| 4 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 5 | 7 | | relating to the prosecution of the criminal offense of |
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| 6 | 8 | | impersonating a public servant. |
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| 7 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 8 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 37.11(a), Penal Code, is amended to read |
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| 9 | 11 | | as follows: |
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| 10 | 12 | | (a) A person commits an offense if the person [he]: |
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| 11 | 13 | | (1) impersonates a public servant with intent to |
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| 12 | 14 | | induce another to submit to the person's [his] pretended official |
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| 13 | 15 | | authority or to rely on the person's [his] pretended official acts; |
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| 14 | 16 | | or |
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| 15 | 17 | | (2) knowingly purports to exercise, without legal |
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| 16 | 18 | | authority, any function of a public servant or of a public office, |
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| 17 | 19 | | including that of a judge and court[, and the position or office |
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| 18 | 20 | | through which he purports to exercise a function of a public servant |
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| 19 | 21 | | or public office has no lawful existence under the constitution or |
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| 20 | 22 | | laws of this state or of the United States]. |
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| 21 | 23 | | SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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| 22 | 24 | | to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. |
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| 23 | 25 | | An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is |
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| 24 | 26 | | governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, |
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| 25 | 27 | | and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For |
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| 26 | 28 | | purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the |
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| 27 | 29 | | effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred |
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| 28 | 30 | | before that date. |
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| 29 | 31 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |
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| 30 | | - | ______________________________ ______________________________ |
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| 31 | | - | President of the Senate Speaker of the House |
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| 32 | | - | I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1820 passed the Senate on |
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| 33 | | - | April 17, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0. |
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| 34 | | - | ______________________________ |
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| 35 | | - | Secretary of the Senate |
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| 36 | | - | I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1820 passed the House on |
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| 37 | | - | May 14, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 140, Nays 1, two |
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| 38 | | - | present not voting. |
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| 39 | | - | ______________________________ |
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| 40 | | - | Chief Clerk of the House |
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| 41 | | - | Approved: |
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| 42 | | - | ______________________________ |
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| 43 | | - | Date |
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| 44 | | - | ______________________________ |
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| 45 | | - | Governor |
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