| 1 | 1 | | 87R3339 MEW-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Lucio S.B. No. 189 |
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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 certain sentencing procedures in a capital case. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. Section 2(a)(1), Article 37.071, Code of |
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| 10 | 10 | | Criminal Procedure, is amended to read as follows: |
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| 11 | 11 | | (1) If a defendant is tried for a capital offense in |
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| 12 | 12 | | which the state seeks the death penalty, on a finding that the |
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| 13 | 13 | | defendant is guilty of a capital offense, the court shall conduct a |
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| 14 | 14 | | separate sentencing proceeding to determine whether the defendant |
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| 15 | 15 | | shall be sentenced to death or life imprisonment without |
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| 16 | 16 | | parole. The proceeding shall be conducted in the trial court and, |
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| 17 | 17 | | except as provided by Article 44.29(c) [of this code], before the |
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| 18 | 18 | | trial jury as soon as practicable. In the proceeding, evidence may |
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| 19 | 19 | | be presented by the state and the defendant or the defendant's |
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| 20 | 20 | | counsel as to any matter that the court deems relevant to sentence, |
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| 21 | 21 | | including evidence of the defendant's background or character or |
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| 22 | 22 | | the circumstances of the offense that mitigates against the |
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| 23 | 23 | | imposition of the death penalty. This subdivision shall not be |
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| 24 | 24 | | construed to authorize the introduction of any evidence secured in |
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| 25 | 25 | | violation of the Constitution of the United States or of the State |
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| 26 | 26 | | of Texas. The state and the defendant or the defendant's counsel |
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| 27 | 27 | | shall be permitted to present argument for or against sentence of |
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| 28 | 28 | | death. The introduction of evidence of extraneous conduct is |
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| 29 | 29 | | governed by the notice requirements of Section 3(g), Article |
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| 30 | 30 | | 37.07. [The court, the attorney representing the state, the |
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| 31 | 31 | | defendant, or the defendant's counsel may not inform a juror or a |
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| 32 | 32 | | prospective juror of the effect of a failure of a jury to agree on |
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| 33 | 33 | | issues submitted under Subsection (c) or (e).] |
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| 34 | 34 | | SECTION 2. Section 2(d), Article 37.071, Code of Criminal |
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| 35 | 35 | | Procedure, is amended to read as follows: |
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| 36 | 36 | | (d) The court shall charge the jury that: |
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| 37 | 37 | | (1) in deliberating on the issues submitted under |
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| 38 | 38 | | Subsection (b) [of this article], the jury [it] shall consider all |
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| 39 | 39 | | evidence admitted at the guilt or innocence stage and the |
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| 40 | 40 | | punishment stage, including evidence of the defendant's background |
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| 41 | 41 | | or character or the circumstances of the offense that militates for |
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| 42 | 42 | | or mitigates against the imposition of the death penalty; |
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| 43 | 43 | | (2) the jury [it] may not answer any issue submitted |
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| 44 | 44 | | under Subsection (b) [of this article] "yes" unless the jury [it] |
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| 45 | 45 | | agrees unanimously [and it may not answer any issue "no" unless 10 |
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| 46 | 46 | | or more jurors agree]; and |
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| 47 | 47 | | (3) members of the jury need not agree on what |
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| 48 | 48 | | particular evidence supports a negative answer to any issue |
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| 49 | 49 | | submitted under Subsection (b) [of this article]. |
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| 50 | 50 | | SECTION 3. Section 2(f), Article 37.071, Code of Criminal |
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| 51 | 51 | | Procedure, is amended to read as follows: |
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| 52 | 52 | | (f) The court shall charge the jury that in answering the |
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| 53 | 53 | | issue submitted under Subsection (e) [of this article], the jury: |
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| 54 | 54 | | (1) shall answer the issue "yes" or "no"; |
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| 55 | 55 | | (2) may not answer the issue "no" unless the jury [it] |
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| 56 | 56 | | agrees unanimously [and may not answer the issue "yes" unless 10 or |
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| 57 | 57 | | more jurors agree]; |
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| 58 | 58 | | (3) need not agree on what particular evidence |
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| 59 | 59 | | supports an affirmative finding on the issue; and |
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| 60 | 60 | | (4) shall consider mitigating evidence to be evidence |
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| 61 | 61 | | that a juror might regard as reducing the defendant's moral |
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| 62 | 62 | | blameworthiness. |
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| 63 | 63 | | SECTION 4. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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| 64 | 64 | | to a criminal proceeding that commences on or after the effective |
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| 65 | 65 | | date of this Act. A criminal proceeding that commenced before the |
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| 66 | 66 | | effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the |
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| 67 | 67 | | date the proceeding commenced, and the former law is continued in |
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| 68 | 68 | | effect for that purpose. |
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| 69 | 69 | | SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021. |
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