By Carter                                             H.B. No. 1447
       74R5673 NSC-F
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to criminal street gangs; providing a criminal penalty.
    1-3        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-4        SECTION 1.  Section 71.01, Penal Code, is amended by adding
    1-5  Subsection (d) to read as follows:
    1-6        (d)  "Criminal street gang" means three or more persons
    1-7  having a common identifying sign or symbol or an identifiable
    1-8  leadership who continuously or regularly associate in the
    1-9  commission of criminal activities.
   1-10        SECTION 2.  Section 71.02(a), Penal Code, is amended to read
   1-11  as follows:
   1-12        (a)  A person commits an offense if, with the intent to
   1-13  establish, maintain, or participate in a combination or in the
   1-14  profits of a combination or as a member of a criminal street gang,
   1-15  he commits or conspires to commit one or more of the following:
   1-16              (1)  murder, capital murder, arson, aggravated robbery,
   1-17  robbery, burglary, theft, aggravated kidnapping, kidnapping,
   1-18  aggravated assault, aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault,
   1-19  forgery, deadly conduct, assault punishable as a Class A
   1-20  misdemeanor, burglary of a motor vehicle, or unauthorized use of a
   1-21  motor vehicle;
   1-22              (2)  any gambling offense punishable as a Class A
   1-23  misdemeanor;
   1-24              (3)  promotion of prostitution, aggravated promotion of
    2-1  prostitution, or compelling prostitution;
    2-2              (4)  unlawful manufacture, transportation, repair, or
    2-3  sale of firearms or prohibited weapons;
    2-4              (5)  unlawful manufacture, delivery, dispensation, or
    2-5  distribution of a controlled substance or dangerous drug, or
    2-6  unlawful possession of a controlled substance or dangerous drug
    2-7  through forgery, fraud, misrepresentation, or deception;
    2-8              (6)  any unlawful wholesale promotion or possession of
    2-9  any obscene material or obscene device with the intent to wholesale
   2-10  promote the same;
   2-11              (7)  any unlawful employment, authorization, or
   2-12  inducing of a child younger than 17 years of age in an obscene
   2-13  sexual performance;
   2-14              (8)  any felony offense under Chapter 32, Penal Code;
   2-15  <or>
   2-16              (9)  any offense under Chapter 36, Penal Code; or <.>
   2-17              (10)  any <Any> offense under Chapter 34, Penal Code.
   2-18        SECTION 3.  (a)  The change in law made by this Act applies
   2-19  only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this
   2-20  Act.  For purposes of this section, an offense is committed before
   2-21  the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs
   2-22  before the effective date.
   2-23        (b)  An offense committed before the effective date of this
   2-24  Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
   2-25  and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
   2-26        SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
   2-27        SECTION 5.  The importance of this legislation and the
    3-1  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
    3-2  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
    3-3  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
    3-4  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.