The bill would amend the Code of Criminal Procedure to expand the criminal history information required for production by the Public Safety Reporting System (PSRS) to include information regarding whether the defendant is currently released on bail or other pretrial release and the conditions of that release, whether the defendant is currently on community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision, any outstanding warrants for the defendant's arrest, and any current or previous protective orders.
The bill would require the Office of Court Administration to (OCA), without cost to a county, allow a county to integrate with the PSRS the jail records management system and case management system used by the county.
The bill would require the public safety report prepared for a magistrate considering the release of defendant charged with a Class B or higher offense to be provided, no later than 48 hours after the defendant's arrest, to the state's attorney and to the clerk of the court in which the case is pending. The bill would authorize the magistrate to order, prepare, or consider a report in setting bail for a defendant who is not in custody at the time the report is ordered, prepared, or considered.
For a defendant charged with an offense punishable as a felony while released on bail for another pending offense punishable as a felony where the new offense was committed in a different county than the prior offense, the bill would require electronic notice be provided to an individual designated to receive the electronic notice no later than the next business day after the date the defendant is charged for the purpose of determining whether bail conditions were violated or to revoke or modify the terms of the previous bond or reconsider the previous bail decision. The bill would also require certain courts to reconsider certain bail decisions when a defendant is charged with a felony offense while on bail for another offense punishable as a felony. The bill would require the local administrative district judge for each county to designate an individual to receive electronic notices and requires each county to ensure that the individual's name and contact information are provided on criminal history and warrant documents and included in the PSRS. The bill would also outline the designated individual's responsibilities.
The bill would add a new article to the Code of Criminal Procedure which would require a magistrate of a court without jurisdiction to try an offense to send the court with jurisdiction a defendant's bail order, imposed conditions, the complaint charging the offense, and a warrant if applicable. The bill would also allow the bail order to be reviewed and modified by certain courts and outlines the considerations required in that review.
The bill would require a person who releases a defendant on bail under the authority of a standing order related to bail to complete the bail form required by the Government Code.