Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1572 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R4992 JRR-D
2	2	By: Campos H.B. No. 1572
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to mail theft and certain criminal offenses committed
10	10	against an employee or contractor of a common carrier or delivery
11	11	service delivering mail; increasing criminal penalties.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. Sections 22.01(b) and (d), Penal Code, are
14	14	amended to read as follows:
15	15	(b) An offense under Subsection (a)(1) is a Class A
16	16	misdemeanor, except that the offense is a felony of the third degree
17	17	if the offense is committed against:
18	18	(1) a person the actor knows is a public servant while
19	19	the public servant is lawfully discharging an official duty, or in
20	20	retaliation or on account of an exercise of official power or
21	21	performance of an official duty as a public servant;
22	22	(2) a person whose relationship to or association with
23	23	the defendant is described by Section 71.0021(b), 71.003, or
24	24	71.005, Family Code, if:
25	25	(A) it is shown on the trial of the offense that
26	26	the defendant has been previously convicted of an offense that was
27	27	committed:
28	28	(i) against a person whose relationship to
29	29	or association with the defendant is described by Section
30	30	71.0021(b), 71.003, or 71.005, Family Code; and
31	31	(ii) under:
32	32	(a) this chapter, Chapter 19, or
33	33	Section 20.03, 20.04, 21.11, or 25.11;
34	34	(b) Section 25.07, if the applicable
35	35	violation was based on the commission of family violence as
36	36	described by Subsection (a)(1) of that section; or
37	37	(c) Section 25.072, if any of the
38	38	applicable violations were based on the commission of family
39	39	violence as described by Section 25.07(a)(1); or
40	40	(B) the offense is committed by intentionally,
41	41	knowingly, or recklessly impeding the normal breathing or
42	42	circulation of the blood of the person by applying pressure to the
43	43	person's throat or neck or by blocking the person's nose or mouth;
44	44	(3) a person who contracts with government to perform
45	45	a service in a facility described by Section 1.07(a)(14), Penal
46	46	Code, or Section 51.02(13) or (14), Family Code, or an employee of
47	47	that person:
48	48	(A) while the person or employee is engaged in
49	49	performing a service within the scope of the contract, if the actor
50	50	knows the person or employee is authorized by government to provide
51	51	the service; or
52	52	(B) in retaliation for or on account of the
53	53	person's or employee's performance of a service within the scope of
54	54	the contract;
55	55	(4) a person the actor knows is a security officer
56	56	while the officer is performing a duty as a security officer;
57	57	(5) a person the actor knows is emergency services
58	58	personnel while the person is providing emergency services;
59	59	(6) a person the actor knows is a process server while
60	60	the person is performing a duty as a process server;
61	61	(7) a person the actor knows is an employee or
62	62	contractor of a common carrier or delivery service while the person
63	63	is performing a duty relating to the delivery of mail, as defined by
64	64	Section 31.20;
65	65	(8) a pregnant individual to force the individual to
66	66	have an abortion;
67	67	(9) [(8)] a person the actor knows is pregnant at the
68	68	time of the offense; or
69	69	(10) [(9)] a person the actor knows is hospital
70	70	personnel while the person is located on hospital property,
71	71	including all land and buildings owned or leased by the hospital.
72	72	(d) For purposes of Subsection (b), the actor is presumed to
73	73	have known the person assaulted was a public servant, a security
74	74	officer, [or] emergency services personnel, or an employee or
75	75	contractor of a common carrier or delivery service if the person was
76	76	wearing a distinctive uniform or badge indicating the person's
77	77	employment as a public servant or status as a security officer, [or]
78	78	emergency services personnel, or an employee or contractor of a
79	79	common carrier or delivery service.
