By Wise                                                H.B. No. 223
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to procedural requirements applicable to the release on
 1-3     parole of certain sex offenders.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 508.152, Government Code, is amended by
 1-6     adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:
 1-7           (f)  An attorney representing the state in the prosecution of
 1-8     an inmate serving a sentence for an offense described by Section
 1-9     508.187(a) shall provide written comments to the department on the
1-10     circumstances related to the commission of the offense and other
1-11     information determined by the attorney to be relevant to any
1-12     subsequent parole decisions regarding the inmate.
1-13           SECTION 2.  Section 508.187, Government Code, is amended by
1-14     amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsections (g) and (h) to read
1-15     as follows:
1-16           (b)  A parole panel shall establish a child safety zone
1-17     applicable to a releasee if the panel determines that a child as
1-18     defined by Section 22.011(c), Penal Code, was the victim of the
1-19     offense, by requiring as a condition of parole or mandatory
1-20     supervision that the releasee:
1-21                 (1)  not:
1-22                       (A)  supervise or participate in any program that
1-23     includes as participants or recipients persons who are 17 years of
1-24     age or younger and that regularly provides athletic, civic, or
 2-1     cultural activities;  or
 2-2                       (B)  with respect to [go in, on, or within a
 2-3     distance specified by the panel of] premises where children
 2-4     commonly gather, including a school, day-care facility, playground,
 2-5     public or private youth center, public swimming pool, or video
 2-6     arcade facility:
 2-7                             (i)  go in or on the premises or within a
 2-8     distance of the premises specified by the panel; or
 2-9                             (ii)  reside in a residence located within
2-10     500 feet of the premises; and
2-11                 (2)  attend for a period of time determined necessary
2-12     by the panel psychological counseling sessions for sex offenders
2-13     with an individual or organization that provides sex offender
2-14     treatment or counseling as specified by the parole officer
2-15     supervising the releasee after release.
2-16           (g)  For purposes of Subsection (b)(1)(B)(ii), the
2-17     measurement of the distance between a residence and a premises
2-18     described by Subsection (b)(1)(B) is a direct line from the
2-19     property line of the residence to the property line of the
2-20     premises, and in a direct line across intersections.
2-21           (h)  Notwithstanding Subsection (b)(1)(B)(ii), a parole panel
2-22     requirement that a releasee not reside in a residence located
2-23     within 500 feet of premises where children commonly gather does not
2-24     apply to a releasee if:
2-25                 (1)  the premises became a premises where children
2-26     commonly gather only after the releasee began residing in the
2-27     residence; or
 3-1                 (2)  the residence is owned by the releasee and was
 3-2     owned by the releasee at the time of committing the offense giving
 3-3     rise to supervision under this chapter.
 3-4           SECTION 3.  Article 56.11(c), Code of Criminal Procedure, is
 3-5     amended to read as follows:
 3-6           (c)  This article applies to a person convicted of an offense
 3-7     described by Section 508.187(a), Government Code, or an offense
 3-8     involving  family violence, stalking, or violation of a protective
 3-9     order or magistrate's order.
3-10           SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.