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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the creation of the offense of possession or use of law |
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enforcement identification, insignia, or vehicles in certain |
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populous municipalities and the clarification of the offenses of |
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false identification as a peace officer and misrepresentation of |
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property. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 341.904(b), Local Government Code, is |
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amended to read as follows: |
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(b) In a municipality with a population of 750,000 [1.18
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million] or more [located primarily in a county with a population of
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2 million or more], a person commits an offense if the person |
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intentionally or knowingly: |
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(1) uses, possesses, or wears: |
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(A) a police identification item of the municipal |
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police department; |
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(B) an item bearing the insignia or design |
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prescribed by the police chief of the municipality for officers and |
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employees of the municipal police department to use while engaged |
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in official activities; or |
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(C) within the municipal police department's |
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jurisdiction, an item that is deceptively similar to a police |
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identification item of the department; |
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(2) uses, within the municipal police department's |
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jurisdiction, the name of the department in connection with an |
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object to create the appearance that the object belongs to or is |
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used by the department; or |
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(3) uses, possesses, or operates, within the municipal |
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police department's jurisdiction, a marked patrol vehicle that is |
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deceptively similar to a department patrol vehicle. |
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SECTION 2. Section 37.12, Penal Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsections (a) and (d) and adding Subsection (c-1) to |
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read as follows: |
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(a) A person commits an offense if: |
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(1) the person makes, provides to another person, or |
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possesses a card, document, badge, insignia, shoulder emblem, or |
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other item, including a vehicle, bearing an insignia of a law |
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enforcement agency that identifies a person as a peace officer or a |
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reserve law enforcement officer; and |
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(2) the person who makes, provides, or possesses the |
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item bearing the insignia knows that the person so identified by the |
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item is not commissioned as a peace officer or reserve law |
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enforcement officer as indicated on the item. |
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(c-1) For purposes of this section, an item bearing an |
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insignia of a law enforcement agency includes an item that contains |
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the word "police," "sheriff," "constable," "trooper," "ranger," |
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"agent," or any other designation commonly used by law enforcement |
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agencies in this state. |
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(d) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally |
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or knowingly misrepresents an object, including a vehicle, as |
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property belonging to a law enforcement agency. |
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SECTION 3. Section 37.12, Penal Code, as amended by this |
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Act, is a clarification of existing law and does not imply that |
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existing law may be construed as inconsistent with the law as |
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amended by this Act. |
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SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |