89R16232 CJD-D
By: King S.B. No. 2771
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the prosecution of the offense of aggravated assault.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 22.02, Penal Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to
read as follows:
(a) A person commits an offense if the person commits
assault as defined in Sec. 22.01 and the person:
(1) causes serious bodily injury to another, including
the person's spouse; [or]
(2) causes substantial bodily injury to another,
including the person's spouse; or
(3) uses or exhibits a deadly weapon during the
commission of the assault.
(b) An offense under Subsection (a)(1) or (3) [this section]
is a felony of the second degree, except that the offense is a
felony of the first degree if:
(1) the actor uses a deadly weapon during the
commission of the assault and causes:
(A) serious bodily injury to a person whose
relationship to or association with the defendant is described by
Section 71.0021(b), 71.003, or 71.005, Family Code; or
(B) a traumatic brain or spine injury to another
that results in a persistent vegetative state or irreversible
paralysis;
(2) regardless of whether the offense is committed
under Subsection (a)(1) or (a)(3) [(a)(2)], the offense is
committed:
(A) by a public servant acting under color of the
servant's office or employment;
(B) against a person the actor knows is a public
servant while the public servant is lawfully discharging an
official duty, or in retaliation or on account of an exercise of
official power or performance of an official duty as a public
servant;
(C) in retaliation against or on account of the
service of another as a witness, prospective witness, informant, or
person who has reported the occurrence of a crime;
(D) against a person the actor knows is a process
server while the person is performing a duty as a process server; or
(E) against a person the actor knows is a
security officer while the officer is performing a duty as a
security officer;
(3) the actor is in a motor vehicle, as defined by
Section 501.002, Transportation Code, and:
(A) knowingly discharges a firearm at or in the
direction of a habitation, building, or vehicle;
(B) is reckless as to whether the habitation,
building, or vehicle is occupied; and
(C) in discharging the firearm, causes serious
bodily injury to any person; or
(4) the actor commits the assault as part of a mass
shooting.
(b-1) An offense under Subsection (a)(2) is a felony of the
third degree.
SECTION 2. Section 22.02(d), Penal Code, is amended by
adding Subdivision (3) to read as follows:
(3) "Substantial bodily injury" means bodily injury
that causes protracted physical pain, temporary disfigurement, or
temporary loss or impairment of the function of any bodily member or
organ.
SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,
and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For
purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the
effective date of this Act if any element of the offense was
committed before that date.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.