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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the penalty for the offense of leaving the scene of an |
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accident that involves personal injury or death. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 550.021, Transportation Code, is amended |
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by amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (d) to read as |
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follows: |
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(c) A person commits an offense if the person does not stop |
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or does not comply with the requirements of this section. Except |
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as provided by Subsection (d), an [An] offense under this section: |
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(1) involving an accident resulting in death of or |
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serious bodily injury, as defined by Section 1.07, Penal Code, to a |
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person is a felony of the third degree; and |
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(2) involving an accident resulting in injury to which |
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Subdivision (1) does not apply is punishable by: |
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(A) imprisonment in the Texas Department of |
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Criminal Justice for not more than five years or confinement in the |
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county jail for not more than one year; |
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(B) a fine not to exceed $5,000; or |
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(C) both the fine and the imprisonment or |
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confinement. |
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(d) If it is shown on the trial of an offense under this |
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section that, at the time of an accident described by Subsection |
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(a), the person is released on parole or to mandatory supervision, |
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is placed on community supervision, including deferred |
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adjudication community supervision, has been previously convicted |
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two or more times of a felony, or is driving during a period that the |
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person's driver's license or privilege is suspended or revoked, the |
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offense under this section: |
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(1) involving an accident resulting in death of or |
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serious bodily injury, as defined by Section 1.07, Penal Code, to a |
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person is a felony of the second degree; and |
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(2) involving an accident resulting in injury to which |
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Subdivision (1) does not apply is punishable by: |
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(A) imprisonment in the Texas Department of |
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Criminal Justice for not less than 2 years and not more than 20 |
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years; |
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(B) a fine not to exceed $10,000; or |
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(C) both the fine and the imprisonment. |
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SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. |
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An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is |
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governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, |
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and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For |
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purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the |
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effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred |
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before that date. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013. |