By: Cuellar, H. H.B. No. 354
73R2435 NSC-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the creation of the offense of money laundering, to the
1-3 offense of engaging in organized criminal activity, to prosecution
1-4 and investigation of money laundering, and to forfeiture of the
1-5 proceeds of money laundering.
1-6 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-7 SECTION 1. Title 7, Penal Code, is amended by adding Chapter
1-8 34 to read as follows:
1-9 CHAPTER 34. MONEY LAUNDERING
1-10 Sec. 34.01. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
1-11 (1) "Criminal activity" means any offense, including
1-12 any preparatory offense, that is punishable by confinement for one
1-13 year or more under the laws of this state, another state, or the
1-14 United States.
1-15 (2) "Proceeds" means property acquired or derived
1-16 directly or indirectly from, produced through, or realized through
1-17 an act.
1-18 (3) "Property" means anything of value, including:
1-19 (A) real property;
1-20 (B) tangible or intangible personal property;
1-21 (C) a document, including money, that represents
1-22 or embodies anything of value; or
1-23 (D) an interest in property, including a
1-24 benefit, privilege, claim, or right with respect to anything of
2-1 value, whether real or personal, tangible or intangible.
2-2 (4) "Reasonable care" means the degree of prudence or
2-3 care an ordinary and prudent person would exercise under the same
2-4 or similar circumstances.
2-5 Sec. 34.02. MONEY LAUNDERING. (a) A person commits an
2-6 offense if the person intentionally:
2-7 (1) acquires or maintains an interest in, receives,
2-8 conceals, transfers, or transports property the person knows,
2-9 believes, or should know, in the exercise of reasonable care, is
2-10 proceeds of criminal activity;
2-11 (2) conducts, supervises, or facilitates a transaction
2-12 involving property the person knows, believes, or should know, in
2-13 the exercise of reasonable care, is proceeds of criminal activity;
2-14 or
2-15 (3) invests, expends, or offers to invest or expend
2-16 property the person knows or believes is proceeds of criminal
2-17 activity.
2-18 (b) An offense under this section is:
2-19 (1) a felony of the third degree if the value of the
2-20 property is $750 or more but less than $20,000; or
2-21 (2) a felony of the second degree if the value of the
2-22 property is $20,000 or more.
2-23 Sec. 34.03. ASSISTANCE BY ATTORNEY GENERAL. The attorney
2-24 general, if requested to do so by a prosecuting attorney, may
2-25 assist the prosecuting attorney in the investigation or prosecution
2-26 of an offense under this chapter.
2-27 SECTION 2. Chapter 13, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
3-1 amended by adding Article 13.26 to read as follows:
3-2 Art. 13.26. MONEY LAUNDERING. An offense under
3-3 Section 34.02, Penal Code, may be prosecuted in the county in which
3-4 any element of the offense occurred or in Travis County.
3-5 SECTION 3. Section 71.02, Penal Code, is amended to read as
3-6 follows:
3-7 Sec. 71.02. ENGAGING IN ORGANIZED CRIMINAL ACTIVITY. (a) A
3-8 person commits an offense if, with the intent to establish,
3-9 maintain, or participate in a combination or in the profits of a
3-10 combination or as a member of a criminal street gang, he commits or
3-11 conspires to commit one or more of the following:
3-12 (1) murder, capital murder, arson, aggravated robbery,
3-13 robbery, burglary, theft, aggravated kidnapping, kidnapping,
3-14 aggravated assault, aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault, or
3-15 forgery;
3-16 (2) any felony gambling offense;
3-17 (3) promotion of prostitution, aggravated promotion of
3-18 prostitution, or compelling prostitution;
3-19 (4) unlawful manufacture, transportation, repair, or
3-20 sale of firearms or prohibited weapons;
3-21 (5) unlawful manufacture, delivery, dispensation, or
3-22 distribution of a controlled substance or dangerous drug, or
3-23 unlawful possession of a controlled substance or dangerous drug
3-24 through forgery, fraud, misrepresentation, or deception;
3-25 (6) any unlawful wholesale promotion or possession of
3-26 any obscene material or obscene device with the intent to wholesale
3-27 promote the same;
4-1 (7) any unlawful employment, authorization, or
4-2 inducing of a child younger than 17 years of age in an obscene
4-3 sexual performance;
4-4 (8) any felony offense under Chapter 32, Penal Code;
4-5 <or>
4-6 (9) any offense under Chapter 36, Penal Code; or
4-7 (10) an offense under Section 34.02, Penal Code.
4-8 (b) Except as provided in Subsection (c) of this section, an
4-9 offense under this section is one category higher than the most
4-10 serious offense listed in Subdivisions (1) through (10) <(9)> of
4-11 Subsection (a) of this section that was committed, and if the most
4-12 serious offense is a Class A misdemeanor, the offense is a felony
4-13 of the third degree, except that if the most serious offense is a
4-14 felony of the first degree, the offense is a felony of the first
4-15 degree.
4-16 (c) Conspiring to commit an offense under this section is of
4-17 the same degree as the most serious offense listed in Subdivisions
4-18 (1) through (10) <(9)> of Subsection (a) of this section that the
4-19 person conspired to commit.
4-20 SECTION 4. Subdivision (2), Article 59.01, Code of Criminal
4-21 Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
4-22 (2) "Contraband" means property of any nature,
4-23 including real, personal, tangible, or intangible, that is:
4-24 (A) used in the commission of:
4-25 (i) any first or second degree felony
4-26 under the Penal Code;
4-27 (ii) any felony under Chapters 29, 30, 31,
5-1 or 32, Penal Code; or
5-2 (iii) any felony under The Securities Act
5-3 (Article 581-1 et seq., Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes);
5-4 (B) used or intended to be used in the
5-5 commission of:
5-6 (i) any felony under Chapter 481, Health
5-7 and Safety Code (Texas Controlled Substances Act);
5-8 (ii) any felony under Chapter 483, Health
5-9 and Safety Code; <or>
5-10 (iii) a felony under Article 350, Revised
5-11 Statutes; or
5-12 (iv) an offense under Section 34.02, Penal
5-13 Code;
5-14 (C) the proceeds gained from the commission of a
5-15 felony listed in Paragraph (A) or (B) of this subdivision; or
5-16 (D) acquired with proceeds gained from the
5-17 commission of a felony listed in Paragraph (A) or (B) of this
5-18 subdivision.
5-19 SECTION 5. Article 19.07, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
5-20 amended to read as follows:
5-21 Art. 19.07. Extension Beyond Term Of Period For Which Grand
5-22 Jurors Shall Sit. (a) If prior to the expiration of the term for
5-23 which the grand jury was impaneled, it is made to appear by a
5-24 declaration of the foreman or of a majority of the grand jurors in
5-25 open court, that the investigation by the grand jury of the matters
5-26 before it, other than the investigation of an offense under Section
5-27 34.02, Penal Code, cannot be concluded before the expiration of the
6-1 term, the judge of the district court in which said grand jury was
6-2 impaneled may, by the entry of an order on the minutes of said
6-3 court, extend, from time to time, for the purpose of concluding the
6-4 investigation of matters then before it, the period during which
6-5 said grand jury shall sit, for not to exceed a total of ninety days
6-6 after the expiration of the term for which it was impaneled, and
6-7 all indictments pertaining thereto returned by the grand jury
6-8 within said extended period shall be as valid as if returned before
6-9 the expiration of the term.
6-10 (b) If it appears that the investigation by the grand jury
6-11 of an offense under Section 34.02, Penal Code, cannot be concluded
6-12 before the expiration of the term of the grand jury, the judge of
6-13 the district court shall extend the term of the grand jury as
6-14 described by Subsection (a) of this article.
6-15 (c) The extension of the term of a grand jury under this
6-16 article does not affect the provisions of Article 19.06 relating to
6-17 the selection and summoning of grand jurors for each regularly
6-18 scheduled term.
6-19 SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 1993.
6-20 SECTION 7. The importance of this legislation and the
6-21 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
6-22 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
6-23 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
6-24 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.