Enrolled Bill Summary

            House Bill 2987 amends the Code of Criminal Procedure to establish guidelines for a court to determine whether a sex offender may be exempt from the sex offender registration requirements. If a judge finds during a trial for certain sexual offenses, or when placing a defendant on community supervision, that the defendant was younger than 19 years of age and the victim was at least 13 years of age, and the conviction is based solely on the ages of the defendant and victim at the time of the offense, the judge is required to enter the finding in the judgment. If there is an affirmative finding regarding the ages, a person who is required to register as a sex offender may petition the court for an exemption from the registration requirements. After a hearing, a court may issue the exemption order if it finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the exemption does not threaten public safety and that the person's conduct did not occur without the consent of the victim.