articles 26.052(f) and (g), and expenses
incurred without prior court approval shall be reimbursed in the
manner provided [for capital cases] by Article 26.052(h).
SECTION 14. The heading to Article 26.052, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
Art. 26.052. [APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL IN DEATH PENALTY
CASE;] REIMBURSEMENT OF [INVESTIGATIVE] EXPENSES INCURRED BY
APPOINTED COUNSEL.
SECTION 15. Section 3, Article 31.08, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 3. An [Except for the review of a death sentence under
Section 2(h), Article 37.071, or under Section 2(h), Article
37.072, an] appeal taken in a cause returned to the original county
under this article must be docketed in the appellate district in
which the county of original venue is located.
SECTION 16. Article 34.01, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 34.01. SPECIAL VENIRE. A "special venire" is a writ
issued in a capital case by order of the district court, commanding
the sheriff to summon either verbally or by mail such a number of
persons, not less than 50, as the court may order, to appear before
the court on a day named in the writ from whom the jury for the trial
of such case is to be selected. Where as many as one hundred jurors
have been summoned in such county for regular service for the week
in which such capital case is set for trial, the judge of the court
having jurisdiction of a capital case in which a motion for a
special venire has been made, shall grant or refuse such motion for
a special venire, and upon such refusal require the case to be tried
by regular jurors summoned for service in such county for the week
in which such capital case is set for trial and such additional
talesmen as may be summoned by the sheriff upon order of the court
as provided in Article 34.02 of this Code[, but the clerk of such
court shall furnish the defendant or his counsel a list of the
persons summoned as provided in Article 34.04].
SECTION 17. Article 35.15(b), Code of Criminal Procedure,
is amended to read as follows:
(b) In [non-capital] felony cases [and in capital cases in
which the State does not seek the death penalty], the State and
defendant shall each be entitled to ten peremptory challenges. If
two or more defendants are tried together each defendant shall be
entitled to six peremptory challenges and the State to six for each
defendant.
SECTION 18. Article 35.16(b), Code of Criminal Procedure,
is amended to read as follows:
(b) A challenge for cause may be made by the State for any of
the following reasons:
1. That the juror has conscientious scruples in regard
to the imposition [infliction] of a sentence of imprisonment for
life without parole [the punishment of death for crime,] in a
capital case[, where the State is seeking the death penalty];
2. That the juror [he] is related within the third
degree of consanguinity or affinity, as determined under Chapter
573, Government Code, to the defendant; and
3. That the juror [he] has a bias or prejudice against
any phase of the law upon which the State is entitled to rely for
conviction or punishment.
SECTION 19. Article 35.17, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 35.17. VOIR DIRE EXAMINATION
[1]. When the court in its discretion so directs, [except as
provided in Section 2,] the state and defendant shall conduct the
voir dire examination of prospective jurors in the presence of the
entire panel.
[2. In a capital felony case in which the State seeks the
death penalty, the court shall propound to the entire panel of
prospective jurors questions concerning the principles, as
applicable to the case on trial, of reasonable doubt, burden of
proof, return of indictment by grand jury, presumption of
innocence, and opinion. Then, on demand of the State or defendant,
either is entitled to examine each juror on voir dire individually
and apart from the entire panel, and may further question the juror
on the principles propounded by the court.]
SECTION 20. Article 35.25, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 35.25. MAKING PEREMPTORY CHALLENGE. The [In
non-capital cases and in capital cases in which the State's
attorney has announced that he will not qualify the jury for, or
seek the death penalty, the] party desiring to challenge any juror
peremptorily shall strike the name of such juror from the list
furnished the party [him] by the clerk.
SECTION 21. Article 35.26, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 35.26. LISTS RETURNED TO CLERK. [(a)] When the
parties have made or declined to make their peremptory challenges,
they shall deliver their lists to the clerk. The [Except as
provided in Subsection (b) of this section, the] clerk shall, if the
case be in the district court, call off the first twelve names on
the lists that have not been stricken. If the case be in the county
court, the clerk [he] shall call off the first six names on the
lists that have not been stricken. Those whose names are called
shall be the jury.
