| Old | New | Differences | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | - | By: Moody, White, Wu H.B. No. 1030 | |
| 1 | + | 86R4491 MEW-F | |
| 2 | + | By: Moody H.B. No. 1030 | |
| 2 | 3 | ||
| 3 | 4 | ||
| 4 | 5 | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED | |
| 5 | 6 | AN ACT | |
| 6 | 7 | relating to certain sentencing procedures in a capital case. | |
| 7 | 8 | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | |
| 8 | 9 | SECTION 1. Section 2(d), Article 37.071, Code of Criminal | |
| 9 | 10 | Procedure, is amended to read as follows: | |
| 10 | 11 | (d) The court shall charge the jury that: | |
| 11 | 12 | (1) in deliberating on the issues submitted under | |
| 12 | 13 | Subsection (b) [of this article], the jury [it] shall consider all | |
| 13 | 14 | evidence admitted at the guilt or innocence stage and the | |
| 14 | 15 | punishment stage, including evidence of the defendant's background | |
| 15 | 16 | or character or the circumstances of the offense that militates for | |
| 16 | 17 | or mitigates against the imposition of the death penalty; | |
| 17 | 18 | (2) the jury [it] may not answer any issue submitted | |
| 18 | 19 | under Subsection (b) [of this article] "yes" unless the jury [it] | |
| 19 | - | agrees unanimously, and unless the jury answers an issue "yes" | |
| 20 | - | unanimously, the jury shall [it may not] answer the [any] issue "no" | |
| 21 | - | [unless 10 or more jurors agree]; and | |
| 20 | + | agrees unanimously [and it may not answer any issue "no" unless 10 | |
| 21 | + | or more jurors agree]; and | |
| 22 | 22 | (3) members of the jury need not agree on what | |
| 23 | 23 | particular evidence supports a negative answer to any issue | |
| 24 | 24 | submitted under Subsection (b) [of this article]. | |
| 25 | 25 | SECTION 2. Section 2(f), Article 37.071, Code of Criminal | |
| 26 | 26 | Procedure, is amended to read as follows: | |
| 27 | 27 | (f) The court shall charge the jury that in answering the | |
| 28 | 28 | issue submitted under Subsection (e) [of this article], the jury: | |
| 29 | 29 | (1) shall answer the issue "yes" or "no"; | |
| 30 | 30 | (2) may not answer the issue "no" unless the jury [it] | |
| 31 | - | agrees unanimously, and unless the jury answers the issue "no" | |
| 32 | - | unanimously, the jury shall [may not] answer the issue "yes" | |
| 33 | - | [unless 10 or more jurors agree]; | |
| 31 | + | agrees unanimously [and may not answer the issue "yes" unless 10 or | |
| 32 | + | more jurors agree]; | |
| 34 | 33 | (3) need not agree on what particular evidence | |
| 35 | 34 | supports an affirmative finding on the issue; and | |
| 36 | 35 | (4) shall consider mitigating evidence to be evidence | |
| 37 | 36 | that a juror might regard as reducing the defendant's moral | |
| 38 | 37 | blameworthiness. | |
| 39 | 38 | SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only | |
| 40 | 39 | to a criminal proceeding that commences on or after the effective | |
| 41 | 40 | date of this Act. A criminal proceeding that commenced before the | |
| 42 | 41 | effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the | |
| 43 | 42 | date the proceeding commenced, and the former law is continued in | |
| 44 | 43 | effect for that purpose. | |
| 45 | 44 | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |