1-1 By: Wise (Senate Sponsor - Bernsen) H.B. No. 223
1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House April 19, 2001;
1-3 April 20, 2001, read first time and referred to Committee on
1-4 Criminal Justice; May 11, 2001, reported favorably by the following
1-5 vote: Yeas 5, Nays 0; May 11, 2001, sent to printer.)
1-6 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-7 AN ACT
1-8 relating to procedural requirements applicable to the release on
1-9 parole of certain sex offenders.
1-10 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-11 SECTION 1. Section 508.152, Government Code, is amended by
1-12 adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:
1-13 (f) An attorney representing the state in the prosecution of
1-14 an inmate serving a sentence for an offense described by Section
1-15 508.187(a) shall provide written comments to the department on the
1-16 circumstances related to the commission of the offense and other
1-17 information determined by the attorney to be relevant to any
1-18 subsequent parole decisions regarding the inmate.
1-19 SECTION 2. Section 508.187, Government Code, is amended by
1-20 amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsections (g) and (h) to read
1-21 as follows:
1-22 (b) A parole panel shall establish a child safety zone
1-23 applicable to a releasee if the panel determines that a child as
1-24 defined by Section 22.011(c), Penal Code, was the victim of the
1-25 offense, by requiring as a condition of parole or mandatory
1-26 supervision that the releasee:
1-27 (1) not:
1-28 (A) supervise or participate in any program that
1-29 includes as participants or recipients persons who are 17 years of
1-30 age or younger and that regularly provides athletic, civic, or
1-31 cultural activities; or
1-32 (B) with respect to [go in, on, or within a
1-33 distance specified by the panel of] premises where children
1-34 commonly gather, including a school, day-care facility, playground,
1-35 public or private youth center, public swimming pool, or video
1-36 arcade facility:
1-37 (i) go in or on the premises or within a
1-38 distance of the premises specified by the panel; or
1-39 (ii) reside in a residence located within
1-40 500 feet of the premises; and
1-41 (2) attend for a period of time determined necessary
1-42 by the panel psychological counseling sessions for sex offenders
1-43 with an individual or organization that provides sex offender
1-44 treatment or counseling as specified by the parole officer
1-45 supervising the releasee after release.
1-46 (g) For purposes of Subsection (b)(1)(B)(ii), the
1-47 measurement of the distance between a residence and a premises
1-48 described by Subsection (b)(1)(B) is a direct line from the
1-49 property line of the residence to the property line of the
1-50 premises, and in a direct line across intersections.
1-51 (h) Notwithstanding Subsection (b)(1)(B)(ii), a parole panel
1-52 requirement that a releasee not reside in a residence located
1-53 within 500 feet of premises where children commonly gather does not
1-54 apply to a releasee if:
1-55 (1) the premises became a premises where children
1-56 commonly gather only after the releasee began residing in the
1-57 residence; or
1-58 (2) the residence is owned by the releasee and was
1-59 owned by the releasee at the time of committing the offense giving
1-60 rise to supervision under this chapter.
1-61 SECTION 3. Article 56.11(c), Code of Criminal Procedure, is
1-62 amended to read as follows:
1-63 (c) This article applies to a person convicted of an offense
1-64 described by Section 508.187(a), Government Code, or an offense
2-1 involving family violence, stalking, or violation of a protective
2-2 order or magistrate's order.
2-3 SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
2-4 * * * * *