[(b) In a capital case in which the state seeks the death
penalty, the court may direct that two alternate jurors be selected
and that the first fourteen names not stricken be called off by the
clerk. The last two names to be called are the alternate jurors.]
SECTION 22. Article 36.29(a), Code of Criminal Procedure,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) Not less than twelve jurors can render and return a
verdict in a felony case. It must be concurred in by each juror and
signed by the foreman. After [Except as provided in Subsection (b),
however, after] the trial of any felony case begins and a juror dies
or, as determined by the judge, becomes disabled from sitting at any
time before the charge of the court is read to the jury, the
remainder of the jury shall have the power to render the verdict;
but when the verdict shall be rendered by less than the whole
number, it shall be signed by every member of the jury concurring in
it.
SECTION 23. Section 2(b), Article 37.07, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
(b) If [Except as provided by Article 37.071 or 37.072, if]
a finding of guilty is returned, it shall then be the responsibility
of the judge to assess the punishment applicable to the offense;
provided, however, that (1) in any criminal action where the jury
may recommend community supervision and the defendant filed his
sworn motion for community supervision before the trial began, and
(2) in other cases where the defendant so elects in writing before
the commencement of the voir dire examination of the jury panel, the
punishment shall be assessed by the same jury, except as provided in
Section 3(c) of this article and in Article 44.29. If a finding of
guilty is returned, the defendant may, with the consent of the
attorney for the state, change his election of one who assesses the
punishment.
SECTION 24. Section 1, Article 42.01, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 1. A judgment is the written declaration of the court
signed by the trial judge and entered of record showing the
conviction or acquittal of the defendant. The sentence served
shall be based on the information contained in the judgment. The
judgment shall reflect:
1. The title and number of the case;
2. That the case was called and the parties appeared,
naming the attorney for the state, the defendant, and the attorney
for the defendant, or, where a defendant is not represented by
counsel, that the defendant knowingly, intelligently, and
voluntarily waived the right to representation by counsel;
3. The plea or pleas of the defendant to the offense
charged;
4. Whether the case was tried before a jury or a jury
was waived;
5. The submission of the evidence, if any;
6. In cases tried before a jury that the jury was
charged by the court;
7. The verdict or verdicts of the jury or the finding
or findings of the court;
8. In the event of a conviction that the defendant is
adjudged guilty of the offense as found by the verdict of the jury
or the finding of the court, and that the defendant be punished in
accordance with the jury's verdict or the court's finding as to the
proper punishment;
9. In the event of conviction where [death or] any
punishment is assessed that the defendant be sentenced to [death,]
a term of confinement or community supervision, or to pay a fine, as
the case may be;
10. In the event of conviction where the imposition of
sentence is suspended and the defendant is placed on community
supervision, setting forth the punishment assessed, the length of
community supervision, and the conditions of community
supervision;
11. In the event of acquittal that the defendant be
discharged;
12. The county and court in which the case was tried
and, if there was a change of venue in the case, the name of the
county in which the prosecution was originated;
13. The offense or offenses for which the defendant
was convicted;
14. The date of the offense or offenses and degree of
offense for which the defendant was convicted;
15. The term of sentence;
16. The date judgment is entered;
17. The date sentence is imposed;
18. The date sentence is to commence and any credit for
time served;
19. The terms of any order entered pursuant to Article
42.08 of this code that the defendant's sentence is to run
cumulatively or concurrently with another sentence or sentences;
20. The terms of any plea bargain;
21. Affirmative findings entered pursuant to
Subdivision (2) of Subsection (a) of Section 3g of Article 42.12 of
this code;
22. The terms of any fee payment ordered under Article
42.151 of this code;
23. The defendant's thumbprint taken in accordance
with Article 38.33 of this code;
24. In the event that the judge orders the defendant to
repay a reward or part of a reward under Articles 37.073 and 42.152
of this code, a statement of the amount of the payment or payments
required to be made;
25. In the event that the court orders restitution to
be paid to the victim, a statement of the amount of restitution
ordered and:
(A) the name and address of a person or agency
that will accept and forward restitution payments to the victim; or
(B) if the court specifically elects to have
payments made directly to the crime victim, the name and permanent
address of the victim at the time of judgment;
26. In the event that a presentence investigation is
required by Section 9(a), (b), (h), or (i), Article 42.12 of this
code, a statement that the presentence investigation was done
according to the applicable provision;
27. In the event of conviction of an offense for which
registration as a sex offender is required under Chapter 62, a
statement that the registration requirement of that chapter applies
to the defendant and a statement of the age of the victim of the
offense;
28. The defendant's state identification number
required by Article [Section] 60.052(a)(2), if that number has been
assigned at the time of the judgment; and
29. The incident number required by Article [Section]
60.052(a)(4), if that number has been assigned at the time of the
judgment.
