BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center                                                                                                      S.B. 1129

80R9418 UM-D                                                                                                                 By: Hegar

Criminal Justice

4/21/2007

As Filed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

For a prior conviction to be considered by the court, the prosecution is required to prove that the defendant is the same person named in the conviction.  Under current law, a defendant’s thumbprint is required to be added to the judgment.  However, it is often of poor quality, creating a difficulty for some prosecutors to prove that the defendant in a particular case was previously convicted.

As proposed, S.B. 1129 requires the defendant’s driver’s license or personal identification number and date of birth to be included in the judgment.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 1, Article 42.01, Code of Criminal Procedure, to require a judgment in a criminal case to reflect, in addition to other requirements, the defendant’s driver’s license or personal identification certificate number issued either by the Department of Public Safety or an equivalent agency in another state, if available, and the defendant’s date of birth.

SECTION 2.  Makes application of this Act prospective.

SECTION 3.  Effective date: September 1, 2007.