| 2 | | - | (In the Senate - Filed January 28, 2025; February 13, 2025, |
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| 3 | | - | read first time and referred to Committee on Criminal Justice; |
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| 4 | | - | March 19, 2025, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 7, |
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| 5 | | - | Nays 0; March 19, 2025, sent to printer.) |
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| 6 | | - | Click here to see the committee vote |
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| 3 | + | |
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| 4 | + | |
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| 7 | 5 | | |
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| 8 | 6 | | |
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| 9 | 7 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 10 | 8 | | AN ACT |
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| 11 | 9 | | relating to the creation of the criminal offense of continuous |
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| 12 | 10 | | aggravated promotion of prostitution. |
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| 13 | 11 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 14 | 12 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 43, Penal Code, is amended |
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| 15 | 13 | | by adding Section 43.042 to read as follows: |
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| 16 | 14 | | Sec. 43.042. CONTINUOUS AGGRAVATED PROMOTION OF |
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| 17 | 15 | | PROSTITUTION. (a) A person commits an offense if, during a period |
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| 18 | 16 | | that is 30 or more days in duration, the person engages two or more |
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| 19 | 17 | | times in conduct that constitutes an offense under Section 43.04. |
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| 20 | 18 | | (b) If a jury is the trier of fact, members of the jury are |
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| 21 | 19 | | not required to agree unanimously on which specific conduct engaged |
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| 22 | 20 | | in by the defendant constituted an offense under Section 43.04 or on |
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| 23 | 21 | | which exact date the defendant engaged in that conduct. The jury |
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| 24 | 22 | | must agree unanimously that the defendant, during a period that is |
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| 25 | 23 | | 30 or more days in duration, engaged two or more times in conduct |
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| 26 | 24 | | that constituted an offense under Section 43.04. |
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| 27 | 25 | | (c) If the victim of an offense under Subsection (a) is the |
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| 28 | 26 | | same victim as a victim of an offense under Section 43.04, a |
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| 29 | 27 | | defendant may not be convicted of the offense under Section 43.04 in |
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| 30 | 28 | | the same criminal action as the offense under Subsection (a), |
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| 31 | 29 | | unless the offense under Section 43.04: |
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| 32 | 30 | | (1) is charged in the alternative; |
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| 33 | 31 | | (2) occurred outside the period in which the offense |
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| 34 | 32 | | alleged under Subsection (a) was committed; or |
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| 35 | 33 | | (3) is considered by the trier of fact to be a lesser |
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| 36 | 34 | | included offense of the offense alleged under Subsection (a). |
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| 37 | 35 | | (d) A defendant may not be charged with more than one count |
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| 38 | 36 | | under Subsection (a) if all of the conduct that constitutes an |
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| 39 | 37 | | offense under Section 43.04 is alleged to have been committed |
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| 40 | 38 | | against the same victim. |
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| 41 | 39 | | (e) An offense under this section is a felony of the first |
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| 42 | 40 | | degree, punishable by imprisonment in the Texas Department of |
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| 43 | 41 | | Criminal Justice for life or for any term of not more than 99 years |
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| 44 | 42 | | or less than 25 years. |
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| 45 | 43 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |
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