SECTION 25. Sections 1 and 3, Article 42.09, Code of
Criminal Procedure, are amended to read as follows:
Sec. 1. Except as provided in Sections 2 and 3, a defendant
shall be delivered to a jail or to the Texas Department of Criminal
Justice when his sentence is pronounced[, or his sentence to death
is announced,] by the court. The defendant's sentence begins to
run on the day it is pronounced, but with all credits, if any,
allowed by Article 42.03.
Sec. 3. If a defendant is convicted of a felony and
sentenced to [death,] life[,] or a term of more than ten years in
the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and the defendant [he]
gives notice of appeal, the defendant [he] shall be transferred to
the department on a commitment pending a mandate from the court of
appeals or the Court of Criminal Appeals.
SECTION 26. Article 44.29(b), Code of Criminal Procedure,
is amended to read as follows:
(b) If the court of appeals or the Court of Criminal Appeals
awards a new trial to a defendant [other than a defendant convicted
of an offense under Section 19.03, Penal Code,] only on the basis of
an error or errors made in the punishment stage of the trial, the
cause shall stand as it would have stood in case the new trial had
been granted by the court below, except that the court shall
commence the new trial as if a finding of guilt had been returned
and proceed to the punishment stage of the trial under Subsection
(b), Section 2, Article 37.07, of this code. If the defendant
elects, the court shall empanel a jury for the sentencing stage of
the trial in the same manner as a jury is empaneled by the court for
other trials before the court. At the new trial, the court shall
allow both the state and the defendant to introduce evidence to show
the circumstances of the offense and other evidence as permitted by
Section 3 of Article 37.07 of this code.
SECTION 27. Section 6(a), Article 49.25, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
(a) Any medical examiner, or his duly authorized deputy,
shall be authorized, and it shall be his duty, to hold inquests with
or without a jury within his county, in the following cases:
1. When a person shall die within twenty-four hours
after admission to a hospital or institution or in prison or in
jail;
2. When any person is killed; or from any cause dies
an unnatural death[, except under sentence of the law]; or dies in
the absence of one or more good witnesses;
3. When the body or a body part of a person is found,
the cause or circumstances of death are unknown, and:
(A) the person is identified; or
(B) the person is unidentified;
4. When the circumstances of the death of any person
are such as to lead to suspicion that he came to his death by
unlawful means;
5. When any person commits suicide, or the
circumstances of his death are such as to lead to suspicion that he
committed suicide;
6. When a person dies without having been attended by a
duly licensed and practicing physician, and the local health
officer or registrar required to report the cause of death under
Section 193.005, Health and Safety Code, does not know the cause of
death. When the local health officer or registrar of vital
statistics whose duty it is to certify the cause of death does not
know the cause of death, he shall so notify the medical examiner of
the county in which the death occurred and request an inquest;
7. When the person is a child who is younger than six
years of age and the death is reported under Chapter 264, Family
Code; and
8. When a person dies who has been attended
immediately preceding his death by a duly licensed and practicing
physician or physicians, and such physician or physicians are not
certain as to the cause of death and are unable to certify with
certainty the cause of death as required by Section 193.004, Health
and Safety Code. In case of such uncertainty the attending
physician or physicians, or the superintendent or general manager
of the hospital or institution in which the deceased shall have
died, shall so report to the medical examiner of the county in which
the death occurred, and request an inquest.
