Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1083 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Rodriguez S.B. No. 1083
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the punishment for a capital felony committed by an
7	7	individual younger than 18 years of age; changing parole
8	8	eligibility.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 12.31, Penal Code, is amended to read as
11	11	follows:
12	12	Sec. 12.31. CAPITAL FELONY. (a) An individual adjudged
13	13	guilty of a capital felony in a case in which the state seeks the
14	14	death penalty shall be punished by imprisonment in the Texas
15	15	Department of Criminal Justice for life without parole or by death.
16	16	An individual adjudged guilty of a capital felony in a case in which
17	17	the state does not seek the death penalty shall be punished by
18	18	imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice [for]:
19	19	(1) for life or for a term of not more than 99 years or
20	20	less than 5 years [life], if the individual committed the offense
21	21	when younger than 18 years of age; or
22	22	(2) for life without parole, if the individual
23	23	committed the offense when 18 years of age or older.
24	24	(b) In a capital felony trial in which the state seeks the
25	25	death penalty, prospective jurors shall be informed that a sentence
26	26	of life imprisonment without parole or death is mandatory on
27	27	conviction of a capital felony. In a capital felony trial in which
28	28	the state does not seek the death penalty, prospective jurors shall
29	29	be informed that the state is not seeking the death penalty and
30	30	that:
31	31	(1) a sentence of [life] imprisonment either for life
32	32	or for a term of not more than 99 years or less than 5 years is
33	33	mandatory on conviction of a capital felony, if the individual
34	34	committed the offense when younger than 18 years of age; or
35	35	(2) a sentence of life imprisonment without parole is
36	36	mandatory on conviction of the capital felony, if the individual
37	37	committed the offense when 18 years of age or older.
38	38	SECTION 2. Section 12.42, Penal Code, is amended by adding
39	39	Subsection (e) to read as follows:
40	40	(e) For purposes of this section, a person convicted of a
41	41	capital felony who is punished by imprisonment for a term of not
42	42	more than 99 years or less than 5 years is considered to have been
43	43	convicted of a felony of the first degree.
44	44	SECTION 3. Articles 1.13(a) and (b), Code of Criminal
45	45	Procedure, are amended to read as follows:
46	46	(a) Subject to Subsection (b), the [The] defendant in a
47	47	criminal prosecution for any offense, other than a capital felony
48	48	case in which the state notifies the court and the defendant that it
49	49	will seek the death penalty or a capital felony case described by
50	50	Section 12.31(a)(2), Penal Code, shall have the right, upon
51	51	entering a plea, to waive the right of trial by jury, conditioned,
52	52	however, that, except as provided by Article 27.19, the waiver must
53	53	be made in person by the defendant in writing in open court with the
54	54	consent and approval of the court, and the attorney representing
55	55	the state. The consent and approval by the court shall be entered
56	56	of record on the minutes of the court, and the consent and approval
57	57	of the attorney representing the state shall be in writing, signed
58	58	by that attorney, and filed in the papers of the cause before the
59	59	defendant enters the defendant's plea.
60	60	(b) In a capital felony case described by Section
61	61	12.31(a)(1), Penal Code [in which the attorney representing the
62	62	State notifies the court and the defendant that it will not seek the
63	63	death penalty], the defendant may waive the right to trial by jury
64	64	in writing and in open court.
65	65	SECTION 4. Section 1, Article 37.071, Code of Criminal
66	66	Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
67	67	Sec. 1. (a)(1) If a defendant is found guilty in a capital
68	68	felony case in which the state does not seek the death penalty, the
69	69	defendant [judge] shall be sentenced [sentence the defendant to
70	70	life imprisonment or to life imprisonment without parole] as
71	71	described [required] by this section and Section 12.31, Penal Code.
72	72	(2) The judge shall impose a sentence of imprisonment
73	73	in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for life without parole
74	74	on a defendant who was 18 years of age or older at the time the
75	75	capital felony was committed.
76	76	(3) The judge or jury shall impose a sentence of
77	77	imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for a term
78	78	of life or for not more than 99 years or less than 5 years on a
79	79	defendant who was younger than 18 years of age at the time the
80	80	capital felony was committed.
