By: White (Senate Sponsor - Nichols) H.B. No. 104
(In the Senate - Received from the House May 1, 2017;
May 8, 2017, read first time and referred to Committee on Criminal
Justice; May 19, 2017, reported favorably by the following vote:
Yeas 7, Nays 0; May 19, 2017, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to notification provided to certain victims of criminal
offenses.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 2, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended by adding Article 2.023 to read as follows:
Art. 2.023. NOTIFICATION TO TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF CRIMINAL
JUSTICE. (a) This article applies only to a defendant who, in
connection with a previous conviction for an offense listed in
Article 42A.054(a) or for which the judgment contains an
affirmative finding under Article 42A.054(c) or (d):
(1) received a sentence that included imprisonment at
a facility operated by or under contract with the Texas Department
of Criminal Justice; and
(2) was subsequently released from the imprisonment,
including a release on parole, to mandatory supervision, or
following discharge of the defendant's sentence.
(b) Not later than the 10th day after the date that a
defendant described by Subsection (a) is indicted for an offense
listed in Article 42A.054(a) or for which the judgment contains an
affirmative finding under Article 42A.054(c) or (d), the attorney
representing the state shall notify an officer designated by the
Texas Department of Criminal Justice of the offense charged in the
indictment.
SECTION 2. Chapter 493, Government Code, is amended by
adding Section 493.0251 to read as follows:
Sec. 493.0251. VICTIM NOTIFICATION OF SUBSEQUENT FELONY.
(a) In this section, "victim," "guardian of a victim," and "close
relative of a deceased victim" have the meanings assigned by
Section 508.117.
(b) If the department receives a notification under Article
2.023, Code of Criminal Procedure, regarding the indictment of a
defendant described by that article, the department shall, to the
extent requested under Subsection (c), make a reasonable effort to
provide notice of the offense charged in the indictment to each
victim, guardian of a victim, or close relative of a deceased victim
of an offense described by Article 2.023(a), Code of Criminal
Procedure, for which the defendant was previously imprisoned at a
facility operated by or under contract with the department and
subsequently released.
(c) The department shall adopt a procedure by which a
victim, guardian of a victim, or close relative of a deceased victim
may:
(1) request to receive notice under this section; and
(2) inform the department of the person's address for
purposes of providing the notice.
(d) Except as necessary to comply with this section, the
board or the department may not disclose to any person the name or
address of a person entitled to notice under this section unless:
(1) the person approves the disclosure; or
(2) a court determines that there is good cause for the
disclosure and orders the board or the department to disclose the
information.
SECTION 3. Not later than November 1, 2017, the Texas
Department of Criminal Justice shall adopt rules necessary to
implement Section 493.0251, Government Code, as added by this Act.
SECTION 4. Article 2.023, Code of Criminal Procedure, as
added by this Act, applies only to a criminal case in which the
indictment is presented to the court on or after December 1, 2017.
A criminal case in which the indictment is presented to the court
before December 1, 2017, is governed by the law in effect on the
date the indictment is presented, and the former law is continued in
effect for that purpose.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.
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