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House Bill 823 |
House Author: Keel et al. |
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Effective: 9-1-05 |
Senate Sponsor: Hinojosa et al. |
The law provides that the offense of unlawful carrying of a weapon is not applicable to a person who is traveling. House Bill 823 amends the Penal Code to clarify that, for this purpose, a person is presumed to be traveling if the person is in a private motor vehicle, is not otherwise engaged in criminal activity other than certain traffic offenses, is not otherwise prohibited by law from possessing a firearm, is not a member of a criminal street gang, and is not carrying a handgun in plain view. The bill also provides evidentiary instructions relating to any penal law presumption in favor of a defendant with respect to any fact.