By Krusee H.B. No. 1821
74R6473 T
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the offense of unauthorized use of a vehicle, removing
1-3 a court-implied culpable mental state to that offense, and creating
1-4 an affirmative defense to that offense; relating to the offense of
1-5 tampering with identification numbers and creating a penalty.
1-6 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-7 SECTION 1. Section 31.07, Penal Code, is amended by amending
1-8 Subsection (a) and adding Subsections (c) and (d) to read as
1-9 follows:
1-10 (a) A person commits an offense if, without the effective
1-11 consent of the owner, he intentionally or knowingly operates
1-12 another's boat, airplane, or motor-propelled vehicle <without the
1-13 effective consent of the owner>.
1-14 (c) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this
1-15 section that the person acted with the effective consent of
1-16 another whom the person reasonably believed to be the owner.
1-17 (d) An affirmative defense raised under Subsection (c) will
1-18 not be submitted to the jury based on the statement or testimony of
1-19 a single person other than the defendant unless corroborated as a
1-20 matter of law by other evidence.
1-21 SECTION 2. Section 31.11, Penal Code, Tampering with
1-22 Identification Numbers, is amended by amending Subsections (b) and
1-23 (d) and adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:
1-24 (b) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this
2-1 section that the person was:
2-2 (1) the owner or acting with the effective consent of
2-3 the owner of the property involved and the item of property is not
2-4 property listed in Subsection (f);
2-5 (2) a peace officer acting in the actual discharge of
2-6 official duties; or
2-7 (3) acting with respect to a number assigned to a
2-8 vehicle by the Texas Department of Transportation and the person
2-9 was:
2-10 (A) in the actual discharge of official duties
2-11 as an employee or agent of the department; or
2-12 (B) in full compliance with the rules of the
2-13 department as an applicant for an assigned number approved by the
2-14 department.
2-15 (d) Except as provided by Subsection (f), an <An> offense
2-16 under this section is a Class A misdemeanor.
2-17 (e) In this section, "vehicle" has the meaning given by
2-18 Section 2, Uniform Act Regulating Traffic on Highways (Article
2-19 6701d, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes).
2-20 (f) An offense under this section is a felony of the third
2-21 degree if the property involved is:
2-22 (1) a vehicle or part of a vehicle;
2-23 (2) a tractor, farm implement, unit of special mobile
2-24 equipment, or a unit of off-road construction equipment not subject
2-25 to the Certificate of Title Act (Article 6687-1, Vernon's Texas
2-26 Civil Statutes);
2-27 (3) an aircraft, boat, or part of an aircraft or boat;
3-1 or
3-2 (4) a firearm or part of a firearm.
3-3 SECTION 3. (a) The change in law made by this Act applies
3-4 only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this
3-5 Act. For purposes of this section, an offense is committed before
3-6 the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs
3-7 before the effective date.
3-8 (b) An offense committed before the effective date of this
3-9 Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
3-10 and the former law is continued in effect for this purpose.
3-11 SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
3-12 SECTION 5. The importance of this legislation and the
3-13 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
3-14 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
3-15 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
3-16 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
3-17 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
3-18 passage, and it is so enacted.