By: White, Wu, et al. H.B. No. 1783

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the age of a child at which a juvenile court may exercise jurisdiction over the child and to the minimum age of criminal responsibility.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Article 45.058(h), Code of Criminal Procedure, is amended to read as follows:

(h) In this article, "child" means a person who is:

(1) at least 13 [10] years of age and younger than 17 years of age; and

(2) charged with or convicted of an offense that a justice or municipal court has jurisdiction of under Article 4.11 or 4.14.

SECTION 2. Section 37.141(1), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(1) "Child" means a person who is:

(A) a student; and

(B) at least 13 [10] years of age and younger than 18 years of age.

SECTION 3. Section 51.02(2), Family Code, is amended to read as follows:

(2) "Child" means a person who is:

(A) 10 [ten] years of age or older and under 17 years of age; or

(B) 17 [seventeen] years of age or older and under 19 [18] years of age who is:

(i) alleged or found to have engaged in delinquent conduct or conduct indicating a need for supervision as a result of acts committed before becoming 17 years of age; and

(ii) under the jurisdiction of a juvenile court.

SECTION 4. Section 54.02(j), Family Code, is amended to read as follows:

(j) The juvenile court may waive its exclusive original jurisdiction and transfer a person to the appropriate district court or criminal district court for criminal proceedings if:

(1) the person is 18 years of age or older;

(2) the person was:

(A) 13 [10] years of age or older and under 17 years of age at the time the person is alleged to have committed a capital felony or an offense under Section 19.02, Penal Code;

(B) 14 years of age or older and under 17 years of age at the time the person is alleged to have committed an aggravated controlled substance felony or a felony of the first degree other than an offense under Section 19.02, Penal Code; or

(C) 15 years of age or older and under 17 years of age at the time the person is alleged to have committed a felony of the second or third degree or a state jail felony;

(3) no adjudication concerning the alleged offense has been made or no adjudication hearing concerning the offense has been conducted;

(4) the juvenile court finds from a preponderance of the evidence that:

(A) for a reason beyond the control of the state it was not practicable to proceed in juvenile court before the 18th birthday of the person; or

(B) after due diligence of the state it was not practicable to proceed in juvenile court before the 18th birthday of the person because:

(i) the state did not have probable cause to proceed in juvenile court and new evidence has been found since the 18th birthday of the person;

(ii) the person could not be found; or

(iii) a previous transfer order was reversed by an appellate court or set aside by a district court; and

(5) the juvenile court determines that there is probable cause to believe that the child before the court committed the offense alleged.

SECTION 5. Chapter 54, Family Code, is amended by adding Section 54.021 to read as follows:

Sec. 54.021. WAIVER OF JURISDICTION FOR CHILD UNDER 13 YEARS OF AGE. (a) The juvenile court shall, before holding an adjudication hearing, hold a hearing without a jury to determine whether to waive its exclusive original jurisdiction over a child under 13 years of age.

(b) At a hearing under this section, the juvenile court shall consider whether:

(1) normal interventions by the child's parent, guardian, family, or school, or by child protective services or county family and youth services, will be sufficient to ensure the safety of the public and of the child;

(2) intervention by the court is warranted; and

(3) it is in the best interest of the child for the court to intervene.

(c) If the court elects not to waive its jurisdiction over a child in a hearing under this section, the court shall state the reasons for its decision in the order.

(d) If the court elects to waive its jurisdiction over a child in a hearing under this section, the court shall dismiss all charges against the child. The court shall refer the child to the person who conducted the preliminary investigation of the child under Section 53.01 for a referral for services described by Subsection (b)(1), as appropriate.

SECTION 6. Section 201.001(a)(2), Human Resources Code, is amended to read as follows:

(2) "Child" means an individual[:

[(A)] 10 years of age or older and younger than 19 [18] years of age who is under the jurisdiction of a juvenile court[; or

[(B) 10 years of age or older and younger than 19 years of age who is committed to the department under Title 3, Family Code].

SECTION 7. Sections 8.07(d) and (e), Penal Code, are amended to read as follows:

(d) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), a person may not be prosecuted for or convicted of an offense described by Subsection (a)(4) or (5) that the person committed when younger than 13 [10] years of age.

(e) A person who is at least 13 [10] years of age but younger than 15 years of age is presumed incapable of committing an offense described by Subsection (a)(4) or (5), other than an offense under a juvenile curfew ordinance or order. This presumption may be refuted if the prosecution proves to the court by a preponderance of the evidence that the actor had sufficient capacity to understand that the conduct engaged in was wrong at the time the conduct was engaged in. The prosecution is not required to prove that the actor at the time of engaging in the conduct knew that the act was a criminal offense or knew the legal consequences of the offense.

SECTION 8. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to an offense committed or conduct that occurs on or after the effective date of this Act. An offense committed or conduct that occurred before that date is governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed or the conduct occurred, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense was committed or conduct occurred before the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense or conduct occurred before that date.

SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.