Bill Text: TX HB2974 | 2017-2018 | 85th Legislature | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Relating to certain sexual offenses; creating a criminal offense; increasing a criminal penalty.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 3)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-05-12 - Returned to Local & Consent Calendars Comm. [HB2974 Detail]
Download: Texas-2017-HB2974-Comm_Sub.html
| 85R5909 JRR-D | ||
| By: Dale, Capriglione, Burkett | H.B. No. 2974 | |
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| relating to certain sexual offenses; creating a criminal offense; | ||
| increasing a criminal penalty. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Section 21.16(g), Penal Code, as added by | ||
| Chapter 852 (S.B. 1135), Acts of the 84th Legislature, Regular | ||
| Session, 2015, is amended to read as follows: | ||
| (g) An offense under this section is a state jail felony | ||
| [ |
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| SECTION 2. Chapter 21, Penal Code, is amended by adding | ||
| Section 21.18 to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 21.18. SEXUAL COERCION. (a) In this section: | ||
| (1) "Intimate visual material" means the visual | ||
| material described by Section 21.16(b)(1) or (c), as added by | ||
| Chapter 852 (S.B. 1135), Acts of the 84th Legislature, Regular | ||
| Session, 2015. | ||
| (2) "Sexual conduct" has the meaning assigned by | ||
| Section 43.25. | ||
| (b) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally | ||
| threatens, including by coercion or extortion, to commit an offense | ||
| under Chapter 43 or Section 20A.02(a)(3), (4), (7), or (8), 21.02, | ||
| 21.08, 21.11, 21.12, 21.15, 21.16, as added by Chapter 852 (S.B. | ||
| 1135), Acts of the 84th Legislature, Regular Session, 2015, 21.16, | ||
| as added by Chapter 676 (H.B. 207), Acts of the 84th Legislature, | ||
| Regular Session, 2015, 22.011, or 22.021 to obtain, in return for | ||
| not committing the threatened offense or in connection with the | ||
| threatened offense, any of the following benefits: | ||
| (1) intimate visual material; | ||
| (2) an act involving sexual conduct causing arousal or | ||
| gratification; or | ||
| (3) a monetary benefit or other benefit of value. | ||
| (c) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally | ||
| threatens, including by coercion or extortion, to commit an offense | ||
| under Chapter 19 or 20 or Section 20A.02(a)(1), (2), (5), or (6) to | ||
| obtain, in return for not committing the threatened offense or in | ||
| connection with the threatened offense, either of the following | ||
| benefits: | ||
| (1) intimate visual material; or | ||
| (2) an act involving sexual conduct causing arousal or | ||
| gratification. | ||
| (d) This section applies to a threat regardless of how that | ||
| threat is communicated, including a threat transmitted through | ||
| e-mail or an Internet website, social media account, or chat room | ||
| and a threat made by other electronic or technological means. | ||
| (e) An offense under this section is a state jail felony, | ||
| except that the offense is a felony of the third degree if it is | ||
| shown on the trial of the offense that the defendant has previously | ||
| been convicted of an offense under this section. | ||
| SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies 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 was | ||
| committed before that date. | ||
| SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017. | ||