SECTION 28. Article 60.052(c), Code of Criminal Procedure,
is amended to read as follows:
(c) Information in the corrections tracking system relating
to the handling of offenders must include the following information
about each imprisonment or[,] confinement[, or execution] of an
offender:
(1) the date of the imprisonment or confinement;
(2) [if the offender was sentenced to death:
[(A) the date of execution; and
[(B) if the death sentence was commuted, the
sentence to which the sentence of death was commuted and the date of
commutation;
[(3)] the date the offender was released from
imprisonment or confinement and whether the release was a discharge
or a release on parole or mandatory supervision;
(3) [(4)] if the offender is released on parole or
mandatory supervision:
(A) the offense for which the offender was
convicted by offense code and incident number;
(B) the date the offender was received by an
office of the parole division;
(C) the county in which the offender resides
while under supervision;
(D) any program in which an offender is placed or
has previously been placed and the level of supervision the
offender is placed on while under the jurisdiction of the parole
division;
(E) the date a program described by Paragraph (D)
begins, the date the program ends, and whether the program was
completed successfully;
(F) the date a level of supervision described by
Paragraph (D) begins and the date the level of supervision ends;
(G) if the offender's release status is revoked,
the reason for the revocation and the date of revocation;
(H) the expiration date of the sentence; and
(I) the date of the offender's release from the
parole division or the date on which the offender is granted
clemency; and
(4) [(5)] if the offender is released under Section
6(a), Article 42.12, the date of the offender's release.
SECTION 29. Article 64.01(c), Code of Criminal Procedure,
is amended to read as follows:
(c) A convicted person is entitled to counsel during a
proceeding under this chapter. The convicting court shall appoint
counsel for the convicted person if the person informs the court
that the person wishes to submit a motion under this chapter, the
court finds reasonable grounds for a motion to be filed, and the
court determines that the person is indigent. Counsel must be
appointed under this subsection not later than the 45th day after
the date the court finds reasonable grounds or the date the court
determines that the person is indigent, whichever is
later. Compensation of counsel is provided in the same manner as
is required by[:
[(1) Article 11.071 for the representation of a
petitioner convicted of a capital felony; and
[(2)] Chapter 26 for the representation in a habeas
corpus hearing of an indigent defendant convicted of a felony other
than a capital felony.
SECTION 30. Article 64.05, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 64.05. APPEALS. An appeal under this chapter is to a
court of appeals in the same manner as an appeal of any other
criminal matter[, except that if the convicted person was convicted
in a capital case and was sentenced to death, the appeal is a direct
appeal to the court of criminal appeals].
SECTION 31. Section 508.145(a), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) An inmate [under sentence of death,] serving a sentence
of life imprisonment without parole, serving a sentence for an
offense under Section 21.02, Penal Code, or serving a sentence for
an offense under Section 22.021, Penal Code, that is punishable
under Subsection (f) of that section is not eligible for release on
parole.
SECTION 32. Sections 508.146(a) and (f), Government Code,
are amended to read as follows:
(a) An inmate other than an inmate who is serving a sentence
of [death or] life without parole may be released on medically
recommended intensive supervision on a date designated by a parole
panel described by Subsection (e), except that an inmate with an
instant offense that is an offense described in Section 3g, Article
42.12, Code of Criminal Procedure, or an inmate who has a reportable
conviction or adjudication under Chapter 62, Code of Criminal
Procedure, may only be considered if a medical condition of
terminal illness or long-term care has been diagnosed by a
physician, if:
(1) the Texas Correctional Office on Offenders with
Medical or Mental Impairments, in cooperation with the Correctional
Managed Health Care Committee, identifies the inmate as being:
(A) elderly, physically disabled, mentally ill,
terminally ill, or mentally retarded or having a condition
requiring long-term care, if the inmate is an inmate with an instant
offense that is described in Section 3g, Article 42.12, Code of
Criminal Procedure; or
(B) in a persistent vegetative state or being a
person with an organic brain syndrome with significant to total
mobility impairment, if the inmate is an inmate who has a reportable
conviction or adjudication under Chapter 62, Code of Criminal
Procedure;
(2) the parole panel determines that, based on the
inmate's condition and a medical evaluation, the inmate does not
constitute a threat to public safety; and
(3) the Texas Correctional Office on Offenders with
Medical or Mental Impairments, in cooperation with the pardons and
paroles division, has prepared for the inmate a medically
recommended intensive supervision plan that requires the inmate to
submit to electronic monitoring, places the inmate on
super-intensive supervision, or otherwise ensures appropriate
supervision of the inmate.
