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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to providing certain information to criminal defendants |
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charged with certain drug offenses before a plea is entered. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Article 26.13, Code of Criminal Procedure, is |
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amended by adding Subsections (j) and (k) to read as follows: |
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(j) Before accepting a plea of guilty or nolo contendere |
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with reference to an offense under Chapter 481, 483, or 485, Health |
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and Safety Code, for which the indictment is based on the results of |
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a field test indicating the presence of a prohibited substance, the |
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court shall inform the defendant that the prohibited substance was |
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identified on the basis of a field test conducted by law enforcement |
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and not on the basis of a forensic analysis conducted by an |
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accredited crime laboratory. |
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(k) The court must substantially comply with Subsection |
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(j). The failure of the court to comply with Subsection (j) is not a |
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ground for reversal unless the defendant shows that the defendant |
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was harmed by the failure of the court to provide the information. |
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SECTION 2. Articles 26.13(j) and (k), Code of Criminal |
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Procedure, as added by this Act, apply to a plea of guilty or nolo |
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contendere entered on or after the effective date of this Act, |
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regardless of whether the offense with reference to which the plea |
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is entered is committed before, on, or after that date. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |