Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB529 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Huffman S.B. No. 529
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to retention and preservation of toxicological evidence of
7	7	certain intoxication offenses.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Article 38.50, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
10	10	amended by amending Subsections (c) and (d), amending and
11	11	renumbering Subsection (e), renumbering Subsection (f), and adding
12	12	Subsections (e) and (g) to read as follows:
13	13	(c) An entity or individual described by Subsection (b)
14	14	shall ensure that toxicological evidence collected pursuant to an
15	15	investigation or prosecution of an offense under Chapter 49, Penal
16	16	Code, is retained and preserved, as applicable:
17	17	(1) for the greater of two years or the period of the
18	18	statute of limitations for the offense, if the indictment or
19	19	information charging the defendant, or the petition in a juvenile
20	20	proceeding, has not been presented or has been dismissed without
21	21	prejudice;
22	22	(2) for the duration of a defendant's sentence or term
23	23	of community supervision, as applicable, if the defendant is
24	24	convicted or placed on community supervision, or for the duration
25	25	of the commitment or supervision period applicable to the
26	26	disposition of a juvenile adjudicated as having engaged in
27	27	delinquent conduct or conduct indicating a need for supervision; or
28	28	(3) until the defendant is acquitted or the indictment
29	29	or information is dismissed with prejudice, or, in a juvenile
30	30	proceeding, until a hearing is held and the court does not find the
31	31	child engaged in delinquent conduct or conduct indicating a need
32	32	for supervision.
33	33	(d) [For each offense subject to this article, the court
34	34	shall determine as soon as practicable the appropriate retention
35	35	and preservation period for the toxicological evidence under
36	36	Subsection (c) and notify the defendant or the child or child's
37	37	guardian and the entity or individual charged with storage of the
38	38	toxicological evidence] A person from whom toxicological evidence
39	39	was collected must be notified of the periods for which the evidence
40	40	[is to] may be retained and preserved under this article. [If an
41	41	action of the prosecutor or the court changes the applicable period
42	42	under Subsection (c), the court shall notify the persons described
43	43	by this subsection about the change.] The notice must be given by:
44	44	(1) an entity or individual described by subsection
45	45	(b) that collects the evidence, if the entity or individual
46	46	collected the evidence directly from the person or collected it
47	47	from a third party; or
48	48	(2) the court, if the records of the court do not show
49	49	that the person was not given notice by (d)(1) and the toxicological
50	50	evidence is subject to the retention period under Subsection (c)(2)
51	51	or (c)(3).
52	52	(e) Notice given under this article must be given in
53	53	writing, as soon as practicable, by hand delivery, by electronic
54	54	mail or first class mail to the person's last know email or mailing
55	55	address, or by provision of the information required by section
56	56	724.015, Transportation Code.
57	57	[(e)](f) Subject to subsection (g), if notice was given in
58	58	accordance with this article, the [The] entity or individual
59	59	charged with storing toxicological evidence may destroy the
60	60	evidence on expiration of the applicable retention period provided
61	61	by [the notice most recently issued by the court under Subsection
62	62	(d)] Subsection (c).
63	63	(g) If the toxicological evidence is subject to the
64	64	retention period under Subsection (c)(2) or (c)(3), the entity or
65	65	individual charged with storing toxicological evidence may not
66	66	destroy the evidence without written approval of the prosecutor's
67	67	office that presented the indictment, information, or petition.
68	68	[(f)] (h) To the extent of any conflict between this article
69	69	and Article 2.21 or 38.43, this article controls.
