By Shapiro                                             S.B. No. 854
       74R6357 DD-D
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to the testimony in a criminal proceeding of a child who
    1-3  is a victim.
    1-4        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-5        SECTION 1.  Article 36.01, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
    1-6  amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (c) to
    1-7  read as follows:
    1-8        (a)  A jury being impaneled in any criminal action, except as
    1-9  provided by Subsection (b) or Subsection (c) of this article, the
   1-10  cause shall proceed in the following order:
   1-11              1.  The indictment or information shall be read to the
   1-12  jury by the attorney prosecuting.  When prior convictions are
   1-13  alleged for purposes of enhancement only and are not
   1-14  jurisdictional, that portion of the indictment or information
   1-15  reciting such convictions shall not be read until the hearing on
   1-16  punishment is held as provided in Article 37.07.
   1-17              2.  The special pleas, if any, shall be read by the
   1-18  defendant's counsel, and if the plea of not guilty is also relied
   1-19  upon, it shall also be stated.
   1-20              3.  The State's attorney shall state to the jury the
   1-21  nature of the accusation and the facts which are expected to be
   1-22  proved by the State in support thereof.
   1-23              4.  The testimony on the part of the State shall be
   1-24  offered.
    2-1              5.  The nature of the defenses relied upon and the
    2-2  facts expected to be proved in their support shall be stated by
    2-3  defendant's counsel.
    2-4              6.  The testimony on the part of the defendant shall be
    2-5  offered.
    2-6              7.  Rebutting testimony may be offered on the part of
    2-7  each party.
    2-8              8.  In the event of a finding of guilty, the trial
    2-9  shall then proceed as set forth in Article 37.07.
   2-10        (c)  A court shall order the concurrent examination by the
   2-11  State and defendant's counsel of a child who is testifying in a
   2-12  trial if the child is a victim of an offense that is alleged to
   2-13  have been committed by the defendant.  After the State and the
   2-14  defendant's counsel have examined the child, the court shall
   2-15  discharge the child and the order of proceedings may continue in
   2-16  the manner described by Subsection (a).    In this subsection,
   2-17  "child" means an individual younger than 17 years of age.
   2-18        SECTION 2.  The change in law made by this Act applies only
   2-19  to a case in which the indictment or information is read to the
   2-20  jury on or after the effective date of this Act.  If the indictment
   2-21  or information is read to the jury before the effective date of
   2-22  this Act, the order of the proceedings in the trial in effect on
   2-23  the date of the reading applies, and the former law is continued in
   2-24  effect for that purpose.
   2-25        SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
   2-26        SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
   2-27  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
    3-1  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
    3-2  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
    3-3  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.