TX
Texas Senate Bill SB1056

Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1056 Compare Versions

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1-S.B. No. 1056
1+By: Huffman S.B. No. 1056
2+ (Wu)
23
34
5+ A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
46 AN ACT
57 relating to criminal liability for reporting false information to
68 draw an emergency response; creating an offense.
79 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8- SECTION 1. Chapter 42, Penal Code, is amended by adding
9- Section 42.0601 to read as follows:
10- Sec. 42.0601. FALSE REPORT TO INDUCE EMERGENCY RESPONSE.
11- (a) A person commits an offense if:
12- (1) the person makes a report of a criminal offense or
13- an emergency or causes a report of a criminal offense or an
14- emergency to be made to a peace officer, law enforcement agency,
15- 9-1-1 service as defined by Section 771.001, Health and Safety
16- Code, official or volunteer agency organized to deal with
17- emergencies, or any other governmental employee or contractor who
18- is authorized to receive reports of a criminal offense or
19- emergency;
20- (2) the person knows that the report is false;
21- (3) the report causes an emergency response from a law
22- enforcement agency or other emergency responder; and
23- (4) in making the report or causing the report to be
24- made, the person is reckless with regard to whether the emergency
10+ SECTION 1. Chapter 22, Penal Code, is amended by adding
11+ Section 22.14 to read as follows:
12+ Sec. 22.14. SWATTING. (a) A person commits an offense if
13+ the person reports a crime or an emergency or causes any report of a
14+ crime or an emergency to be made to a law enforcement officer, law
15+ enforcement agency, 9-1-1 service, official or volunteer agency, or
16+ any other governmental employee or contractor who is authorized to
17+ receive reports of a crime or emergency and:
18+ (1) the person knows that the report is false;
19+ (2) the report is reasonably likely to cause an
20+ emergency response from a law enforcement agency or other emergency
21+ responder; and
22+ (3) the person makes the report or causes the report to
23+ be made with reckless disregard about whether the emergency
2524 response by a law enforcement agency or other emergency responder
26- may directly result in bodily injury to another person.
25+ may directly result in bodily harm to any individual.
2726 (b) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor,
28- except that the offense is:
29- (1) a state jail felony if it is shown on the trial of
30- the offense that the defendant has previously been convicted two or
31- more times of an offense under this section; or
32- (2) a felony of the third degree if:
33- (A) the false report was of a criminal offense to
34- which a law enforcement agency or other emergency responder
35- responded; and
36- (B) a person suffered serious bodily injury or
37- death as a direct result of lawful conduct arising out of that
38- response.
39- (c) If conduct constituting an offense under this section
27+ except that:
28+ (1) the offense is a State Jail Felony if it is shown
29+ on the trial of the offense that the defendant has been previously
30+ convicted on two or more occasions of an offense under this section;
31+ or
32+ (2) the offense is a felony of the third degree if the
33+ false report results in an emergency response to a reported crime
34+ and a person is killed or suffers serious bodily injury as a
35+ proximate result of lawful conduct arising out of that response.
36+ (c) A court may order a defendant convicted of an offense
37+ under this section to make restitution to a public agency for the
38+ reasonable costs of the emergency response by that public agency
39+ resulting from the false report.
40+ (d) If in the trial of an offense under this section, an
41+ affirmative finding is made that the offense was committed because
42+ of bias or prejudice, under Article 42.014, Code of Criminal
43+ Procedure, the punishment for the offense is increased as provided
44+ under Section 12.47.
45+ (e) It is not a defense to prosecution under this section
46+ that no physical harm occurred to any person as a result of the
47+ false report, or that any harm that occurred was to physical
48+ property rather than injury to a person.
49+ (f) Nothing in this section shall be construed in any manner
50+ to:
51+ (1) conflict with 47 U.S.C. Section 230 of the
52+ Communications Decency Act; or
53+ (2) conflict with 42 U.S.C. Section 1983 of the Civil
54+ Rights Act.
55+ (g) If conduct constituting an offense under this section
4056 also constitutes an offense under another section of this code, the
4157 actor may be prosecuted under either section or both sections.
