By Place                                        H.B. No. 2827

      75R6216 GWK-F                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to procedures applicable to an investigation involving the

 1-3     death of an inmate imprisoned in a facility operated by or under

 1-4     contract with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-6           SECTION 1.  Subsection (c), Article 49.18, Code of Criminal

 1-7     Procedure, is amended to read as follows:

 1-8           (c)  Subsection (a) [This article] does not apply to a death

 1-9     that occurs in a facility operated by or under contract with the

1-10     Texas Department of Criminal Justice.  Subsection (b) does not

1-11     apply to a death that occurs in a facility operated by or under

1-12     contract with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice if the death

1-13     occurs under circumstances described by Section 501.055(b),

1-14     Government Code.

1-15           SECTION 2.  The change in law made by this Act applies only

1-16     to the investigation of the death of an inmate who dies on or after

1-17     the effective date of this Act.  The investigation of the death of

1-18     an inmate who dies before the effective date of this Act is covered

1-19     by the law in effect when the inmate died, and the former law is

1-20     continued in effect for that purpose.

1-21           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-22     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

1-23     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

1-24     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 2-1     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,

 2-2     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its

 2-3     passage, and it is so enacted.