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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the punishment for the offense of burglary of a vehicle. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 30.04, Penal Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsection (f) to read as |
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follows: |
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(d) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor, |
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except that: |
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(1) the offense is a Class A misdemeanor with a minimum |
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term of confinement of six months if it is shown on the trial of the |
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offense that the defendant has been previously convicted of an |
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offense under this section; |
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(2) the offense is a state jail felony if: |
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(A) it is shown on the trial of the offense that |
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the defendant has been previously convicted two or more times of an |
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offense under this section; or |
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(B) the actor: |
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(i) broke into or entered a [the] vehicle, |
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or part of a [the] vehicle, that [broken into or entered] is a rail |
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car; |
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(ii) possessed a firearm during the |
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commission of the offense; |
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(iii) committed theft of a firearm during |
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the commission of the offense; |
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(iv) used a stolen vehicle to facilitate |
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the commission of the offense; or |
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(v) committed the offense with respect to |
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two or more vehicles during the same criminal transaction or during |
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different criminal transactions but pursuant to the same scheme or |
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course of conduct; and |
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(3) the offense is a felony of the third degree if: |
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(A) the vehicle broken into or entered is owned |
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or operated by a wholesale distributor of prescription drugs; and |
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(B) the actor breaks into or enters that vehicle |
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with the intent to commit theft of a controlled substance. |
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(f) In this section, "firearm" has the meaning assigned by |
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Section 46.01. |
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SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this |
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Act. An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is |
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governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, |
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and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For |
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purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the |
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effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred |
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before that date. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |