| 1 | 1 | | 84R2900 JRR-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Longoria H.B. No. 333 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to certain procedures for defendants who successfully |
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| 8 | 8 | | complete a period of state jail felony community supervision. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 15, Article 42.12, Code of Criminal |
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| 11 | 11 | | Procedure, is amended by adding Subsections (l), (m), and (n) to |
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| 12 | 12 | | read as follows: |
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| 13 | 13 | | (l) On written motion of a defendant after completion of |
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| 14 | 14 | | two-thirds of the original community supervision period for a state |
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| 15 | 15 | | jail felony with respect to which written consent was obtained |
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| 16 | 16 | | under Section 12.44(c), Penal Code, the judge may review the |
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| 17 | 17 | | defendant's record and consider whether to amend the record of |
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| 18 | 18 | | conviction to reflect a conviction for a Class A misdemeanor in lieu |
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| 19 | 19 | | of a state jail felony. On disposition of the community supervision |
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| 20 | 20 | | in a manner provided by Section 20, the judge, on discharge of the |
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| 21 | 21 | | defendant, may amend the record of conviction to reflect a |
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| 22 | 22 | | conviction for a Class A misdemeanor in lieu of a state jail felony, |
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| 23 | 23 | | subject to Subsection (m), if: |
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| 24 | 24 | | (1) the offense for which the defendant was placed on |
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| 25 | 25 | | community supervision was not an offense: |
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| 26 | 26 | | (A) under Section 30.02, Section 30.04, Section |
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| 27 | 27 | | 39.04(a)(2), Section 49.045, or Title 5, Penal Code; |
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| 28 | 28 | | (B) under Article 62.102; or |
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| 29 | 29 | | (C) involving family violence, as defined by |
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| 30 | 30 | | Section 71.004, Family Code; |
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| 31 | 31 | | (2) the defendant has fulfilled to the judge's |
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| 32 | 32 | | satisfaction all the conditions of community supervision, |
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| 33 | 33 | | including the payment of all required restitution, and is not |
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| 34 | 34 | | delinquent on the payment of any fines, costs, and fees that the |
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| 35 | 35 | | defendant has the ability to pay; |
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| 36 | 36 | | (3) the defendant files with the written motion a |
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| 37 | 37 | | statement that: |
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| 38 | 38 | | (A) contains a summary of the defendant's |
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| 39 | 39 | | performance during community supervision, including compliance |
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| 40 | 40 | | with the conditions of community supervision; and |
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| 41 | 41 | | (B) asserts that the defendant meets the |
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| 42 | 42 | | conditions for an amendment of the record of conviction under this |
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| 43 | 43 | | subsection; |
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| 44 | 44 | | (4) the defendant provides a copy of the motion and |
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| 45 | 45 | | statement to the attorney representing the state; and |
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| 46 | 46 | | (5) at the hearing held on the motion, the judge finds |
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| 47 | 47 | | that an amendment of the record of conviction is in the best |
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| 48 | 48 | | interest of justice. |
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| 49 | 49 | | (m) A judge who amends a record of conviction under |
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| 50 | 50 | | Subsection (l) may not modify the name of the state jail felony |
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| 51 | 51 | | offense for which the judge placed the defendant on community |
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| 52 | 52 | | supervision. A defendant whose record of conviction is amended |
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| 53 | 53 | | under Subsection (l) is not considered to have been convicted of a |
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| 54 | 54 | | felony with respect to the modified offense. |
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| 55 | 55 | | (n) A record of conviction that is amended under Subsection |
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| 56 | 56 | | (l) supersedes and takes the place of the record of conviction as it |
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| 57 | 57 | | existed on the original date of conviction. A judge retains |
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| 58 | 58 | | jurisdiction for the purposes of Subsection (l) only until the |
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| 59 | 59 | | expiration of the term of community supervision. |
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| 60 | 60 | | SECTION 2. Section 12.44, Penal Code, is amended by adding |
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| 61 | 61 | | Subsection (c) to read as follows: |
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| 62 | 62 | | (c) With the written consent of the prosecuting attorney |
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| 63 | 63 | | prior to sentencing, the court may amend the record of conviction to |
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| 64 | 64 | | reflect a conviction for a Class A misdemeanor in lieu of a state |
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| 65 | 65 | | jail felony as provided by Section 15(l), Article 42.12, Code of |
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| 66 | 66 | | Criminal Procedure. |
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| 67 | 67 | | SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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| 68 | 68 | | to a defendant who is placed on community supervision for an offense |
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| 69 | 69 | | committed on or after the effective date of this Act. A defendant |
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| 70 | 70 | | who is placed on community supervision for an offense committed |
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| 71 | 71 | | before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in |
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| 72 | 72 | | effect on the date the offense was committed, and the former law is |
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| 73 | 73 | | continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of this section, |
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| 74 | 74 | | an offense was committed before the effective date of this Act if |
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| 75 | 75 | | any element of the offense occurred before that date. |
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| 76 | 76 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |
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