(f) An inmate who is not a citizen of the United States, as
defined by federal law, who is not under a sentence of [death or]
life without parole, and who does not have a reportable conviction
or adjudication under Chapter 62, Code of Criminal Procedure, or an
instant offense described in Section 3g, Article 42.12, Code of
Criminal Procedure, may be released to immigration authorities
pending deportation on a date designated by a parole panel
described by Subsection (e) if the parole panel determines that on
release the inmate would be deported to another country and that the
inmate does not constitute a threat to public safety in the other
country or this country and is unlikely to reenter this country
illegally.
SECTION 33. Section 552.134(b), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) Subsection (a) does not apply to[:
[(1)] statistical or other aggregated information
relating to inmates confined in one or more facilities operated by
or under a contract with the department[; or
[(2) information about an inmate sentenced to death].
SECTION 34. Section 557.012(b), Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(b) An offense under this section is punishable by[:
[(1) death; or
[(2)] confinement in the Texas Department of Criminal
Justice for:
(1) [(A)] life; or
(2) [(B)] a term of not less than two years.
SECTION 35. Section 46.03(a), Penal Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally,
knowingly, or recklessly possesses or goes with a firearm, illegal
knife, club, or prohibited weapon listed in Section 46.05(a):
(1) on the physical premises of a school or
educational institution, any grounds or building on which an
activity sponsored by a school or educational institution is being
conducted, or a passenger transportation vehicle of a school or
educational institution, whether the school or educational
institution is public or private, unless pursuant to written
regulations or written authorization of the institution;
(2) on the premises of a polling place on the day of an
election or while early voting is in progress;
(3) on the premises of any government court or offices
utilized by the court, unless pursuant to written regulations or
written authorization of the court;
(4) on the premises of a racetrack;
(5) in or into a secured area of an airport; or
(6) within 1,000 feet of premises the location of
which is designated by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice as a
place of execution [under Article 43.19, Code of Criminal
Procedure,] on a day that a sentence of death is set to be imposed on
the designated premises and the person received notice that:
(A) going within 1,000 feet of the premises with
a weapon listed under this subsection was prohibited; or
(B) possessing a weapon listed under this
subsection within 1,000 feet of the premises was prohibited.
SECTION 36. The following provisions of the Code of
Criminal Procedure are repealed:
(1) Article 11.071;
(2) Articles 26.044(a)(2) and (n);
(3) Articles 26.052(a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (i), (j),
(k), (l), (m), and (n);
(4) Article 34.04;
(5) Articles 35.13, 35.15(a), and 35.29(c);
(6) Article 36.29(b);
(7) Articles 37.071, 37.0711, and 37.072;
(8) Articles 38.43(i), (j), (k), (l), and (m);
(9) Article 42.04;
(10) Articles 43.14, 43.141, 43.15, 43.16, 43.17,
43.18, 43.19, 43.20, 43.21, 43.22, 43.23, 43.24, and 43.25;
(11) Articles 44.251, 44.2511, and 44.29(c) and (d);
and
(12) Article 46.05.
SECTION 37. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to a criminal case in which the indictment in the case is filed on or
after the effective date of this Act. A criminal case in which the
indictment was filed before the effective date of this Act is
governed by the law in effect when the indictment was filed, and the
former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 38. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.