88R3772 CJD-D
By: Wu H.B. No. 1362
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the punishment for a capital felony committed by an
individual younger than 21 years of age.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 8.07(c), Penal Code, is amended to read
as follows:
(c) No person may, in any case, be punished by death for an
offense committed while the person was younger than 21 [18] years.
SECTION 2. Section 12.31, Penal Code, is amended to read as
follows:
Sec. 12.31. CAPITAL FELONY. (a) An individual adjudged
guilty of a capital felony in a case in which the state seeks the
death penalty shall be punished by imprisonment in the Texas
Department of Criminal Justice for life without parole or by
death. An individual adjudged guilty of a capital felony in a case
in which the state does not seek the death penalty shall be punished
by imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for:
(1) life, if the individual committed the offense when
younger than 21 [18] years of age; or
(2) life without parole, if the individual committed
the offense when 21 [18] years of age or older.
(b) In a capital felony trial in which the state seeks the
death penalty, prospective jurors shall be informed that a sentence
of life imprisonment without parole or death is mandatory on
conviction of a capital felony. In a capital felony trial in which
the state does not seek the death penalty, prospective jurors shall
be informed that the state is not seeking the death penalty and
that:
(1) a sentence of life imprisonment is mandatory on
conviction of the capital felony, if the individual committed the
offense when younger than 21 [18] years of age; or
(2) a sentence of life imprisonment without parole is
mandatory on conviction of the capital felony, if the individual
committed the offense when 21 [18] years of age or older.
SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act:
(1) applies to a criminal action pending, on appeal,
or commenced on or after the effective date of this Act, regardless
of whether the criminal action is based on an offense committed
before, on, or after the effective date of this Act; and
(2) does not affect a final conviction that exists on
the effective date of this Act.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.