| 1 | 1 | | 87R4740 JCG-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Dutton H.B. No. 1035 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the use of force by peace officers and certain other |
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| 8 | 8 | | persons to make an arrest or search or prevent an escape from |
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| 9 | 9 | | custody. |
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| 10 | 10 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 11 | 11 | | SECTION 1. Sections 9.51(a), (b), (c), and (d), Penal Code, |
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| 12 | 12 | | are amended to read as follows: |
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| 13 | 13 | | (a) A peace officer, or a person acting in a peace officer's |
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| 14 | 14 | | presence and at his direction, is justified in using force against |
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| 15 | 15 | | another when and to the degree [the actor reasonably believes] the |
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| 16 | 16 | | force is objectively reasonable and immediately necessary to make |
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| 17 | 17 | | or assist in making an arrest or search, or to prevent or assist in |
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| 18 | 18 | | preventing escape after arrest, if: |
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| 19 | 19 | | (1) the actor reasonably believes the arrest or search |
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| 20 | 20 | | is lawful or, if the arrest or search is made under a warrant, he |
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| 21 | 21 | | reasonably believes the warrant is valid; and |
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| 22 | 22 | | (2) before using force, the actor manifests his |
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| 23 | 23 | | purpose to arrest or search and identifies himself as a peace |
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| 24 | 24 | | officer or as one acting at a peace officer's direction, unless he |
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| 25 | 25 | | reasonably believes his purpose and identity are already known by |
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| 26 | 26 | | or cannot reasonably be made known to the person to be arrested. |
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| 27 | 27 | | (b) A person other than a peace officer (or one acting at his |
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| 28 | 28 | | direction) is justified in using force against another when and to |
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| 29 | 29 | | the degree [the actor reasonably believes] the force is objectively |
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| 30 | 30 | | reasonable and immediately necessary to make or assist in making a |
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| 31 | 31 | | lawful arrest, or to prevent or assist in preventing escape after |
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| 32 | 32 | | lawful arrest if, before using force, the actor manifests his |
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| 33 | 33 | | purpose to and the reason for the arrest or reasonably believes his |
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| 34 | 34 | | purpose and the reason are already known by or cannot reasonably be |
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| 35 | 35 | | made known to the person to be arrested. |
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| 36 | 36 | | (c) A peace officer is justified in using deadly force |
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| 37 | 37 | | against another when and to the degree [the peace officer |
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| 38 | 38 | | reasonably believes] the deadly force is objectively reasonable and |
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| 39 | 39 | | immediately necessary to make an arrest, or to prevent escape after |
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| 40 | 40 | | arrest, if the use of force would have been justified under |
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| 41 | 41 | | Subsection (a) and: |
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| 42 | 42 | | (1) the actor reasonably believes the conduct for |
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| 43 | 43 | | which arrest is authorized included the use or attempted use of |
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| 44 | 44 | | deadly force; or |
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| 45 | 45 | | (2) the actor reasonably believes there is a |
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| 46 | 46 | | substantial risk that the person to be arrested will cause death or |
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| 47 | 47 | | serious bodily injury to the actor or another if the arrest is |
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| 48 | 48 | | delayed. |
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| 49 | 49 | | (d) A person other than a peace officer acting in a peace |
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| 50 | 50 | | officer's presence and at his direction is justified in using |
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| 51 | 51 | | deadly force against another when and to the degree [the person |
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| 52 | 52 | | reasonably believes] the deadly force is objectively reasonable and |
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| 53 | 53 | | immediately necessary to make a lawful arrest, or to prevent escape |
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| 54 | 54 | | after a lawful arrest, if the use of force would have been justified |
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| 55 | 55 | | under Subsection (b) and: |
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| 56 | 56 | | (1) the actor reasonably believes the felony or |
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| 57 | 57 | | offense against the public peace for which arrest is authorized |
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| 58 | 58 | | included the use or attempted use of deadly force; or |
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| 59 | 59 | | (2) the actor reasonably believes there is a |
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| 60 | 60 | | substantial risk that the person to be arrested will cause death or |
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| 61 | 61 | | serious bodily injury to another if the arrest is delayed. |
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| 62 | 62 | | SECTION 2. Section 9.52, Penal Code, is amended to read as |
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| 63 | 63 | | follows: |
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| 64 | 64 | | Sec. 9.52. PREVENTION OF ESCAPE FROM CUSTODY. The use of |
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| 65 | 65 | | force to prevent the escape of an arrested person from custody is |
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| 66 | 66 | | justifiable when the force could have been employed to effect the |
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| 67 | 67 | | arrest under which the person is in custody, except that a guard |
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| 68 | 68 | | employed by a correctional facility or a peace officer is justified |
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| 69 | 69 | | in using any force, including deadly force, that is objectively |
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| 70 | 70 | | reasonable and [he reasonably believes to be] immediately necessary |
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| 71 | 71 | | to prevent the escape of a person from the correctional facility. |
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| 72 | 72 | | SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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| 73 | 73 | | to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. |
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| 74 | 74 | | An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is |
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| 75 | 75 | | governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, |
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| 76 | 76 | | and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For |
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| 77 | 77 | | purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the |
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| 78 | 78 | | effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred |
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| 79 | 79 | | before that date. |
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| 80 | 80 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021. |
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