Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1517 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	By: Seliger, et al. S.B. No. 1517
2		-	(Coleman)
	1	+	S.B. No. 1517
3	2
4	3
5		-	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	4		AN ACT
7	5		relating to the appointment of counsel to represent indigent
8	6		defendants in criminal cases.
9	7		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	8		SECTION 1. Article 1.051, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
11	9		amended by amending Subsections (c), (i), and (k) and adding
12	10		Subsection (c-1) to read as follows:
13	11		(c) An indigent defendant is entitled to have an attorney
14	12		appointed to represent him in any adversary judicial proceeding
15	13		that may result in punishment by confinement and in any other
16	14		criminal proceeding if the court concludes that the interests of
17	15		justice require representation. Subject to Subsection (c-1)
18	16		[Except as otherwise provided by this subsection], if an indigent
19	17		defendant is entitled to and requests appointed counsel and if
20	18		adversarial judicial proceedings have been initiated against the
21	19		defendant, a court or the courts' designee authorized under Article
22	20		26.04 to appoint counsel for indigent defendants in the county in
23	21		which the defendant is arrested shall appoint counsel as soon as
24	22		possible, but not later than:
25	23		(1) the end of the third working day after the date on
26	24		which the court or the courts' designee receives the defendant's
27	25		request for appointment of counsel, if the defendant is arrested in
28	26		a county with a population of less than 250,000; or
29	27		(2) [. In a county with a population of 250,000 or
30	28		more, the court or the courts' designee shall appoint counsel as
31	29		required by this subsection as soon as possible, but not later than]
32	30		the end of the first working day after the date on which the court or
33	31		the courts' designee receives the defendant's request for
34	32		appointment of counsel, if the defendant is arrested in a county
35	33		with a population of 250,000 or more.
36	34		(c-1) If an indigent defendant is arrested under a warrant
37	35		issued in a county other than the county in which the arrest was
38	36		made and the defendant is entitled to and requests appointed
39	37		counsel, a court or the courts' designee authorized under Article
40	38		26.04 to appoint counsel for indigent defendants in the county that
41	39		issued the warrant shall appoint counsel within the periods
42	40		prescribed by Subsection (c), regardless of whether the defendant
43	41		is present within the county issuing the warrant and even if
44	42		adversarial judicial proceedings have not yet been initiated
45	43		against the defendant in the county issuing the warrant. However,
46	44		if the defendant has not been transferred or released into the
47	45		custody of the county issuing the warrant before the 11th day after
48	46		the date of the arrest and if counsel has not otherwise been
49	47		appointed for the defendant in the arresting county under this
50	48		article, a court or the courts' designee authorized under Article
51	49		26.04 to appoint counsel for indigent defendants in the arresting
52	50		county immediately shall appoint counsel to represent the defendant
53	51		in any matter under Chapter 11 or 17, regardless of whether
54	52		adversarial judicial proceedings have been initiated against the
55	53		defendant in the arresting county. If counsel is appointed for the
56	54		defendant in the arresting county as required by this subsection,
57	55		the arresting county may seek from the county that issued the
58	56		warrant reimbursement for the actual costs paid by the arresting
59	57		county for the appointed counsel.
60	58		(i) Subject to Subsection (c-1) [Except as otherwise
61	59		provided by this subsection], with respect to a county with a
62	60		population of less than 250,000, if an indigent defendant is
63	61		entitled to and requests appointed counsel and if adversarial
64	62		judicial proceedings have not been initiated against the defendant,
65	63		a court or the courts' designee authorized under Article 26.04 to
66	64		appoint counsel for indigent defendants in the county in which the
67	65		defendant is arrested shall appoint counsel immediately following
68	66		the expiration of three working days after the date on which the
69	67		court or the courts' designee receives the defendant's request for
70	68		appointment of counsel. If adversarial judicial proceedings are
71	69		initiated against the defendant before the expiration of the three
72	70		working days, the court or the courts' designee shall appoint
73	71		counsel as provided by Subsection (c). Subject to Subsection
74	72		(c-1), in [In] a county with a population of 250,000 or more, the
75	73		court or the courts' designee shall appoint counsel as required by
76	74		this subsection immediately following the expiration of one working
77	75		day after the date on which the court or the courts' designee
78	76		receives the defendant's request for appointment of counsel. If
79	77		adversarial judicial proceedings are initiated against the
80	78		defendant before the expiration of the one working day, the court or
81	79		the courts' designee shall appoint counsel as provided by
82	80		Subsection (c).
