Bill Text: TX HB4843 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Relating to increasing the minimum term of imprisonment and changing the eligibility for community supervision and parole for certain felony offenses in which a firearm is used or exhibited, to certain consequences on conviction of certain of those offenses, and to increasing the criminal penalty for the offense of unlawful possession of a firearm by a person convicted of a felony.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 24-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2023-05-28 - Motion withdrawn [HB4843 Detail]
Download: Texas-2023-HB4843-Comm_Sub.html
| By: Holland, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Huffman) | H.B. No. 4843 | |
| (In the Senate - Received from the House May 8, 2023; | ||
| May 11, 2023, read first time and referred to Committee on State | ||
| Affairs; May 21, 2023, reported adversely, with favorable | ||
| Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 9, Nays 0; | ||
| May 21, 2023, sent to printer.) | ||
| COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 4843 | By: Hughes | |
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| relating to increasing the minimum term of imprisonment and | ||
| changing the eligibility for community supervision and parole for | ||
| certain felony offenses in which a firearm is used or exhibited, to | ||
| certain consequences on conviction of certain of those offenses, | ||
| and to increasing the criminal penalty for the offense of unlawful | ||
| possession of a firearm by a person convicted of a felony. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Subchapter D, Chapter 12, Penal Code, is amended | ||
| by adding Section 12.502 to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 12.502. PENALTY FOR CERTAIN FELONY OFFENSES COMMITTED | ||
| WITH FIREARM. (a) The minimum term of imprisonment for a first, | ||
| second, or third degree felony listed in Article 42A.054(a), Code | ||
| of Criminal Procedure, is increased to 10 years if an affirmative | ||
| finding has been entered in the judgment in the case under Article | ||
| 42A.054(d), Code of Criminal Procedure. | ||
| (b) Subsection (a) does not apply to a felony offense for | ||
| which the punishment otherwise required by law includes a minimum | ||
| term of imprisonment that exceeds 10 years. | ||
| SECTION 2. Section 46.04(e), Penal Code, is amended to read | ||
| as follows: | ||
| (e) An offense under Subsection (a) is a felony of the | ||
| second [ |
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| (c) is a Class A misdemeanor. | ||
| SECTION 3. Article 42.08, Code of Criminal Procedure, is | ||
| amended by adding Subsection (b-1) to read as follows: | ||
| (b-1) A judge sentencing a defendant convicted of an offense | ||
| that was committed while on community supervision granted under | ||
| Article 42A.055 and for which the minimum term of imprisonment was | ||
| increased under Section 12.502, Penal Code, shall order the | ||
| sentence for the offense to commence immediately on completion of | ||
| the sentence for the offense for which the defendant was placed on | ||
| community supervision. | ||
| SECTION 4. Article 42A.055, Code of Criminal Procedure, is | ||
| amended by adding Subsection (c-1) to read as follows: | ||
| (c-1) If the jury recommends to the judge that the judge | ||
| place the defendant on community supervision for an offense for | ||
| which the minimum term of imprisonment for the offense is increased | ||
| under Section 12.502, Penal Code, the judge shall place the | ||
| defendant on community supervision for a period of 10 years. | ||
| SECTION 5. Article 42A.102(b), Code of Criminal Procedure, | ||
| is amended to read as follows: | ||
| (b) In all other cases, the judge may grant deferred | ||
| adjudication community supervision unless: | ||
| (1) the defendant is charged with an offense: | ||
| (A) under Section 20A.02, 20A.03, 49.045, 49.05, | ||
| 49.065, 49.07, or 49.08, Penal Code; | ||
| (B) under Section 49.04 or 49.06, Penal Code, | ||
| and, at the time of the offense: | ||
| (i) the defendant held a commercial | ||
| driver's license or a commercial learner's permit; or | ||
| (ii) the defendant's alcohol concentration, | ||
| as defined by Section 49.01, Penal Code, was 0.15 or more; | ||
| (C) for which punishment may be increased under | ||
| Section 49.09, Penal Code; | ||
| (D) for which punishment may be increased under | ||
| Section 481.134(c), (d), (e), or (f), Health and Safety Code, if it | ||
| is shown that the defendant has been previously convicted of an | ||
| offense for which punishment was increased under any one of those | ||
| subsections; [ |
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| (E) that is punishable as a first, second, or | ||
| third degree felony listed in Article 42A.054(a), if the judge | ||
| finds that a firearm was used or exhibited during the commission of | ||
| the offense or during the immediate flight from the commission of | ||
| the offense; or | ||
| (F) under Section 481.1123, Health and Safety | ||
| Code, that is punishable under Subsection (d), (e), or (f) of that | ||
| section; | ||
| (2) the defendant: | ||
| (A) is charged with an offense under Section | ||
| 21.11, 22.011, 22.021, 43.04, or 43.05, Penal Code, regardless of | ||
| the age of the victim, or a felony described by Article 42A.453(b), | ||
| other than a felony described by Subdivision (1)(A) or (3)(B) of | ||
| this subsection; and | ||
| (B) has previously been placed on community | ||
| supervision for an offense under Paragraph (A); | ||
| (3) the defendant is charged with an offense under: | ||
| (A) Section 21.02, Penal Code; or | ||
| (B) Section 22.021, Penal Code, that is | ||
| punishable under Subsection (f) of that section or under Section | ||
| 12.42(c)(3) or (4), Penal Code; or | ||
| (4) the defendant is charged with an offense under | ||
| Section 19.02, Penal Code, except that the judge may grant deferred | ||
| adjudication community supervision on determining that the | ||
| defendant did not cause the death of the deceased, did not intend to | ||
| kill the deceased or another, and did not anticipate that a human | ||
| life would be taken. | ||
| SECTION 6. Section 508.145(d)(2), Government Code, is | ||
| amended to read as follows: | ||
| (2) An inmate described by Subdivision (1) is not | ||
| eligible for release on parole until the inmate's actual calendar | ||
| time served, without consideration of good conduct time, equals | ||
| one-half of the sentence or 30 calendar years, whichever is less, | ||
| but in no event is the inmate eligible for release on parole in less | ||
| than: | ||
| (A) 10 calendar years, for an inmate serving a | ||
| sentence for an offense for which the minimum term of imprisonment | ||
| was increased under Section 12.502, Penal Code; or | ||
| (B) two calendar years, for an inmate serving a | ||
| sentence for any other offense to which this subsection applies. | ||
| SECTION 7. 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 occurred | ||
| before that date. | ||
| SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. | ||
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