1-1 By: Brown S.B. No. 674
1-2 (In the Senate - Filed February 20, 1997; February 24, 1997,
1-3 read first time and referred to Committee on Criminal Justice;
1-4 March 5, 1997, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 5,
1-5 Nays 0; March 5, 1997, sent to printer.)
1-6 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-7 AN ACT
1-8 relating to the prosecution of the offense of possession or
1-9 promotion of child pornography.
1-10 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-11 SECTION 1. Subsections (a), (b), and (f), Section 43.26,
1-12 Penal Code, are amended to read as follows:
1-13 (a) A person commits an offense if:
1-14 (1) the person knowingly or intentionally possesses
1-15 visual material [containing a film image] that visually depicts a
1-16 child younger than 18 years of age at the time the [film] image of
1-17 the child was made who is engaging in sexual conduct; and
1-18 (2) the person knows that the material depicts the
1-19 child as described by Subdivision (1).
1-20 (b) In this section:
1-21 (1) ["Film image" includes a photograph, slide,
1-22 negative, film, or videotape, or a reproduction of any of these.]
1-23 [(2) "Sexual conduct" has the meaning assigned by
1-24 Section 43.25.]
1-25 [(3)] "Promote" has the meaning assigned by Section
1-26 43.25.
1-27 (2) "Sexual conduct" has the meaning assigned by
1-28 Section 43.25.
1-29 (3) "Visual material" means:
1-30 (A) any film, photograph, videotape, negative,
1-31 or slide or any photographic reproduction that contains or
1-32 incorporates in any manner any film, photograph, videotape,
1-33 negative, or slide; or
1-34 (B) any disk, diskette, or other physical medium
1-35 that allows an image to be displayed on a computer or other video
1-36 screen and any image transmitted to a computer or other video
1-37 screen by telephone line, cable, satellite transmission, or other
1-38 method.
1-39 (f) A person who possesses visual material that contains six
1-40 or more identical visual depictions of [film images depicting] a
1-41 child as described by Subsection (a)(1) is presumed to possess the
1-42 material [film images] with the intent to promote the material.
1-43 SECTION 2. (a) The change in law made by this Act applies
1-44 only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this
1-45 Act. For purposes of this section, an offense is committed before
1-46 the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs
1-47 before the effective date.
1-48 (b) An offense committed before the effective date of this
1-49 Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
1-50 and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
1-51 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.
1-52 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
1-53 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
1-54 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
1-55 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
1-56 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
1-57 * * * * *