70	70	SECTION 2. Section 724.015, Transportation Code, is amended
71	71	to read as follows:
72	72	Sec. 724.015. INFORMATION PROVIDED BY OFFICER BEFORE
73	73	REQUESTING SPECIMEN; STATEMENT OF CONSENT. (a) Before requesting a
74	74	person to submit to the taking of a specimen, the officer shall
75	75	inform the person orally and in writing that:
76	76	(1) if the person refuses to submit to the taking of
77	77	the specimen, that refusal may be admissible in a subsequent
78	78	prosecution;
79	79	(2) if the person refuses to submit to the taking of
80	80	the specimen, the person's license to operate a motor vehicle will
81	81	be automatically suspended, whether or not the person is
82	82	subsequently prosecuted as a result of the arrest, for not less than
83	83	180 days;
84	84	(3) if the person refuses to submit to the taking of a
85	85	specimen, the officer may apply for a warrant authorizing a
86	86	specimen to be taken from the person;
87	87	(4) if the person submits to the taking of a blood
88	88	specimen, the specimen will be retained and preserved in accordance
89	89	with preservation requirements set out in article 38.50, Code of
90	90	Criminal Procedure;
91	91	[(4)](5) if the person is 21 years of age or older and submits
92	92	to the taking of a specimen designated by the officer and an
93	93	analysis of the specimen shows the person had an alcohol
94	94	concentration of a level specified by Chapter 49, Penal Code, the
95	95	person's license to operate a motor vehicle will be automatically
96	96	suspended for not less than 90 days, whether or not the person is
97	97	subsequently prosecuted as a result of the arrest;
98	98	[(5)](6) if the person is younger than 21 years of age and has
99	99	any detectable amount of alcohol in the person's system, the
100	100	person's license to operate a motor vehicle will be automatically
101	101	suspended for not less than 60 days even if the person submits to
102	102	the taking of the specimen, but that if the person submits to the
103	103	taking of the specimen and an analysis of the specimen shows that
104	104	the person had an alcohol concentration less than the level
105	105	specified by Chapter 49, Penal Code, the person may be subject to
106	106	criminal penalties less severe than those provided under that
107	107	chapter;
108	108	[(6)](7) if the officer determines that the person is a
109	109	resident without a license to operate a motor vehicle in this state,
110	110	the department will deny to the person the issuance of a license,
111	111	whether or not the person is subsequently prosecuted as a result of
112	112	the arrest, under the same conditions and for the same periods that
113	113	would have applied to a revocation of the person 's driver's license
114	114	if the person had held a driver's license issued by this state; and
115	115	[(7)](8) the person has a right to a hearing on the suspension
116	116	or denial if, not later than the 15th day after the date on which the
117	117	person receives the notice of suspension or denial or on which the
118	118	person is considered to have received the notice by mail as provided
119	119	by law, the department receives, at its headquarters in Austin, a
120	120	written demand, including a facsimile transmission, or a request in
121	121	another form prescribed by the department for the hearing.
122	122	(b) If a person consents to the request of an officer to
123	123	submit to the taking of a specimen, the officer shall request the
124	124	person to sign a statement that:
125	125	(1) the officer requested that the person submit to
126	126	the taking of a specimen;
127	127	(2) the person was informed of the consequences of not
128	128	submitting to the taking of a specimen; and
129	129	(3) the person voluntarily consented to the taking of
130	130	a specimen.
131	131	SECTION 3. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this
132	132	section, the change in law made by Section 1 of this Act applies
133	133	only to evidence for which the appropriate retention and
134	134	preservation period under Article 38.50, Code of Criminal
135	135	Procedure, as amended by this Act, expires on or after the effective
136	136	date of this Act. Evidence for which the appropriate retention and
137	137	preservation period expired before the effective date of this Act
138	138	is governed by the law in effect on the date of expiration of that
139	139	period, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
140	140	(b) If the appropriate retention and preservation period
141	141	under Article 38.50(c)(2) or (3), Code of Criminal Procedure, as
142	142	applicable, has expired with respect to evidence held in storage on
143	143	the effective date of this Act, and notice regarding that evidence
144	144	has not yet been given under Article 38.50(d), Code of Criminal
145	145	Procedure, as that subsection existed immediately before the
146	146	effective date of this Act, the court shall provide the notice
147	147	required by Article 38.50(d-1), Code of Criminal Procedure, as
148	148	added by this Act, not later than December 1, 2021.
149	149	(c) The change in law made by Section 2 of this Act applies
150	150	only to the request for the taking of a breath or blood specimen to
151	151	test for intoxication that occurs on or after the effective date of
152	152	this Act. The request for the taking of a specimen that occurs
153	153	before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in
154	154	effect on the date the specimen was requested, and the former law is
155	155	continued in effect for that purpose.
156	156	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.