By Brown                                               S.B. No. 139
       74R1194 KKA-F
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to the punishment for certain offenses under the Texas
    1-3  Controlled Substances Act in regard to which the defendant is
    1-4  criminally responsible for the conduct of a person younger than 17
    1-5  years of age.
    1-6        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-7        SECTION 1.  Subchapter D, Chapter 481, Health and Safety
    1-8  Code, is amended by adding Section 481.106 to read as follows:
    1-9        Sec. 481.106.  PENALTY IF CRIME COMMITTED BY MINOR FOR WHOM
   1-10  ACTOR IS CRIMINALLY RESPONSIBLE.  (a)  The punishment  prescribed
   1-11  for an offense under this subchapter is increased in the manner
   1-12  provided by Subsection (b) if it is shown on the trial of the
   1-13  offense that:
   1-14              (1)  the defendant is guilty of the offense because the
   1-15  defendant is criminally responsible for the conduct of another
   1-16  under Section 7.02, Penal Code;
   1-17              (2)  the defendant was 19 years of age or older at the
   1-18  time the person committed the conduct; and
   1-19              (3)  the person for whose conduct the defendant is
   1-20  criminally responsible was younger than 17 years of age at the time
   1-21  the person committed the conduct.
   1-22        (b)  If a defendant described by Subsection (a) is convicted
   1-23  of a felony of the first degree or an aggravated felony, the
   1-24  minimum term of confinement otherwise imposed for the offense is
    2-1  increased by 10 years.  If the defendant is convicted of an offense
    2-2  other than a felony of the first degree or an aggravated felony,
    2-3  the punishment prescribed for the offense is increased to the
    2-4  punishment prescribed for the next highest category of offense.
    2-5        SECTION 2.  (a)  The change in law made by this Act applies
    2-6  only to the punishment for an offense committed on or after the
    2-7  effective date of this Act.  For purposes of this section, an
    2-8  offense is committed before the effective date of this Act if any
    2-9  element of the offense occurs before the effective date.
   2-10        (b)  An offense committed before the effective date of this
   2-11  Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
   2-12  and the former law is continued in effect for this purpose.
   2-13        SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
   2-14        SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
   2-15  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   2-16  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
   2-17  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   2-18  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.