78R4422 EMT-D

By:  Burnam                                                       H.B. No. 2263



A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the prosecution of the offense of unlawful transfer of 
certain weapons.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Sections 46.06(a) and (c), Penal Code, are 
amended to read as follows:
	(a)  A person commits an offense if the person:                                
		(1)  sells, rents, leases, loans, or gives a firearm
[handgun] to any person knowing that the person to whom the firearm
[handgun] is to be delivered intends to use it unlawfully or in the 
commission of an unlawful act;
		(2)  negligently [intentionally or knowingly] sells, 
rents, leases, or gives or offers to sell, rent, lease, or give to 
any child younger than 18 years any firearm, club, or illegal knife;
		(3)  intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly sells a 
firearm or ammunition for a firearm to any person who is 
intoxicated;
		(4)  knowingly sells a firearm or ammunition for a 
firearm to any person who has been convicted of a felony before the 
fifth anniversary of the later of the following dates:
			(A)  the person's release from confinement 
following conviction of the felony; or
			(B)  the person's release from supervision under 
community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision following 
conviction of the felony;
		(5)  sells, rents, leases, loans, or gives a firearm 
[handgun] to any person knowing that an active protective order is 
directed to the person to whom the firearm [handgun] is to be 
delivered; or
		(6)  knowingly purchases, rents, leases, or receives as 
a loan or gift from another a firearm [handgun] while an active 
protective order is directed to the actor.
	(c)  It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under 
Subsection (a)(2) that:
		(1)  the transfer, unless the transfer is by sale, 
rent, or lease, was to a minor whose parent or the person having 
legal custody of the minor had given [written permission for the 
sale or, if the transfer was other than a sale, the parent or person 
having legal custody had given] effective consent for the transfer; 
and
		(2)  the weapon transferred was a rifle or shotgun 
other than a short-barrel firearm.
	SECTION 2.   This Act takes effect September 1, 2003, and 
applies only to an offense committed on or after that date.  An 
offense committed before the effective date of this Act is covered 
by the law in effect when the offense was committed, and the former 
law is continued in effect for that purpose.  For purposes of this 
section, an offense was committed before the effective date of this 
Act if any element of the offense was committed before that date.