Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB319 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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1	1	By: Keough H.B. No. 319
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the establishment, operation, and funding of
7	7	victim-offender mediation programs.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Chapter 56, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
10	10	amended by adding Subchapter A-1 to read as follows:
11	11	SUBCHAPTER A-1. PRETRIAL VICTIM-OFFENDER MEDIATION PROGRAM
12	12	Art. 56.21. AUTHORITY TO ESTABLISH PROGRAM. The
13	13	commissioners court of a county or governing body of a municipality
14	14	may establish a pretrial victim-offender mediation program for
15	15	persons who:
16	16	(1) have been arrested for or charged with a
17	17	misdemeanor or state jail felony under Title 7, Penal Code; and
18	18	(2) have not previously been convicted of a felony or a
19	19	misdemeanor, other than a misdemeanor regulating traffic offenses
20	20	and punishable by fine only.
21	21	Art. 56.22. PROGRAM. (a) A pretrial victim-offender
22	22	mediation program established under Article 56.21 must require:
23	23	(1) the identification of defendants who are eligible
24	24	to participate in the program.
25	25	(2) the consent of both the victim and the defendant to
26	26	be obtained before an eligible defendant may proceed with pretrial
27	27	victim-offender mediation; and
28	28	(3) the defendant to enter into a binding mediation
29	29	agreement in accordance with Article 56.23 that:
30	30	(A) includes an apology by the defendant; and
31	31	(B) requires the defendant upon acceptance of a
32	32	mediation agreement to:
33	33	(i) pay restitution to the victim; and, or
34	34	(ii) perform community service.
35	35	(b) All communications made in a pretrial victim-offender
36	36	mediation program are confidential and may not be introduced into
37	37	evidence except in a proceeding involving a question concerning the
38	38	meaning of a mediation agreement.
39	39	(c) A pretrial victim-offender mediation program may
40	40	require the staff and other resources of pretrial services
41	41	departments and community supervision correction departments to
42	42	assist in monitoring the defendant's compliance with a mediation
43	43	agreement reached through the program.
44	44	(d) Pretrial victim-offender meditations may be conducted
45	45	by any person designated by the court, other than the attorney
46	46	representing the state or an attorney representing the defendant in
47	47	the criminal action.
48	48	(i) Mediators must have completed 40
49	49	classroom house of basic mediation training in compliance with
50	50	Texas Civil Practices and Remedies Code Sec. 154.052.
51	51	(e) If a defendant enters a pretrial victim-offender
52	52	mediation program, the court, with the consent of the attorney
53	53	representing the state, may defer the proceedings without accepting
54	54	a plea of guilty or nolo contendere or entering an adjudication of
55	55	guilt.
56	56	(f) The case must be returned to the docket and proceed
57	57	through the regular criminal justice system if:
58	58	(1) a pretrial victim-offender mediation does not
59	59	result in a mediation agreement; or
60	60	(2) the defendant fails to successfully fulfill the
61	61	terms of the mediation agreement by the date specified in the
62	62	mediation agreement.
63	63	(g) If a case is returned to the docket under Subsection
64	64	(f), the defendant retains all of the rights that the defendant
65	65	possessed before entering the pretrial victim-offender mediation
66	66	program under this subchapter.
67	67	(h) The court, on the motion of the attorney representing
68	68	the state, shall dismiss the indictment or information charging the
69	69	defendant with the commission of the offense, if the defendant:
70	70	(1) successfully completes the mediation agreement as
71	71	determined by the attorney representing the state; and
72	72	(2) either:
73	73	(A) pays all court costs; or
74	74	(B) enters a payment plan approved by the court
75	75	or the attorney representing the state for such payment.
76	76	(i) A determination by the court regarding whether the
77	77	mediation agreement has been successfully completed is final and
78	78	may not be appealed, although the attorney for the state or the
79	79	court may extend the period for compliance.
80	80	(j) If the defendant is not arrested or convicted of a
81	81	subsequent felony or misdemeanor other than a misdemeanor
82	82	regulating traffic offenses and punishable by fine only on or
83	83	before the first anniversary of the date the defendant successfully
84	84	completed a mediation agreement under this subchapter, on the
85	85	motion of the defendant, the court shall enter an order of
86	86	nondisclosure under Section 411.081, Government Code, as if the
87	87	defendant had received a discharge and dismissal under Section
88	88	5(c), Article 42.12, with respect to all records and files related
89	89	to the defendant's arrest for the offense for which the defendant
90	90	entered the pretrial victim-offender mediation program.
91	91	Art. 56.23. MEDIATION AGREEMENT. (a) A mediation
92	92	agreement under this subchapter must be:
93	93	(1) signed by the defendant and the victim; and
94	94	(2) ratified by the attorney representing the state in
95	95	a request for a court order documenting and approving the mediation
96	96	agreement.
97	97	(b) A mediation agreement may require testing, counseling,
98	98	and treatment of the defendant to address alcohol abuse, abuse of
99	99	controlled substances, mental health, or anger management or any
100	100	other service that is reasonably related to the offense for which
101	101	the defendant was arrested or charged.
102	102	(c) A mediation agreement is not valid for more than one
103	103	year after the date on which the mediation agreement is ratified
104	104	unless the court and the attorney representing the state approve
105	105	the extension of the agreement.
106	106	(d) A mediation agreement under this subchapter does not
107	107	constitute a plea or legal admission of responsibility.
108	108	Art. 56.24. OVERSIGHT. (a) The lieutenant governor and the
109	109	speaker of the House of Representatives may assign to appropriate
110	110	legislative committees duties relating to the oversight of pretrial
111	111	victim-offender mediation programs established under this
112	112	subchapter.
113	113	(b) A legislative committee or the governor may request the
114	114	state auditor to perform a management, operations, or financial or
115	115	accounting audit of a pretrial victim-offender mediation program
116	116	established under this subchapter.
117	117	(c) A county or municipality that establishes a pretrial
118	118	victim-offender mediation program:
119	119	(1) shall notify the attorney general's office when
120	120	the county or municipality begins implementation of the program;
121	121	(2) may provide information regarding the performance
122	122	of the program to the attorney general's office on request; and
123	123	(3) may apply for funds for the program in accordance
124	124	with Article 102.0179(g).
125	125	Art. 56.25. FEES. (a) A pretrial victim-offender
126	126	mediation program established under this subchapter may collect
127	127	from a defendant in the program:
128	128	(1) a reasonable program fee not to exceed $2,000; and
129	129	(2) an alcohol or controlled substance testing,
130	130	counseling, and treatment fee in an amount necessary to cover the
131	131	costs of the testing, counseling, or treatment if such testing,
132	132	counseling, or treatment is required by the mediation agreement.
133	133	(b) Fees collected under this article may be paid on a
134	134	periodic basis or on a deferred payment schedule at the discretion
135	135	of the judge, magistrate, or program director administering the
136	136	pretrial victim-offender mediation program. The fees must be:
137	137	(1) based on the defendant's ability to pay; and
138	138	(2) used only for purposes specific to the program.
139	139	SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 102, Code of Criminal
140	140	Procedure, is amended by adding Article 102.0179 to read as
141	141	follows:
142	142	Art. 102.0179. COSTS ATTENDANT TO CERTAIN NONVIOLENT
143	143	CONVICTIONS INVOLVING PROPERTY. (a) In addition to other costs on
144	144	conviction imposed by this chapter, a person shall pay $15 as a
145	145	court cost on conviction of a felony or misdemeanor under Title 7,
146	146	Penal Code.
147	147	(b) For purposes of this article, a person is considered to
148	148	have been convicted if:
149	149	(1) a sentence is imposed;
150	150	(2) the defendant receives community supervision or
151	151	deferred adjudication; or
152	152	(3) the court defers final disposition of the case.
153	153	(c) Court costs under this article are collected in the same
154	154	manner as other fines or costs. An officer collecting the costs
155	155	shall keep separate records of the funds collected as costs under
156	156	this article and shall deposit the funds in the county or municipal
157	157	treasury, as appropriate.
158	158	(d) The custodian of a county or municipal treasury shall:
159	159	(1) keep records of the amount of funds on deposit
160	160	collected under this article; and
161	161	(e) A county or municipality is entitled to:
162	162	(1) if the county or municipality has established a
163	163	pretrial victim-offender mediation program, retain 75 percent of
164	164	the funds collected under this article by an officer of the county
165	165	or municipality, to be used exclusively for the maintenance of a
166	166	pretrial victim-offender mediation program operated in the county
167	167	or municipality; and
168	168	(f) If no funds due as costs under this article are
169	169	deposited in a county or municipal treasury in a calendar quarter,
170	170	the custodian of the treasury shall file the report required for the
171	171	quarter in the regular manner and must state that no funds were
172	172	collected.
173	173	(g) The comptroller shall deposit the funds received under
174	174	this article to the credit of the pretrial victim-offender
175	175	mediation program account in the general revenue fund to help fund
176	176	pretrial victim-offender mediation programs established under
177	177	Subchapter A-1, Chapter 56. The legislature shall appropriate
178	178	money from the account solely to the attorney general's office for
179	179	distribution to pretrial victim-offender mediation programs that
180	180	apply for funding.
181	181	(h) Funds collected under this article are subject to audit
182	182	by the comptroller.
183	183	SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 102, Government Code, is
184	184	amended by adding Section 102.0216 to read as follows:
185	185	Sec. 102.0216. ADDITIONAL COURT COSTS ON CONVICTION: CODE
186	186	OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE. A person convicted of an offense under Title
187	187	7, Penal Code, shall pay a cost on conviction, in addition to all
188	188	other costs, to help fund pretrial victim-offender mediation
189	189	programs established under Subchapter A-1, Chapter 56, Code of
190	190	Criminal Procedure (Art. 102.0179, Code of Criminal Procedure)
191	191	. . . $15.
192	192	SECTION 4. Subchapter B, Chapter 103, Government Code, is
193	193	amended by adding Section 103.0217 to read as follows:
194	194	Sec. 103.0217. ADDITIONAL FEES IN CRIMINAL CASES: CODE OF
195	195	CRIMINAL PROCEDURE. A defendant who participates in a pretrial
196	196	victim-offender mediation program under Subchapter A-1, Chapter
197	197	56, Code of Criminal Procedure, may be required to pay a program fee
198	198	in an amount not to exceed $2,000 and the costs of certain testing,
199	199	counseling, and treatment.
200	200	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
201	201	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
202	202	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
203	203	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
204	204	Act takes effect September 1, 2015.