Bill Text: TX HB1661 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to the prosecution of the criminal offense of continuous violence against the family.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-1)
Status: (Passed) 2019-06-15 - Effective on 9/1/19 [HB1661 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-HB1661-Enrolled.html
H.B. No. 1661 |
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relating to the prosecution of the criminal offense of continuous | ||
violence against the family. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as Rachel's Law. | ||
SECTION 2. Chapter 13, Code of Criminal Procedure, is | ||
amended by adding Article 13.072 to read as follows: | ||
Art. 13.072. CONTINUOUS VIOLENCE AGAINST THE FAMILY | ||
COMMITTED IN MORE THAN ONE COUNTY. An offense under Section 25.11, | ||
Penal Code, may be prosecuted in any county in which the defendant | ||
engaged in the conduct constituting an offense under Section | ||
22.01(a)(1), Penal Code, against a person described by Section | ||
25.11(a), Penal Code. | ||
SECTION 3. Section 25.11(b), Penal Code, is amended to read | ||
as follows: | ||
(b) If the jury is the trier of fact, members of the jury are | ||
not required to agree unanimously on the specific conduct in which | ||
the defendant engaged that constituted an offense under Section | ||
22.01(a)(1) against the person or persons described by Subsection | ||
(a), [ |
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in which each instance of the conduct occurred. The jury must agree | ||
unanimously that the defendant, during a period that is 12 months or | ||
less in duration, two or more times engaged in conduct that | ||
constituted an offense under Section 22.01(a)(1) against the person | ||
or persons described by Subsection (a). | ||
SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act apply 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 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. | ||
______________________________ | ______________________________ | |
President of the Senate | Speaker of the House | |
I certify that H.B. No. 1661 was passed by the House on April | ||
17, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 143, Nays 0, 2 present, not | ||
voting. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Chief Clerk of the House | ||
I certify that H.B. No. 1661 was passed by the Senate on May | ||
21, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Secretary of the Senate | ||
APPROVED: _____________________ | ||
Date | ||
_____________________ | ||
Governor |