H.B. 1300 78(R) BILL ANALYSIS H.B. 1300 By: Riddle Criminal Jurisprudence Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Current law allows any magistrate to release a defendant on personal bond, with the exception that for certain serious or violent offenses only the court before whom the case is pending may release a defendant on personal bond. As proposed, House Bill 1300 includes murder, manslaughter, intoxication manslaughter, and criminally negligent homicide to the list of offenses for which only the court before whom the case is pending may grant a personal bond. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 1300 amends the Code of Criminal Procedure, to add the offenses of murder, manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, and intoxication manslaughter to the list of offenses for which a court before whom the case is pending may release a defendant on personal bond. The bill removes the offense of a deadly assault on a law enforcement or corrections officer, member or employee of board of pardons and paroles, or court participant, from the list of offenses for which only a court before whom the case is pending may release a defendant on personal bond. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2003.