BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 772

By: Riddle

Criminal Jurisprudence

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Interested parties note that legislation is required to correct unintended errors in the statutes resulting from passage of a bill in the 80th Legislature, commonly referred to as Jessica's Law, relating to the prosecution, punishment, and supervision of certain sex offenders and to certain crimes involving sex offenders.  H.B. 772 seeks to address those matters by making changes in statutes relating to the applicability of certain laws to certain offenders.  The parties note that the bill does not purport to change any existing policy.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 772 amends the Code of Criminal Procedure to make a technical correction by removing a reference to certain offenses, a conviction of which results in imprisonment for life, from a provision of law requiring a court in the penalty phase of a felony trial to charge the jury in writing with a statement relating to parole and good conduct time.

H.B. 772 amends the Government Code to make a technical correction by removing a reference to an inmate convicted of continuous sexual abuse of a young child or children from a provision of law requiring an extraordinary vote of the members of the Board of Pardons and Paroles to release on parole certain inmates. The bill clarifies that such a requirement refers to an inmate who is not ineligible for release on parole. The bill makes technical corrections to remove a reference to an inmate convicted of continuous sexual abuse of a young child or children from provisions of law relating to a child safety zone applicable to a parole releasee and from a provision of law requiring a releasee to pay a parole supervision fee. The bill repeals the definition of "sexual assault" in provisions of law requiring victim notification before the release on parole of a certain inmate.

H.B. 772 amends the Penal Code to make nonsubstantive changes.

H.B. 772 repeals Section 508.117(g)(2-a), Government Code.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2011.