Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB4308 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R2666 JRR-D
2	2	By: Thompson of Harris H.B. No. 4308
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to prohibiting seeking or imposing the death penalty on
8	8	the basis of a person's race or ethnicity.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Article 11.071, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
11	11	amended by adding Section 10A to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 10A. CLAIM INVOLVING RACE OR ETHNICITY.
13	13	Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, a defendant
14	14	who is raising a habeas corpus claim involving racial or ethnic bias
15	15	or discrimination or other impermissible use of race or ethnicity
16	16	in the defendant's case may present any evidence authorized for use
17	17	under Article 53.02, including statistical evidence derived from
18	18	this state or from the county where the defendant was convicted, in
19	19	support of the claim. The convicting court shall hold a hearing on
20	20	the claim in the same manner as a hearing is held under Article
21	21	53.02.
22	22	SECTION 2. Chapter 44, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
23	23	amended by adding Article 44.26 to read as follows:
24	24	Art. 44.26. CLAIM INVOLVING RACE OR ETHNICITY IN CAPITAL
25	25	CASE. (a) This article applies only to an appeal in a capital case
26	26	in which the defendant was sentenced to death.
27	27	(b) Notwithstanding any other law, a defendant who has
28	28	raised a claim involving racial or ethnic bias or discrimination or
29	29	other impermissible use of race or ethnicity in the defendant's
30	30	case may present any evidence authorized for use under Article
31	31	53.02, including statistical evidence derived from this state or
32	32	from the county where the defendant was convicted, in support of the
33	33	claim.
34	34	SECTION 3. Title 1, Code of Criminal Procedure, is amended
35	35	by adding Chapter 53 to read as follows:
36	36	CHAPTER 53. PROCEDURE IN CERTAIN DEATH PENALTY CASES
37	37	Art. 53.01. RACIAL OR ETHNIC DISCRIMINATION PROHIBITED. No
38	38	person shall be subject to or given a sentence of death or executed
39	39	under any judgment that was sought or obtained on the basis of race
40	40	or ethnicity.
41	41	Art. 53.02. PROOF OF RACIAL OR ETHNIC DISCRIMINATION;
42	42	PROCEDURE. (a) To be eligible to file a motion under this chapter,
43	43	the defendant must knowingly and voluntarily waive any objection to
44	44	the imposition of a sentence to life imprisonment without parole
45	45	based on any common law, statutory law, or provision of the federal
46	46	or state constitution that would otherwise require that the
47	47	defendant be eligible for parole. The waiver must be in writing,
48	48	signed by the defendant, and included in the motion seeking relief
49	49	under this article.
50	50	(b) If the court determines that a hearing is required under
51	51	Subsection (h), the court shall make an oral inquiry of the
52	52	defendant on the record to confirm the defendant's waiver to the
53	53	imposition of a sentence to life imprisonment without parole. If
54	54	the court grants relief under this article, the judgment must
55	55	include the finding that the defendant waived any objection to the
56	56	imposition of a sentence of life imprisonment without parole.
57	57	(c) The defendant has the burden of proving by a
58	58	preponderance of the evidence that race or ethnicity was a
59	59	significant factor in the decision to seek or impose the sentence of
60	60	death in the county at the time the death sentence was sought or
61	61	imposed. For the purposes of this article, "the time the death
62	62	sentence was sought or imposed" is the period from 10 years before
63	63	the date of the commission of the offense to the date that is two
64	64	years after the date the death sentence is imposed.
65	65	(d) The state may offer evidence in rebuttal of the
66	66	defendant's claims or evidence, including statistical evidence.
67	67	The court may consider evidence of the impact on the defendant's
68	68	trial of any program the purpose of which is to eliminate race or
69	69	ethnicity as a factor in seeking or imposing a sentence of death.
70	70	(e) Evidence to establish a finding that race or ethnicity
71	71	was a significant factor in the decision to seek or impose the
72	72	sentence of death in the county at the time the death sentence was
73	73	sought or imposed may include:
74	74	(1) statistical evidence derived from this state or
75	75	from the county where the defendant was sentenced to death; or
76	76	(2) other evidence specific to the defendant's case
77	77	showing that the race or ethnicity of the defendant was a
78	78	significant factor in the decision to seek or impose the sentence of
79	79	death, including:
80	80	(A) evidence showing that race or ethnicity was a
81	81	significant factor in the decision to exercise peremptory
82	82	challenges during jury selection; or
83	83	(B) evidence of discriminatory sentiments from
84	84	any participant in the trial, including a juror, the judge, or a
85	85	prosecutor.
86	86	(f) The evidence under Subsection (e)(2) may include sworn
87	87	testimony of an attorney, prosecutor, law enforcement officer,
88	88	judicial official, juror, or other person involved in the criminal
89	89	justice system. Testimony by a juror under this subsection must
90	90	comply with Rule 606(b), Texas Rules of Evidence.
91	91	(g) Statistical evidence alone is not sufficient to
92	92	establish that race or ethnicity was a significant factor in the
93	93	decision to seek or impose the sentence of death.
94	94	(h) A motion filed under this article must state with
95	95	particularity how the evidence supports a claim that race or
96	96	ethnicity was a significant factor in the decision to seek or impose
97	97	the sentence of death in the defendant's case in the county at the
98	98	time the death sentence was sought or imposed. The claim must be
99	99	raised by the defendant at the pretrial conference or hearing under
100	100	Article 28.01 or in any postconviction proceeding. If the court
101	101	finds that the defendant's motion fails to state a sufficient claim
102	102	under this article, the court shall dismiss the claim without an
103	103	evidentiary hearing. If the court finds that the defendant's
104	104	motion states a sufficient claim under this article, the court
105	105	shall set a hearing on the claim and may prescribe a time before the
106	106	hearing for each party to present a summary of the evidence the
107	107	party intends to introduce.
108	108	(i) If the court finds that race or ethnicity was a
109	109	significant factor in a decision to seek or impose the sentence of
110	110	death in the defendant's case at the time the death sentence was
111	111	sought or imposed, the court shall order that a death sentence not
112	112	be sought, or that the death sentence imposed by the judgment be
113	113	vacated and the defendant resentenced to life imprisonment without
114	114	the possibility of parole.
115	115	(j) Filing a motion under this article does not limit or
116	116	restrict the adjudication of any future constitutional claims made
117	117	by the defendant or limit or restrict the defendant's eligibility
118	118	for any other postconviction procedure authorized by this code,
119	119	including another action under this chapter. The provisions of
120	120	Article 28.01 prohibiting further adjudication of certain matters
121	121	not raised at a pretrial hearing do not apply to matters related to
122	122	a defendant's motion under this article.
123	123	SECTION 4. The change in law made by this Act applies to a
124	124	defendant alleged to have committed a capital offense regardless of
125	125	whether the alleged offense was committed before, on, or after the
126	126	effective date of this Act.
127	127	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.