80	80	SECTION 2. Sections 22.02(b) and (c), Penal Code, are
81	81	amended to read as follows:
82	82	(b) An offense under this section is a felony of the second
83	83	degree, except that the offense is a felony of the first degree if:
84	84	(1) the actor uses a deadly weapon during the
85	85	commission of the assault and causes:
86	86	(A) serious bodily injury to a person whose
87	87	relationship to or association with the defendant is described by
88	88	Section 71.0021(b), 71.003, or 71.005, Family Code; or
89	89	(B) a traumatic brain or spine injury to another
90	90	that results in a persistent vegetative state or irreversible
91	91	paralysis;
92	92	(2) regardless of whether the offense is committed
93	93	under Subsection (a)(1) or (a)(2), the offense is committed:
94	94	(A) by a public servant acting under color of the
95	95	servant's office or employment;
96	96	(B) against a person the actor knows is a public
97	97	servant while the public servant is lawfully discharging an
98	98	official duty, or in retaliation or on account of an exercise of
99	99	official power or performance of an official duty as a public
100	100	servant;
101	101	(C) in retaliation against or on account of the
102	102	service of another as a witness, prospective witness, informant, or
103	103	person who has reported the occurrence of a crime;
104	104	(D) against a person the actor knows is a process
105	105	server while the person is performing a duty as a process server;
106	106	[or]
107	107	(E) against a person the actor knows is a
108	108	security officer while the officer is performing a duty as a
109	109	security officer; or
110	110	(F) against a person the actor knows is an
111	111	employee or contractor of a common carrier or delivery service
112	112	while the person is performing a duty relating to the delivery of
113	113	mail, as defined by Section 31.20;
114	114	(3) the actor is in a motor vehicle, as defined by
115	115	Section 501.002, Transportation Code, and:
116	116	(A) knowingly discharges a firearm at or in the
117	117	direction of a habitation, building, or vehicle;
118	118	(B) is reckless as to whether the habitation,
119	119	building, or vehicle is occupied; and
120	120	(C) in discharging the firearm, causes serious
121	121	bodily injury to any person; or
122	122	(4) the actor commits the assault as part of a mass
123	123	shooting.
124	124	(c) The actor is presumed to have known the person assaulted
125	125	was a public servant, [or] a security officer, or an employee or
126	126	contractor of a common carrier or delivery service if the person was
127	127	wearing a distinctive uniform or badge indicating the person's
128	128	employment as a public servant or status as a security officer or an
129	129	employee or contractor of a common carrier or delivery service.
130	130	SECTION 3. Section 31.20, Penal Code, is amended by adding
131	131	Subsection (b-1) and amending Subsections (c), (d), and (e) to read
132	132	as follows:
133	133	(b-1) For purposes of Subsection (b), an actor in possession
134	134	of mail that, in the aggregate, is addressed to at least five
135	135	persons other than the actor is presumed to have engaged in conduct
136	136	constituting an offense under that subsection unless the actor
137	137	possesses the mail in the course of the person's duties as an
138	138	employee or contractor of a common carrier or delivery service.
139	139	(c) Except as provided by Subsections (d) and (e), an
140	140	offense under this section is:
141	141	(1) a state jail felony [Class A misdemeanor] if the
142	142	mail is appropriated from fewer than 10 addressees;
143	143	(2) a [state jail] felony of the third degree if the
144	144	mail is appropriated from at least 10 but fewer than 30 addressees;
145	145	or
146	146	(3) a felony of the second [third] degree if the mail
147	147	is appropriated from 30 or more addressees.
148	148	(d) If it is shown on the trial of an offense under this
149	149	section that the appropriated mail contained an item of identifying
150	150	information and the actor committed the offense with the intent to
151	151	facilitate an offense under Section 32.51, an offense under this
152	152	section is:
153	153	(1) [a state jail felony if the mail is appropriated
154	154	from fewer than 10 addressees;
155	155	[(2)] a felony of the third degree if the mail is
156	156	appropriated from [at least 10 but] fewer than 20 addressees;
157	157	(2) [(3)] a felony of the second degree if the mail is
158	158	appropriated from at least 20 but fewer than 50 addressees; or
159	159	(3) [(4)] a felony of the first degree if the mail is
160	160	appropriated from 50 or more addressees.
161	161	(e) An offense described for purposes of punishment by
162	162	Subsection (d)(1)[, (2),] or (2) [(3)] is increased to the next
163	163	higher category of offense if it is shown on the trial of the
164	164	offense that at the time of the offense the actor knew or had reason
165	165	to believe that an addressee from whom the actor appropriated mail
166	166	was a disabled individual or an elderly individual.
167	167	SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
168	168	an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. An
169	169	offense committed before the effective date of this Act is governed
170	170	by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, and the
171	171	former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of
172	172	this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of
173	173	this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date.
174	174	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.