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HB1256 • 2026

Criminal Offenses

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 8; Title 10; Title 33; Title 36; Title 37; Title 38; Title 39; Title 40; Title 41; Title 49; Title 50; Title 55 and Title 70, relative to criminal justice.

Crime
Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor
Doggett, Gardenhire
Last action
2025-05-08
Official status
Effective date(s) 07/01/2025
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official summary does not provide details on penalties for non-compliance or impacts on less serious offenses.

Placing Defendants on Fugitive Lists for Failure to Appear

This bill amends Tennessee laws to require defendants who miss court appearances for certain serious crimes to be listed as fugitives and mandates timely actions by courts and agencies.

What This Bill Does

  • If a defendant misses a court appearance for felony or violent Class A or B misdemeanor charges, they must be added to state or federal lists of missing people from justice.
  • Courts must issue arrest warrants on the same day if someone does not show up in court.
  • The clerk must send out these arrest orders within one business day after receiving them.
  • If a defendant is found outside Tennessee, the local prosecutor has to decide whether to bring them back to Tennessee within one business day.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People who miss their court dates for serious crimes
  • Courts and law enforcement agencies

Terms To Know

Bench warrant
An order from a judge to arrest someone because they missed a court date.
Capias
A legal document that orders law enforcement to bring someone before the court.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify what happens if courts or agencies do not follow these rules.
  • It is unclear how this will affect defendants who miss less serious court dates.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

Amendment 1-0 to HB1256

Plain English: The amendment changes how Tennessee handles bench warrants and capias orders when defendants fail to appear in court for certain crimes.

  • If a defendant fails to show up for a felony or violent/sexual misdemeanor, they will be listed as a fugitive on state and federal databases like the National Crime Information Center.
  • Judicial officials must sign bench warrants or capias orders within one business day after the failure to appear, and these documents must be entered into relevant databases by the entering agency within another business day.
  • If a defendant is caught outside Tennessee, the district attorney has one business day to decide whether to start extradition proceedings.
  • The amendment does not specify what happens if the required actions are not completed on time.
Amendment 1-0 to SB1133

Plain English: The amendment changes how Tennessee handles bench warrants and capias for certain criminal cases by adding requirements for placing defendants on state or federal fugitive lists and setting deadlines for actions by judicial officials and law enforcement.

  • If a defendant fails to appear in court for specific crimes, they must be added to the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) as a fugitive from justice.
  • Judicial officials are required to sign bench warrants or capias within one business day of the failure to appear and transmit them to entering agencies within another business day.
  • Sureties are not responsible for any bail if defendants aren't added to state or federal lists within three business days after receiving the warrant or capias.
  • The amendment text does not specify all details about how these changes will be implemented, such as specific procedures for entering data into NCIC.
  • It is unclear what happens if a surety is liable before the three-day period ends and the defendant isn't listed yet.

Bill History

  1. 2025-05-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Effective date(s) 07/01/2025

  2. 2025-05-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Pub. