Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1492 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	By: Whitmire, et al. S.B. No. 1492
2		-	(Collier, Thompson of Harris)
	1	+	By: Whitmire, Alvarado S.B. No. 1492
3	2
4	3
5	4		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	5		AN ACT
7	6		relating to grand jury proceedings and establishing a commission to
8	7		study improvements and alternatives to those proceedings.
9	8		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	9		SECTION 1. Article 20.012, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
11	10		amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (d) to
12	11		read as follows:
13	12		(a) Questions propounded by the grand jury or the attorney
14	13		representing the state to a fact witness or a person accused or
15	14		suspected and the testimony of that person to the grand jury shall
16	15		be recorded either by a stenographer or by use of an electronic
17	16		device capable of recording sound.
18	17		(d) For purposes of this article, "fact witness" means a
19	18		person who is testifying regarding the person's personal knowledge
20	19		of events relating to the case under investigation by the grand
21	20		jury. The term does not include a law enforcement officer who:
22	21		(1) is acting in the lawful discharge of the officer's
23	22		official duty;
24	23		(2) is assisting the attorney representing the state
25	24		by presenting evidence to the grand jury; and
26	25		(3) has no personal knowledge of events relating to
27	26		the case under investigation by the grand jury.
28	27		SECTION 2. Chapter 20, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
29	28		amended by adding Article 20.013 to read as follows:
30	29		Art. 20.013. CERTAIN INVESTIGATIONS AND VOTES BY GRAND JURY
31	30		PROHIBITED. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a grand
32	31		jury may not investigate a person who is accused or suspected of an
33	32		offense and may not vote to present an indictment for the offense if
34	33		the person has previously been investigated by a grand jury for the
35	34		same offense, that grand jury voted on whether to present an
36	35		indictment, and fewer than nine grand jurors concurred in finding
37	36		the bill.
38	37		(b) A grand jury may investigate, and may present an
39	38		indictment with respect to, a person described by Subsection (a)
40	39		only if the attorney representing the state presents to the grand
41	40		jury material evidence that was not known to the applicable
42	41		attorney representing the state before or during the previous grand
43	42		jury investigation.
44	43		SECTION 3. (a) In this section, "commission" means the
45	44		Texas Commission on Grand Juries.
46	45		(b) The commission is established to develop
47	46		recommendations for improvements to the grand jury system and
48	47		explore alternative procedures for establishing probable cause to
49	48		proceed to trial in a felony case.
50	49		(c) The commission is composed of 11 members, consisting of
51	50		the following:
52	51		(1) five members appointed by the governor;
53	52		(2) three members appointed by the lieutenant
54	53		governor; and
55	54		(3) three members appointed by the speaker of the
56	55		house of representatives.
57	56		(d) The members appointed by the governor must include:
58	57		(1) one member who is a district judge selected from a
59	58		list of 10 names submitted by the Texas Center for the Judiciary;
60	59		(2) one member who is a prosecuting attorney selected
61	60		from a list of 10 names submitted by the Texas District and County
62	61		Attorneys Association;
63	62		(3) one member who is a criminal defense attorney
64	63		selected from a list of 10 names submitted by the Texas Criminal
65	64		Defense Lawyers Association;
66	65		(4) one member who is a county judge or county
67	66		commissioner selected from a list of 10 names submitted by the Texas
68	67		Association of Counties; and
69	68		(5) one member who has served as the foreperson of a
70	69		grand jury in this state.
71	70		(e) The members appointed by the lieutenant governor and the
72	71		speaker of the house of representatives must each consist of three
73	72		members of the applicable legislative chamber.
74	73		(f) The governor shall designate the presiding officer of
75	74		the commission.
76	75		(g) A member of the commission is not entitled to
77	76		compensation or reimbursement of expenses.
78	77		(h) Not later than December 1, 2020, the commission shall
79	78		prepare and deliver to the governor and the legislature a report
80	79		that recommends:
81	80		(1) improvements to the grand jury system, including
82	81		the identification of any statutory changes necessary for that
83	82		purpose; and
84	83		(2) alternative procedures for establishing probable
85	84		cause to proceed to trial in a felony case.
86	85		(i) The commission is abolished January 12, 2021.
87	86		SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
88	87		a grand jury proceeding that begins on or after the effective date
89	88		of this Act. A grand jury proceeding that begins before the
90	89		effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
91	90		date the proceeding began, and the former law is continued in effect
92	91		for that purpose.
93	92		SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.