42- (d) This section may not be construed in any manner to
43- conflict with 47 U.S.C. Section 230 or 42 U.S.C. Section 1983.
4458 SECTION 2. Chapter 13, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
4559 amended by adding Article 13.40 to read as follows:
46- Art. 13.40. FALSE REPORT TO INDUCE EMERGENCY RESPONSE. An
47- offense under Section 42.0601, Penal Code, may be prosecuted in any
48- county in which:
60+ Art. 13.40. SWATTING. The offense of swatting may be
61+ prosecuted in any county in which:
4962 (1) the defendant resides;
50- (2) the false report was made; or
51- (3) a law enforcement agency or other emergency
52- responder responded to the false report.
53- SECTION 3. Article 42.014(a), Code of Criminal Procedure,
54- is amended to read as follows:
55- (a) In the trial of an offense under Title 5, Penal Code, or
56- Section 28.02, 28.03, [or] 28.08, or 42.0601, Penal Code, the judge
57- shall make an affirmative finding of fact and enter the affirmative
58- finding in the judgment of the case if at the guilt or innocence
59- phase of the trial, the judge or the jury, whichever is the trier of
60- fact, determines beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant
61- intentionally selected the person against whom the offense was
62- committed, or intentionally selected the person's property that was
63- damaged or affected as a result of the offense, because of the
64- defendant's bias or prejudice against a group identified by race,
65- color, disability, religion, national origin or ancestry, age,
66- gender, or sexual preference or by status as a peace officer or
67- judge.
68- SECTION 4. Article 42.037, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
69- amended by adding Subsection (w) to read as follows:
70- (w) If a defendant is convicted of an offense under Section
71- 42.0601, Penal Code, the court may order the defendant to make
72- restitution to an entity for the reasonable costs of the emergency
73- response by that entity resulting from the false report.
74- SECTION 5. Section 51.03(b), Family Code, is amended to
63+ (2) the false report was communicated; or
64+ (3) a law enforcement agency responded to the false
65+ report.
66+ SECTION 3. Section 51.03(b), Family Code, is amended to
7567 read as follows:
7668 (b) Conduct indicating a need for supervision is:
7769 (1) subject to Subsection (f), conduct, other than a
7870 traffic offense, that violates:
7971 (A) the penal laws of this state of the grade of
8072 misdemeanor that are punishable by fine only; or
8173 (B) the penal ordinances of any political
8274 subdivision of this state;
8375 (2) the voluntary absence of a child from the child's
8476 home without the consent of the child's parent or guardian for a
8577 substantial length of time or without intent to return;
8678 (3) conduct prohibited by city ordinance or by state
8779 law involving the inhalation of the fumes or vapors of paint and
8880 other protective coatings or glue and other adhesives and the
8981 volatile chemicals itemized in Section 485.001, Health and Safety
9082 Code;
9183 (4) an act that violates a school district's
9284 previously communicated written standards of student conduct for
9385 which the child has been expelled under Section 37.007(c),
9486 Education Code;
9587 (5) notwithstanding Subsection (a)(1), conduct
9688 described by Section 43.02(a) or (b), Penal Code; [or]
9789 (6) notwithstanding Subsection (a)(1), conduct that
9890 violates Section 43.261, Penal Code; or
9991 (7) notwithstanding Subsection (a)(1), conduct that
100- violates Section 42.0601, Penal Code, if the child has not
101- previously been adjudicated as having engaged in conduct violating
102- that section.
103- SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.
104- ______________________________ ______________________________
105- President of the Senate Speaker of the House
106- I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1056 passed the Senate on
107- April 19, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0; and that
108- the Senate concurred in House amendment on May 27, 2021, by the
109- following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
110- ______________________________
111- Secretary of the Senate
112- I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1056 passed the House, with
113- amendment, on May 11, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 142,
114- Nays 1, two present not voting.
115- ______________________________
116- Chief Clerk of the House
117- Approved:
118- ______________________________
119- Date
120- ______________________________
121- Governor
92+ violates Section 22.14, Penal Code, if the child has not been
93+ previously adjudicated for conduct in violation of that section.
94+ SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.