By Harris                                       S.B. No. 1844

      75R248 DD-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the criminal penalty for the aggravated sexual assault

 1-3     of a child under 14 years of age.

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

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 22.021(e), Penal Code, is amended to read

 1-6     as follows:

 1-7           (e)  Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, an [An]

 1-8     offense under this section is a felony of the first degree.  An

 1-9     offense under Subsection (a)(2)(B) is a capital felony.

1-10           SECTION 2.  Section 2, Article 37.071, Code of Criminal

1-11     Procedure, is amended by adding Subsection (j) to read as follows:

1-12           (j)  In the trial of a defendant who is tried and found

1-13     guilty of a capital offense under Section 22.021(a)(2)(B), Penal

1-14     Code, in which the state seeks the death penalty, the court may not

1-15     submit to the jury the issue described by Subsection (b)(2), but

1-16     shall submit in lieu of that issue the issue of whether the

1-17     defendant knew that the child was under 14 years of age.

1-18           SECTION 3.  Section 8(b)(3), Article 42.18, Code of Criminal

1-19     Procedure, is amended to read as follows:

1-20                 (3)  Except as otherwise provided by this subsection,

1-21     if [If] a prisoner is serving a sentence for the offenses described

1-22     by  Subdivision (1)(A), (C), (D), (E), (F), or (G) of Section

1-23     3g(a), Article 42.12 of this code, or if the judgment contains an

1-24     affirmative finding under Subdivision (2) of Subsection (a) of

 2-1     Section 3g of that article, he is not eligible for release on

 2-2     parole until his actual calendar time served, without consideration

 2-3     of good conduct time, equals one-half of the maximum sentence or 30

 2-4     calendar years, whichever is less, but in no event shall he be

 2-5     eligible for release on parole in less than two calendar years.

 2-6     This subsection does not apply to a person who is under sentence of

 2-7     death or a life sentence for an offense under Section

 2-8     22.021(a)(2)(B), Penal Code.

 2-9           SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

2-10           SECTION 5.  (a)  The change in law made by this Act applies

2-11     only to the punishment  for an offense committed on or after the

2-12     effective date of this Act.  For purposes of this section, an

2-13     offense is committed before the effective date of this Act if any

2-14     element of the offense occurs  before the effective date.

2-15           (b)  An offense committed before the effective date of this

2-16     Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,

2-17     and the former law is continued  in effect for that purpose.

2-18           SECTION 6.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-19     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-20     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-21     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-22     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.