83	81		(k) A court or the courts' designee may without unnecessary
84	82		delay appoint new counsel to represent an indigent defendant for
85	83		whom counsel is appointed under Subsection (c), (c-1), or (i) if:
86	84		(1) the defendant is subsequently charged in the case
87	85		with an offense different from the offense with which the defendant
88	86		was initially charged; and
89	87		(2) good cause to appoint new counsel is stated on the
90	88		record as required by Article 26.04(j)(2).
91	89		SECTION 2. Article 15.17(e), Code of Criminal Procedure, is
92	90		amended to read as follows:
93	91		(e) In each case in which a person arrested is taken before a
94	92		magistrate as required by Subsection (a) or Article 15.18(a), a
95	93		record shall be made of:
96	94		(1) the magistrate informing the person of the
97	95		person's right to request appointment of counsel;
98	96		(2) the magistrate asking the person whether the
99	97		person wants to request appointment of counsel; and
100	98		(3) whether the person requested appointment of
101	99		counsel.
102	100		SECTION 3. Article 15.18, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
103	101		amended by adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
104	102		(a-1) If the arrested person is taken before a magistrate of
105	103		a county other than the county that issued the warrant, the
106	104		magistrate shall inform the person arrested of the procedures for
107	105		requesting appointment of counsel and ensure that reasonable
108	106		assistance in completing the necessary forms for requesting
109	107		appointment of counsel is provided to the person at the same time.
110	108		If the person requests the appointment of counsel, the magistrate
111	109		shall, without unnecessary delay but not later than 24 hours after
112	110		the person requested the appointment of counsel, transmit, or cause
113	111		to be transmitted, the necessary request forms to a court or the
114	112		courts' designee authorized under Article 26.04 to appoint counsel
115	113		in the county issuing the warrant.
116	114		SECTION 4. Article 26.04(a), Code of Criminal Procedure, is
117	115		amended to read as follows:
118	116		(a) The judges of the county courts, statutory county
119	117		courts, and district courts trying criminal cases in each county,
120	118		by local rule, shall adopt and publish written countywide
121	119		procedures for timely and fairly appointing counsel for an indigent
122	120		defendant in the county arrested for, charged with, or taking an
123	121		appeal from a conviction of a misdemeanor punishable by confinement
124	122		or a felony. The procedures must be consistent with this article
125	123		and Articles 1.051, 15.17, 15.18, 26.05, and 26.052. A court shall
126	124		appoint an attorney from a public appointment list using a system of
127	125		rotation, unless the court appoints an attorney under Subsection
128	126		(f), (f-1), (h), or (i). The court shall appoint attorneys from
129	127		among the next five names on the appointment list in the order in
130	128		which the attorneys' names appear on the list, unless the court
131	129		makes a finding of good cause on the record for appointing an
132	130		attorney out of order. An attorney who is not appointed in the
133	131		order in which the attorney's name appears on the list shall remain
134	132		next in order on the list.
135	133		SECTION 5. The change in law made by this Act applies only
136	134		to a person who is arrested on or after the effective date of this
137	135		Act. A person arrested before the effective date of this Act is
138	136		governed by the law in effect on the date the person was arrested,
139	137		and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
140	138		SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.
	139	+	______________________________ ______________________________
	140	+	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
	141	+	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1517 passed the Senate on
	142	+	May 5, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
	143	+	______________________________
	144	+	Secretary of the Senate
	145	+	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1517 passed the House on
	146	+	May 26, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 145, Nays 0,
	147	+	two present not voting.
	148	+	______________________________
	149	+	Chief Clerk of the House
	150	+	Approved:
	151	+	______________________________
	152	+	Date
	153	+	______________________________
	154	+	Governor