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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the punishment for the offense of burglary of a vehicle; |
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increasing a criminal penalty. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 30.04, Penal Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsections (d) and (e) and adding Subsections (d-2) and |
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(d-3) to read as follows: |
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(d) An offense under this section is a: |
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(1) Class A misdemeanor if the amount of pecuniary |
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loss to tangible personal property is less than $1,500; [, except
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that:
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[(1)
the offense is a Class A misdemeanor with
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a
minimum term of confinement of six months if it is shown on the
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trial of the offense that the defendant has been previously
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convicted of an offense under this section; and] |
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(2) [the offense is a] state jail felony if: |
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(A) the amount of pecuniary loss to tangible |
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personal property is $1,500 or more but less than $20,000; |
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(B) the amount of pecuniary loss to tangible |
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personal property is less than $1,500 and it is shown on the trial |
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of the offense that the defendant has been previously convicted two |
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or more times of an offense under this section; or |
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(C) the amount of pecuniary loss to tangible |
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personal property is less than $1,500 and [(B)] the vehicle or |
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part of the vehicle broken into or entered is a rail car; |
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(3) felony of the third degree if the amount of |
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pecuniary loss to tangible personal property is $20,000 or more but |
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less than $100,000; |
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(4) felony of the second degree if the amount of |
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pecuniary loss to tangible personal property is $100,000 or more |
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but less than $200,000; or |
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(5) felony of the first degree if the amount of |
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pecuniary loss to tangible personal property is $200,000 or more. |
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(d-2) For the purposes of Subsection (d), the amount of |
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pecuniary loss to tangible personal property is the sum of: |
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(1) the cost of repairing or restoring the vehicle, if |
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the defendant damaged the vehicle in the course of committing the |
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offense; and |
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(2) the fair market value of any tangible personal |
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property the defendant stole from the vehicle, if the defendant |
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committed theft in the course of committing the offense. |
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(d-3) If the defendant, pursuant to one scheme or continuing |
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course of conduct, commits three or more offenses under this |
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section in a 24-hour period, the conduct may be considered as one |
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offense and the amounts of pecuniary loss aggregated in determining |
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the grade of offense. |
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(e) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that |
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the defendant [actor] entered a rail car or any part of a rail car |
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and was at that time an employee or a representative of employees |
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exercising a right under the Railway Labor Act (45 U.S.C. Section |
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151 et seq.). |
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SECTION 2. Sections 3(h) and 4(f), Article 42.12, Code of |
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Criminal Procedure, are repealed. |
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SECTION 3. 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 when the offense was committed, and |
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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 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |