Bill Text: TX HB1943 | 2021-2022 | 87th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to requiring law enforcement agencies to adopt policies prohibiting a peace officer from discharging a firearm at or in the direction of a moving vehicle; creating a criminal offense.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-03-15 - Referred to Homeland Security & Public Safety [HB1943 Detail]
Download: Texas-2021-HB1943-Introduced.html
| 87R6323 TSS-D | ||
| By: Crockett | H.B. No. 1943 | |
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| relating to requiring law enforcement agencies to adopt policies | ||
| prohibiting a peace officer from discharging a firearm at or in the | ||
| direction of a moving vehicle; creating a criminal offense. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the Jordan Edwards Act. | ||
| SECTION 2. Chapter 2, Code of Criminal Procedure, is | ||
| amended by adding Article 2.1397 to read as follows: | ||
| Art. 2.1397. LIMITATIONS ON DISCHARGE OF FIREARM AT MOVING | ||
| VEHICLE; OFFENSE. (a) In this article, "law enforcement agency" | ||
| means an agency of the state or an agency of a political subdivision | ||
| of the state authorized by law to employ peace officers. | ||
| (b) A peace officer may not, while performing an official | ||
| duty, discharge a firearm at or in the direction of a moving vehicle | ||
| unless: | ||
| (1) if the vehicle is occupied solely by the driver: | ||
| (A) the peace officer discharges the firearm only | ||
| when and to the degree the officer reasonably believes is | ||
| immediately necessary to protect the officer or another person from | ||
| the use of unlawful deadly force by the driver of the vehicle; and | ||
| (B) before discharging the firearm, the officer | ||
| has exhausted all other reasonable means of mitigating or | ||
| preventing the deadly force by the driver or has determined that | ||
| other means of mitigating or preventing the deadly force would be | ||
| inappropriate under the circumstances; or | ||
| (2) if the vehicle has one or more passengers: | ||
| (A) the peace officer discharges the firearm only | ||
| when and to the degree the officer reasonably believes is | ||
| immediately necessary to protect the officer from unlawful deadly | ||
| force by the driver of the vehicle by means of the vehicle; and | ||
| (B) the officer reasonably believes that the | ||
| officer is unable to mitigate or prevent the deadly force by the | ||
| officer moving out of the path of the vehicle. | ||
| (c) A law enforcement agency shall adopt a policy regarding | ||
| a peace officer's use of force with respect to a moving vehicle that | ||
| is consistent with this article. | ||
| (d) A peace officer commits an offense if the officer | ||
| engages in conduct prohibited by Subsection (a) in violation of a | ||
| policy adopted under Subsection (c). | ||
| (e) An offense under this article is a felony of the third | ||
| degree. | ||
| (f) Notwithstanding any other law, conduct prohibited under | ||
| Subsection (a) is not justified under Section 9.21, 9.51, or 9.52, | ||
| Penal Code. | ||
| (g) If conduct constituting an offense under Subsection (d) | ||
| also constitutes an offense under any other law, the actor may be | ||
| prosecuted under that subsection, the other law, or both. | ||
| SECTION 3. Each law enforcement agency in this state shall | ||
| adopt the policy required by Article 2.1397, Code of Criminal | ||
| Procedure, as added by this Act, as soon as practicable after the | ||
| effective date of this Act. | ||
| SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021. | ||
