BILL ANALYSIS

S.B. 990

By: Bettencourt

Criminal Jurisprudence

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

The bill sponsor has informed the committee of the widely reported murder of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, who in June of 2024, was killed by two illegal immigrants from Venezuela. Under current state law, these offenders could only be tried with first degree murder for this crime. According to former Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg, only after the investigation concluded that Jocelyn had been sexually assaulted were prosecutors able to charge the perpetrators under the current law. The bill sponsor has further informed the committee that current Texas law fails to provide the justice such crimes demand and that the law should be reconsidered. S.B. 990 seeks to provide law enforcement and prosecutors another tool to deter crimes like this one and accordingly increase child safety by authorizing the murderer of an individual 10 years of age or older but younger than 15 years of age to be tried for capital murder, making the offender eligible for the death penalty.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

S.B. 990 repeals Section 1(b), Article 37.071, Code of Criminal Procedure which prohibits a defendant who is found guilty of capital murder of an individual 10 years of age or older but younger than 15 years of age, from being sentenced to death, and prohibits the state from seeking the death penalty in any case based solely on such an offense. The bill applies only to an offense committed on or after the bill's effective date. An offense committed before that date 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 these purposes, an offense was committed before the bill's effective date if any element of the offense occurred before that date.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2025.