By: Hinojosa  S.B. No. 839
         (In the Senate - Filed February 13, 2009; March 4, 2009,
  read first time and referred to Committee on Criminal Justice;
  March 19, 2009, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
  Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 7, Nays 0; March 19, 2009,
  sent to printer.)
 
  COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 839 By:  Hinojosa
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
 
  relating to the punishment for a capital felony committed by a
  juvenile whose case is transferred to criminal court.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 12.31, Penal Code, is amended to read as
  follows:
         Sec. 12.31.  CAPITAL FELONY. (a)  An individual adjudged
  guilty of a capital felony in a case in which the state seeks the
  death penalty shall be punished by imprisonment in the Texas
  Department of Criminal Justice [institutional division] for life
  without parole or by death.  An individual adjudged guilty of a
  capital felony in a case in which the state does not seek the death
  penalty shall be punished by imprisonment in the Texas Department
  of Criminal Justice [institutional division] for:
               (1)  life, if the individual's case was transferred to
  the court under Section 54.02, Family Code; or
               (2)  life without parole.
         (b)  In a capital felony trial in which the state seeks the
  death penalty, prospective jurors shall be informed that a sentence
  of life imprisonment without parole or death is mandatory on
  conviction of a capital felony.  In a capital felony trial in which
  the state does not seek the death penalty, prospective jurors shall
  be informed that the state is not seeking the death penalty and
  that:
               (1)  a sentence of life imprisonment is mandatory on
  conviction of the capital felony, if the case was transferred to the
  court under Section 54.02, Family Code; or
               (2)  a sentence of life imprisonment without parole is
  mandatory on conviction of the capital felony.
         SECTION 2.  Section 508.145, Government Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (b) to read as follows:
         (b)  An inmate serving a life sentence under Section
  12.31(a)(1), Penal Code, for a capital felony is not eligible for
  release on parole until the actual calendar time the inmate has
  served, without consideration of good conduct time, equals 40
  calendar years.
         SECTION 3.  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 occurred before that date.
         SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
 
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