By Garcia                                       H.B. No. 2889

      75R5590 JMC-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the mandatory transfer to criminal court of certain

 1-3     children who engage in conduct that constitutes a felony offense.

 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 54.02(m), Family Code, is amended to read

 1-6     as follows:

 1-7           (m)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the

 1-8     juvenile court shall waive its exclusive original jurisdiction and

 1-9     transfer a child to the appropriate district court or criminal

1-10     court for criminal proceedings if:

1-11                 (1)  the child:

1-12                       (A)  has previously been transferred to a

1-13     district court or criminal district court for criminal proceedings

1-14     under this section, unless:

1-15                             (i) [(A)]  the child was not indicted in

1-16     the matter transferred by the grand jury;

1-17                             (ii) [(B)]  the child was found not guilty

1-18     in the matter transferred;

1-19                             (iii) [(C)]  the matter transferred was

1-20     dismissed with prejudice; or

1-21                             (iv) [(D)]  the child was convicted in the

1-22     matter transferred, the conviction was reversed on appeal, and the

1-23     appeal is final;  and

1-24                       (B) [(2)  the child]  is alleged to have violated

 2-1     a penal law of the grade of felony; or

 2-2                 (2)  the child:

 2-3                       (A)  is alleged to have violated a penal law of

 2-4     the grade of felony;

 2-5                       (B)  was 14 years of age or older at the time the

 2-6     child is alleged to have committed the violation; and

 2-7                       (C)  has on two previous occasions been

 2-8     adjudicated for conduct that violated a penal law of the grade of

 2-9     felony.

2-10           SECTION 2.  (a)  The change in law made by this Act applies

2-11     only to conduct that occurs on or after the effective date of this

2-12     Act.  Conduct violating a penal law of the state occurs on or after

2-13     the effective date of this Act if every element of the violation

2-14     occurs on or after that date.

2-15           (b)  Conduct that occurs before the effective date of this

2-16     Act is covered by the law in effect at the time the conduct

2-17     occurred, and the former law is continued in effect for that

2-18     purpose.

2-19           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

2-20           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-21     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-22     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-23     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-24     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.