81	81	(b) For purposes of assessing punishment under Subsection
82	82	(a)(3), the court shall conduct a separate sentencing proceeding in
83	83	the trial court and before the trial jury as soon as practicable.
84	84	In the proceeding, the defendant or the defendant's counsel is
85	85	entitled to present evidence tending to diminish defendant's
86	86	culpability or tending to show the defendant's capacity for
87	87	rehabilitation such as the following information about the
88	88	defendant:
89	89	(1) age at the time of the offense;
90	90	(2) developmental stage at the time of the offense;
91	91	(3) family and community environment;
92	92	(4) ability to appreciate the risks and consequences
93	93	of the conduct;
94	94	(5) intellectual capacity;
95	95	(6) the outcome of a comprehensive mental health
96	96	evaluation that is conducted by a disinterested expert, such as a
97	97	psychiatrist or psychologist, who is qualified by education and
98	98	clinical training in adolescent mental health issues and includes;
99	99	(A) family interviews;
100	100	(B) family history;
101	101	(C) prenatal history;
102	102	(D) developmental history;
103	103	(E) medical history;
104	104	(F) history of treatment for substance use;
105	105	(G) social history; and
106	106	(H) a psychological evaluation;
107	107	(7) peer or familial pressure;
108	108	(8) level of participation in the offense;
109	109	(9) inability to effectively communicate with defense
110	110	counsel or to participate meaningfully in the defense of the case;
111	111	(10) capacity for rehabilitation;
112	112	(11) school records and special education
113	113	evaluations;
114	114	(12) trauma history;
115	115	(13) faith and community involvement;
116	116	(14) involvement in the child welfare system; and
117	117	(15) any other mitigating factor or circumstance.
118	118	(d) This section may not be construed to authorize the
119	119	introduction of any evidence secured in violation of the United
120	120	States Constitution or the Texas Constitution. The court shall
121	121	permit the state and the defendant or the defendant's counsel to
122	122	present arguments relevant to sentencing. The introduction of
123	123	evidence of extraneous conduct is governed by the notice
124	124	requirements of Section 3(g), Article 37.07.
125	125	SECTION 5. Section 508.145(b), Government Code, is amended
126	126	to read as follows:
127	127	(b)(1) An inmate serving a [life] sentence of imprisonment
128	128	for a term of not more than 99 years or less than 5 years under
129	129	Section 12.31(a)(1), Penal Code, for a capital felony is not
130	130	eligible for release on parole until the actual calendar time the
131	131	inmate has served, without consideration of good conduct time,
132	132	equals one-half of the sentence or 25 [40] calendar years,
133	133	whichever is less.
134	134	(2) An inmate serving a sentence of imprisonment for life
135	135	under Section 12.31(a)(1), Penal Code, for a capital felony is not
136	136	eligible for release on parole until the actual calendar time the
137	137	inmate has served, without consideration of good conduct time,
138	138	equals 25 calendar years.
139	139	SECTION 6. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of
140	140	this section, the change in law made by this Act applies to:
141	141	(1) a criminal action for which a final conviction
142	142	exists on the effective date of this Act if the defendant is serving
143	143	a sentence of life or a sentence of life without parole for the
144	144	offense and was younger than 18 years of age at the time the offense
145	145	was committed; and
146	146	(2) any other criminal action that is pending, on
147	147	appeal, or commenced on or after the effective date of this Act,
148	148	regardless of whether the criminal action is based on an offense
149	149	committed before, on, or after that date.
150	150	(b) The change in law made by this Act in adding Section
151	151	12.42(e), Penal Code, applies only to an offense committed on or
152	152	after the effective date of this Act. An offense committed before
153	153	the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect when
154	154	the offense was committed, and the former law is continued in effect
155	155	for that purpose. For purposes of this subsection, an offense was
156	156	committed before the effective date of this Act if any element of
157	157	the offense occurred before that date.
158	158	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
159	159	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
160	160	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
161	161	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
162	162	Act takes effect September 1, 2015.