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78R3910 EMT-D

By:  Hinojosa                                                     S.B. No. 515



A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to requiring the corroboration of certain testimony in a 
criminal case involving controlled substances.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Article 38.141, Code of Criminal Procedure, is 
amended to read as follows:
	Art. 38.141.  TESTIMONY RELATING TO COVERT LAW ENFORCEMENT 
ACTIVITY [OF UNDERCOVER PEACE OFFICER OR SPECIAL 
INVESTIGATOR].  (a)  A defendant may not be convicted of an offense 
under Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code, on the testimony of a 
person who is [not a licensed peace officer or a special 
investigator but who is] acting covertly on behalf of a law 
enforcement agency or under the color of law enforcement unless the 
testimony is corroborated by other evidence tending to connect the 
defendant with the offense committed.
	(b)  Corroboration is not sufficient for the purposes of this 
article if the corroboration only shows the commission of the 
offense.
	[(c)  In this article, "peace officer" means a person listed 
in Article 2.12, and "special investigator" means a person listed 
in Article 2.122.]
	SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2003, and 
applies to any case in which a judgment has not been entered before 
the effective date of this Act.  A case in which a judgment has been 
entered before the effective date of this Act is covered by the law 
in effect when the judgment is entered, and the former law is 
continued in effect for that purpose.