CN C.S.H.B. 1292 75(R)BILL ANALYSIS

JUVENILE JUSTICE & FAMILY ISSUES
C.S.H.B. 1292
By: Solomon
4-24-97
Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND

A person who commits an act prior to becoming 18 years of age is generally
defined as a child.  A person, however, is considered an adult pursuant to
section 8.07, Penal Code, once that person reaches the age of 17.  This
creates a problem for law enforcement officers when they arrest a 17 year
old on a fine only misdemeanor.  If the 17 year old committed the act
subject to the warrant then he or she may be taken into custody as any
other adult.  However, if the 17 year old committed the act subject to the
warrant prior to becoming 17 years of age, then he or she must be taken to
a place of non-secure custody. 

PURPOSE

As proposed, HB 1292 would allow a law enforcement officer to treat a 17
year old as an adult for the purposes of taking into custody. 


RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any
additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency or
institution. 

SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 52.027, Family Code, subsection (i).

Changes the age by which a person may be taken into custody from 18 to 17
years of age who is charged with, or convicted of a traffic offense or an
offense, other than public intoxication, punishable by fine only.  

SECTION 2.   States that the act is prospective. Conduct that occurs
before the effective date is covered by the former law. 

SECTION 3.  Effective date.

SECTION 4.  Emergency clause.


COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

The substitute redesignates several subsections as a result of striking
language from the original bill regarding a status offender being taken
into custody as a status offender for conduct engaged in before 18 years
of age. The substitute adds a new Family Code 52.027(i)(1)(B) referring to
"status offender" and adds an new OR, where "child" means a person younger
than 17 that is a status offender. The language in the original bill
placed the status offender language under the definition of a child that
was below 18 years of age.