| |
| |
|
|
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
|
relating to the prosecution and punishment of the criminal offense |
|
|
of possession or promotion of lewd visual material depicting a |
|
|
child; increasing a criminal penalty. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Section 43.262, Penal Code, is amended by |
|
|
amending Subsections (b) and (c) and adding Subsections (c-1) and |
|
|
(c-2) to read as follows: |
|
|
(b) A person commits an offense if the person knowingly |
|
|
possesses, accesses with intent to view, or promotes visual |
|
|
material that: |
|
|
(1) depicts the lewd exhibition of the genitals or |
|
|
pubic area of an unclothed, partially clothed, or clothed child who |
|
|
is younger than 18 years of age at the time the visual material was |
|
|
created; and |
|
|
(2) appeals to the prurient interest in sex[; and |
|
|
[(3) has no serious literary, artistic, political, or |
|
|
scientific value]. |
|
|
(c) Except as provided by Subsection (c-1) or (c-2), an [An] |
|
|
offense under this section is a state jail felony, except that the |
|
|
offense is: |
|
|
(1) a felony of the third degree if it is shown on the |
|
|
trial of the offense that the person has been previously convicted |
|
|
one time of an offense under this section or Section 43.26; and |
|
|
(2) a felony of the second degree if it is shown on the |
|
|
trial of the offense that the person has been previously convicted |
|
|
two or more times of an offense under this section or Section 43.26. |
|
|
(c-1) Subject to Subsection (c-2), an offense under this |
|
|
section is a felony of the second degree if the offense is: |
|
|
(1) based on the promotion of visual material; and |
|
|
(2) committed by a corporation, association, limited |
|
|
liability company, or other entity or organization governed by the |
|
|
Business Organizations Code or an individual acting in the name of |
|
|
or in behalf of such an entity or organization. |
|
|
(c-2) An offense otherwise punishable under Subsection |
|
|
(c-1) is a felony of the first degree if it is shown on the trial of |
|
|
the offense that the actor has been previously convicted one or more |
|
|
times of: |
|
|
(1) an offense punishable under Subsection (c-1); or |
|
|
(2) an offense under Section 43.26. |
|
|
SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
|
|
to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. |
|
|
An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is |
|
|
governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, |
|
|
and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For |
|
|
purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the |
|
|
effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred |
|
|
before that date. |
|
|
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
|
|
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
|
|
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
|
|
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
|
|
Act takes effect September 1, 2021. |