Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB869 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		87R2334 ADM-F
2		-	By: Thompson of Harris, Moody, Rose, Walle, H.B. No. 869
3		-	et al.
	2	+	By: Thompson of Harris H.B. No. 869
4	3
5	4
6	5		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
7	6		AN ACT
8	7		relating to the applicability of the death penalty to a capital
9	8		offense committed by a person with an intellectual disability.
10	9		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	10		SECTION 1. Article 44.01, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
12	11		amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to
13	12		read as follows:
14	13		(a) The state is entitled to appeal an order of a court in a
15	14		criminal case if the order:
16	15		(1) dismisses an indictment, information, or
17	16		complaint or any portion of an indictment, information, or
18	17		complaint;
19	18		(2) arrests or modifies a judgment;
20	19		(3) grants a new trial;
21	20		(4) sustains a claim of former jeopardy;
22	21		(5) grants a motion to suppress evidence, a
23	22		confession, or an admission, if jeopardy has not attached in the
24	23		case and if the prosecuting attorney certifies to the trial court
25	24		that the appeal is not taken for the purpose of delay and that the
26	25		evidence, confession, or admission is of substantial importance in
27	26		the case; or
28	27		(6) is issued under Chapter 46E or 64.
29	28		(a-1) The state's appeal of an order issued under Chapter
30	29		46E is a direct appeal to the court of criminal appeals. The court
31	30		of criminal appeals shall expeditiously review the appeal.
32	31		SECTION 2. Title 1, Code of Criminal Procedure, is amended
33	32		by adding Chapter 46E to read as follows:
34	33		CHAPTER 46E. CAPITAL CASE: EFFECT OF INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY
35	34		Art. 46E.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
36	35		(1) "Deficits in adaptive behavior" means sufficient
37	36		deficits in adaptive functioning under prevailing medical
38	37		standards for determining intellectual disability.
39	38		(2) "Developmental period" means the developmental
40	39		period of a person's life, as determined by prevailing medical
41	40		standards.
42	41		(3) "Intellectual disability" means significantly
43	42		subaverage general intellectual functioning that is concurrent
44	43		with deficits in adaptive behavior and originates during the
45	44		developmental period.
46	45		(4) "Significantly subaverage general intellectual
47	46		functioning" refers to a measured intelligence quotient on a
48	47		standardized psychometric instrument of approximately two or more
49	48		standard deviations below the age-group mean for the test used,
50	49		considering the standard error of measurement applicable to the
51	50		instrument.
52	51		Art. 46E.002. RESTRICTION ON DEATH PENALTY. A defendant
53	52		who is a person with an intellectual disability may not be sentenced
54	53		to death.
55	54		Art. 46E.003. HEARING; DETERMINATION. (a) A defendant in a
56	55		capital case, not later than the first anniversary of the date of
57	56		the defendant's indictment, may request in writing that the judge
58	57		hearing the case hold a hearing to determine whether the defendant
59	58		is a person with an intellectual disability.
60	59		(b) On receipt of a request under this article, if the judge
61	60		determines that the request was timely filed, the judge shall hold a
62	61		hearing to determine the issue. The hearing must be held:
63	62		(1) not earlier than 180th day after the date that the
64	63		written request was submitted under Subsection (a); and
65	64		(2) not later than the 120th day before the date the
66	65		trial is scheduled to begin.
67	66		(c) If a defendant files an untimely request under
68	67		Subsection (a), or after the time for filing a request under
69	68		Subsection (a) otherwise presents evidence that the defendant is a
70	69		person with an intellectual disability, the judge may hold a
71	70		hearing under this chapter outside the presence of the jury if the
72	71		defendant can show good cause for not filing a request within the
73	72		time limit prescribed by Subsection (a).
74	73		Art. 46E.004. APPOINTMENT OF DISINTERESTED EXPERT. (a) On
75	74		the request of either party or on the judge's own motion, the judge
76	75		shall appoint a disinterested expert experienced and qualified in
77	76		the field of diagnosing intellectual disabilities to examine the
78	77		defendant and determine whether the defendant is a person with an
79	78		intellectual disability.
80	79		(b) The judge may order the defendant to submit to an
81	80		examination by an expert appointed under this article.
82	81		(c) An examination described by this article must be limited
83	82		to the question of whether the defendant has an intellectual
84	83		disability.
85	84		Art. 46E.005. BURDEN OF PROOF. (a) At a hearing under this
86	85		chapter, the burden is on the defendant to prove by a preponderance
87	86		of the evidence that the defendant is a person with an intellectual
88	87		disability.
89	88		(b) The state may offer evidence to rebut evidence offered
90	89		by the defendant.
91	90		Art. 46E.006. PREVAILING MEDICAL STANDARDS. Evidence
92	91		offered by either party for purposes of a hearing under this chapter
93	92		must be consistent with prevailing medical standards for the
94	93		diagnosis of intellectual disabilities.
95	94		Art. 46E.007. DETERMINATION AND ORDER RELATED TO
96	95		INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY. (a) As soon as practicable but not later
97	96		than the 30th day after the conclusion of a hearing under this
98	97		chapter, the judge shall determine whether the defendant is a
99	98		person with an intellectual disability and issue an appropriate
100	99		order. The order must contain findings of fact explaining the
101	100		judge's reasoning for the determination and citing evidence in the
102	101		record.
103	102		(b) If the judge does not determine that the defendant is a
104	103		person with an intellectual disability, the judge shall conduct the
105	104		trial of the offense in the same manner as if a hearing under this
106	105		chapter had not been held. At the trial:
107	106		(1) the jury may not be informed of the fact that the
108	107		judge held a hearing under this chapter; and
109	108		(2) the defendant may present evidence of intellectual
110	109		disability as otherwise permitted by law.
111	110		SECTION 3. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
112	111		a trial that commences on or after the effective date of this Act,
113	112		regardless of whether the alleged offense was committed before, on,
114	113		or after that date.
115	114		SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.