79R8520 UM-D

By:  Berman                                                       H.B. No. 2110



A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the applicability of certain weapon laws to certain 
prosecutors.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Section 46.15(a), Penal Code, is amended to read 
as follows:     
	(a)  Sections 46.02 and 46.03 do not apply to:                                 
		(1)  peace officers, including commissioned peace 
officers of a recognized state, or special investigators under 
Article 2.122, Code of Criminal Procedure, and neither section 
prohibits a peace officer or special investigator from carrying a 
weapon in this state, including in an establishment in this state 
serving the public, regardless of whether the peace officer or 
special investigator is engaged in the actual discharge of the 
officer's or investigator's duties while carrying the weapon;
		(2)  parole officers and neither section prohibits an 
officer from carrying a weapon in this state if the officer is:
			(A)  engaged in the actual discharge of the 
officer's duties while carrying the weapon; and
			(B)  in compliance with policies and procedures 
adopted by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice regarding the 
possession of a weapon by an officer while on duty;
		(3)  community supervision and corrections department 
officers appointed or employed under Section 76.004, Government 
Code, and neither section prohibits an officer from carrying a 
weapon in this state if the officer is:
			(A)  engaged in the actual discharge of the 
officer's duties while carrying the weapon; and
			(B)  authorized to carry a weapon under Section 
76.0051, Government Code;  
		(4)  a judge or justice of the supreme court, the court 
of criminal appeals, a court of appeals, a district court, a 
criminal district court, a constitutional county court, a statutory 
county court, a justice court, or a municipal court who is licensed 
to carry a concealed handgun under Subchapter H, Chapter 411, 
Government Code; [or]
		(5)  an honorably retired peace officer or federal 
criminal investigator who holds a certificate of proficiency issued 
under Section 1701.357, Occupations Code, and is carrying a photo 
identification that:
			(A)  verifies that the officer honorably retired 
after not less than 20 years of service as a commissioned officer; 
and
			(B)  is issued by the agency from which the peace 
officer retired or, for a federal criminal investigator, by a state 
law enforcement agency; or
		(6)  a district attorney or criminal district attorney 
who is licensed to carry a concealed handgun under Subchapter H, 
Chapter 411, Government Code.
	SECTION 2.  The change in law made by this Act applies only 
to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.   
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.
	SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2005.