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.