By: Moncrief, et al. S.B. No. 25
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
1-1 relating to the offense of harassment and including within that
1-2 offense conduct that constitutes stalking; providing limitations on
1-3 release on bond, furlough, probation, and parole; and providing
1-4 notification.
1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Section 42.07, Penal Code, is amended to read as
1-7 follows:
1-8 Sec. 42.07. HARASSMENT. (a) A person commits an offense
1-9 if, with intent to harass, annoy, alarm, abuse, torment, or
1-10 embarrass another, he:
1-11 (1) initiates communication by telephone or in writing
1-12 and in the course of the communication makes a comment, request,
1-13 suggestion, or proposal that is obscene;
1-14 (2) threatens, by telephone or in writing, in a manner
1-15 reasonably likely to alarm the person receiving the threat, to
1-16 inflict serious bodily injury on the person or to commit a felony
1-17 against the person, a member of his family, or his property;
1-18 (3) conveys, in a manner reasonably likely to alarm
1-19 the person receiving the report, a false report, which is known by
1-20 the conveyer to be false, that another person has suffered death or
1-21 serious bodily injury;
1-22 (4) causes the telephone of another to ring repeatedly
1-23 or makes repeated telephone communications anonymously or in a
1-24 manner reasonably likely to harass, annoy, alarm, abuse, torment,
2-1 embarrass, or offend another;
2-2 (5) makes a telephone call and intentionally fails to
2-3 hang up or disengage the connection; <or>
2-4 (6) knowingly permits a telephone under his control to
2-5 be used by a person to commit an offense under this section; or
2-6 (7) on more than one occasion engages in conduct
2-7 directed specifically toward the other person, including following
2-8 that person, that is reasonably likely to harass, annoy, alarm,
2-9 abuse, torment, or embarrass that person and on at least one of
2-10 those occasions by acts or words threatens to inflict bodily injury
2-11 on that person or to commit an offense against that person, a
2-12 member of that person's family, or that person's property.
2-13 (b) For purposes of Subsection (a)(1) of this section,
2-14 "obscene" means containing a patently offensive description of or a
2-15 solicitation to commit an ultimate sex act, including sexual
2-16 intercourse, masturbation, cunnilingus, fellatio, or anilingus, or
2-17 a description of an excretory function. In this section, "family"
2-18 has the meaning assigned by Section 71.01, Family Code.
2-19 (c) An offense under Subsections (a)(1)-(a)(6) of this
2-20 section is a Class B misdemeanor.
2-21 (d) An offense under Subsection (a)(7) of this section is a
2-22 Class A misdemeanor, except that the offense is a felony of the
2-23 third degree if:
2-24 (1) the actor has previously been convicted under
2-25 Subsection (a)(7) of this section; or
2-26 (2) the conduct that constitutes the offense also
2-27 constitutes the violation of a court order that was directed to the
3-1 actor and of which the actor had notice before the commission of
3-2 the offense.
3-3 SECTION 2. Chapter 17, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
3-4 amended by adding Article 17.46 to read as follows:
3-5 Art. 17.46. CONDITIONS FOR A DEFENDANT CHARGED WITH
3-6 STALKING. (a) A magistrate may require as a condition of release
3-7 on bond that a defendant charged with an offense under Section
3-8 42.07(a)(7), Penal Code, may not:
3-9 (1) communicate directly or indirectly with the
3-10 victim; or
3-11 (2) go to or near the residence, place of employment,
3-12 or business of the victim or to or near a school, day-care
3-13 facility, or similar facility where a dependent child of the victim
3-14 is in attendance.
3-15 (b) If the magistrate requires the prohibition contained in
3-16 Subsection (a)(2) of this article as a condition of release on
3-17 bond, the magistrate shall specifically describe the prohibited
3-18 locations and the minimum distances, if any, that the defendant
3-19 must maintain from the locations.
