1-1           By:  Sibley                                      S.B. No. 224

 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed January 16, 1997; January 21, 1997,

 1-3     read first time and referred to Committee on Jurisprudence;

 1-4     February 12, 1997, reported favorably by the following vote:  Yeas

 1-5     7, Nays 0; February 12, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-7                                   AN ACT

 1-8     relating to the authority of county judges to issue certain search

 1-9     warrants.

1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-11           SECTION 1.  Subsections (c) and (h), Article 18.01, Code of

1-12     Criminal Procedure, are amended to read as follows:

1-13           (c)  A search warrant may not be issued pursuant to

1-14     Subdivision (10) of Article 18.02 of this code unless the sworn

1-15     affidavit required by Subsection (b) of this article sets forth

1-16     sufficient facts to establish probable cause:  (1) that a specific

1-17     offense has been committed, (2) that the specifically described

1-18     property or items that are to be searched for or seized constitute

1-19     evidence of that offense or evidence that a particular person

1-20     committed that offense, and (3) that the property or items

1-21     constituting evidence to be searched for or seized are located at

1-22     or on the particular person, place, or thing to be searched.

1-23     Except as provided by Subsections (d) and (i) of this article, only

1-24     a judge of a municipal court of record or county court who is an

1-25     attorney licensed by the State of Texas, statutory county court,

1-26     district court, the Court of Criminal Appeals, or the Supreme Court

1-27     may issue warrants pursuant to Subdivision (10), Article 18.02 of

1-28     this code.

1-29           (h)  Except as provided by Subsection (i) of this article, a

1-30     warrant under Subdivision (12), Article  18.02 of this code may

1-31     only be issued by:

1-32                 (1)  a judge of a municipal court of record who is an

1-33     attorney licensed by the state;

1-34                 (2)  a judge of a county court who is an attorney

1-35     licensed by the state; or

1-36                 (3)  a judge of a statutory county court, district

1-37     court, the court of criminal appeals, or the supreme court [may

1-38     issue a warrant under Subdivision (12), Article 18.02, of this

1-39     code].

1-40           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

1-41           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-42     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

1-43     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

1-44     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

1-45     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

1-46                                  * * * * *