By Reyna of Bexar H.B. No. 1298
77R5755 GWK-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the punishment of certain assaults committed against
1-3 employees of primary or secondary schools.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Section 22.01, Penal Code, is amended to read as
1-6 follows:
1-7 Sec. 22.01. ASSAULT. (a) A person commits an offense if the
1-8 person:
1-9 (1) intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causes
1-10 bodily injury to another, including the person's spouse;
1-11 (2) intentionally or knowingly threatens another with
1-12 imminent bodily injury, including the person's spouse; or
1-13 (3) intentionally or knowingly causes physical contact
1-14 with another when the person knows or should reasonably believe
1-15 that the other will regard the contact as offensive or provocative.
1-16 (b) An offense under Subsection (a)(1) is a Class A
1-17 misdemeanor, except that the offense is a felony of the third
1-18 degree if the offense is committed against:
1-19 (1) a person the actor knows is a public servant while
1-20 the public servant is lawfully discharging an official duty, or in
1-21 retaliation or on account of an exercise of official power or
1-22 performance of an official duty as a public servant; [or]
1-23 (2) a member of the defendant's family or household,
1-24 if it is shown on the trial of the offense that the defendant has
2-1 been previously convicted of an offense against a member of the
2-2 defendant's family or household under this section; or
2-3 (3) an employee of a public or private primary or
2-4 secondary school while the employee is engaged in performing duties
2-5 within the scope of employment or in retaliation for or on account
2-6 of the employee's performance of a duty within the scope of
2-7 employment.
2-8 (c) An offense under Subsection (a)(2) or (3) is a Class C
2-9 misdemeanor, except that:
2-10 (1) an offense under Subsection (a)(2) is a Class A
2-11 misdemeanor, and an offense under Subsection (a)(3) is a Class B
2-12 misdemeanor if the offense is committed against an employee of a
2-13 public or private primary or secondary school while the employee is
2-14 engaged in performing duties within the scope of employment or in
2-15 retaliation for or on account of the employee's performance of a
2-16 duty within the scope of employment; and
2-17 (2) an offense under Subsection (a)(3) is a Class A
2-18 misdemeanor if the offense was committed against an elderly
2-19 individual or disabled individual, as those terms are defined by
2-20 Section 22.04.
2-21 (d) For purposes of Subsection (b)(1), the actor is presumed
2-22 to have known the person assaulted was a public servant if the
2-23 person was wearing a distinctive uniform or badge indicating the
2-24 person's employment as a public servant. For the purposes of
2-25 Subsections (b)(3) and (c)(1), the actor is presumed to have known
2-26 that the person assaulted was a school employee if the actor was a
2-27 student enrolled in or the parent or guardian of a student enrolled
3-1 in the school at which the person assaulted was employed.
3-2 (e) It is not a defense to prosecution under Subsection
3-3 (b)(3) or (c)(1) that the offense occurred off school premises or
3-4 at a time at which school was not in session.
3-5 (f) [(e)] In this section:
3-6 (1) "Family" has the meaning assigned by Section
3-7 71.003, Family Code.
3-8 (2) "Household" has the meaning assigned by Section
3-9 71.005, Family Code.
3-10 (g) [(f)] For the purposes of this section, a defendant has
3-11 been previously convicted of an offense against a member of the
3-12 defendant's family or a member of the defendant's household under
3-13 this section if the defendant was adjudged guilty of the offense or
3-14 entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere in return for a grant
3-15 of deferred adjudication, regardless of whether the sentence for
3-16 the offense was ever imposed or whether the sentence was probated
3-17 and the defendant was subsequently discharged from community
3-18 supervision.
3-19 SECTION 2. (a) The change in law made by this Act applies
3-20 only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this
3-21 Act. For purposes of this section, an offense is committed before
3-22 the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs
3-23 before the effective date.
3-24 (b) An offense committed before the effective date of this
3-25 Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
3-26 and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
3-27 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.