| TO: | Honorable Pete Gallego, Chair, House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence |
| FROM: | John S O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board |
| IN RE: | HB855 by Dutton (Relating to the extent of a defendant's criminal responsibility for the conduct of a coconspirator in certain felony cases.), As Introduced |
The bill would amend the Code of Criminal Procedure to prohibit a sentence of death for a defendant found guilty of a capital felony if found guilty through the criminal responsibility of another.
The bill would take effect on September 1, 2011 and apply to a criminal proceeding that begins on or after that date.
Both the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and the Office of Court Administration indicate they anticipate no significant fiscal impact as a result of complying with the provisions of the bill.
The costs of adjudicating two or more capital trials for two or more defendants rather than only one trial may have a fiscal implication for any particular jurisdiction. Because this estimate assumes such circumstances would be infrequent, no significant implication to units of local government statewide is anticipated.
| Source Agencies: | 212 Office of Court Administration, Texas Judicial Council, 696 Department of Criminal Justice
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| LBB Staff: | JOB, ESi, GG, LM
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