1-1     By:  Thompson (Senate Sponsor - Whitmire)             H.B. No. 3664
 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House April 30, 2001;
 1-3     April 30, 2001, read first time and referred to Committee on
 1-4     Criminal Justice; May 10, 2001, reported favorably by the following
 1-5     vote:  Yeas 6, Nays 0; May 10, 2001, sent to printer.)
 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-7                                   AN ACT
 1-8     relating to the authority of criminal law hearing officers in
 1-9     certain counties to enforce certain judgments and orders.
1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-11           SECTION 1. Section 54.856(a), Government Code, is amended to
1-12     read as follows:
1-13           (a)  A criminal law hearing officer appointed under this
1-14     subchapter has limited concurrent jurisdiction over criminal cases
1-15     filed in the district courts, county criminal courts at law, and
1-16     justice courts of the county.  The jurisdiction of the criminal law
1-17     hearing officer is limited to:
1-18                 (1)  determining probable cause for further detention
1-19     of any person detained on a criminal complaint, information, or
1-20     indictment filed in the district courts, county criminal courts at
1-21     law, or justice courts of the county;
1-22                 (2)  committing the defendant to jail, discharging the
1-23     defendant from custody, or admitting the defendant to bail, as the
1-24     law and facts of the case require;
1-25                 (3)  issuing search warrants and arrest warrants as
1-26     provided by law for magistrates; [and]
1-27                 (4)  as to criminal cases filed in justice courts,
1-28     disposing of cases as provided by law, other than by trial, and
1-29     collecting fines and enforcing judgments and orders of the justice
1-30     courts in criminal cases; and
1-31                 (5)  enforcing judgments and orders of the county
1-32     criminal courts at law in criminal cases.
1-33           SECTION 2. Section 54.858, Government Code, is amended by
1-34     adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:
1-35           (f)  A criminal law hearing officer may enforce judgments and
1-36     orders of the county criminal courts at law in criminal cases.
1-37           SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
1-38                                  * * * * *