Honorable John Whitmire, Chair, Senate Committee on Criminal Justice
FROM:
Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB55 by Johnson, Julie (Relating to the punishment for the criminal offense of indecent assault; increasing a criminal penalty.), As Engrossed
The bill would increase the penalty for the offense of indecent assault from a Class A misdemeanor to a state jail felony if the defendant has been previously convicted of indecent assault, is a health care services or mental health services provider and the act is committed during the course of providing a treatment or service that is beyond the scope of generally accepted practices, or provided an alcoholic beverage to the other person with the intent to commit the act and the other person was an employee, intern, or otherwise supervised in a professional capacity by the defendant. The penalty would be increased to a third degree felony if the defendant has been previously convicted of such indecent assault conduct as a health care services or mental health services provider.
Increasing the penalty for an existing offense may result in additional demands upon state and local correctional resources due to a possible increase in the number of individuals placed under supervision in the community or sentenced to a term of confinement.
In fiscal year 2022, there were 537 individuals arrested, 130 individuals placed on community supervision, and no individuals admitted into a state correctional institution for indecent assault.
It is assumed that any impact on state correctional populations or on the demand for state correctional resources would not be significant.