3-20 SECTION 3. Section 11, Article 42.12, Code of Criminal
3-21 Procedure, is amended by adding Subsection (l) to read as follows:
3-22 (l)(1) If the court grants probation to a person convicted
3-23 of an offense under Section 42.07(a)(7), Penal Code, the court may
3-24 require as a condition of probation that the probationer may not:
3-25 (A) communicate directly or indirectly with the
3-26 victim; or
3-27 (B) go to or near the residence, place of
4-1 employment, or business of the victim or to or near a school,
4-2 day-care facility, or similar facility where a dependent child of
4-3 the victim is in attendance.
4-4 (2) If the court requires the prohibition contained in
4-5 Subdivision (1)(B) of this subsection as a condition of probation,
4-6 the court shall specifically describe the prohibited locations and
4-7 the minimum distances, if any, that the probationer must maintain
4-8 from the locations.
4-9 SECTION 4. Subdivision (1), Subsection (f), Section 8,
4-10 Article 42.18, Code of Criminal Procedure, is amended to read as
4-11 follows:
4-12 (1) In this subsection: (A) "close relative of a
4-13 deceased victim" means a person who was the spouse of a deceased
4-14 victim at the time of the victim's death, a parent of the deceased
4-15 victim, or an adult brother, sister, or child of the deceased
4-16 victim; (B) "guardian of a victim" means a person who is the legal
4-17 guardian of a victim, whether or not the legal relationship between
4-18 the guardian and victim exists because of the age of the victim or
4-19 the physical or mental incompetency of the victim; and (C) "victim"
4-20 means a person who is a victim of sexual assault, kidnapping, <or>
4-21 aggravated robbery, or felony harassment or who has suffered bodily
4-22 injury or death as the result of the criminal conduct of another.
4-23 SECTION 5. Section 8, Article 42.18, Code of Criminal
4-24 Procedure, is amended by adding Subsection (o) to read as follows:
4-25 (o)(1) In addition to other conditions imposed by a parole
4-26 panel under this article, the parole panel may require as a
4-27 condition of parole or release to mandatory supervision that an
5-1 inmate serving a sentence for an offense under Section 42.07(a)(7),
5-2 Penal Code, may not:
5-3 (A) communicate directly or indirectly with the
5-4 victim; or
5-5 (B) go to or near the residence, place of
5-6 employment, or business of the victim or to or near a school,
5-7 day-care facility, or similar facility where a dependent child of
5-8 the victim is in attendance.
5-9 (2) If a parole panel requires the prohibition contained in
5-10 Subdivision (1)(B) of this subsection as a condition of parole or
5-11 release to mandatory supervision, the parole panel shall
5-12 specifically describe the prohibited locations and the minimum
5-13 distances, if any, that the inmate must maintain from the
5-14 locations.
5-15 SECTION 6. Chapter 56, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
5-16 amended by adding Article 56.11 to read as follows:
5-17 Art. 56.11. NOTIFICATION TO STALKING VICTIM. (a) The
5-18 institutional division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice
5-19 shall notify the victim of the offense and local law enforcement
5-20 officials in the county where the victim resides whenever a person
5-21 convicted of a felony offense under Subsection (a)(7) as enhanced
5-22 by Subsection (d) of Section 42.07, Penal Code:
5-23 (1) completes the person's sentence and is released;
5-24 or
5-25 (2) escapes from a facility operated by the
5-26 institutional division.
5-27 (b) It is the responsibility of the victim desiring
6-1 notification of the offender's release to notify the institutional
6-2 division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice of any change
6-3 of address of the victim.
6-4 SECTION 7. Section 501.006, Government Code, is amended by
6-5 adding Subsection (i) to read as follows:
6-6 (i) The institutional division may not grant a furlough to
6-7 an inmate convicted of an offense under Section 42.07(a)(7), Penal
6-8 Code.
6-9 SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 1993.
6-10 SECTION 9. The importance of this legislation and the
6-11 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
6-12 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
6-13 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
6-14 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.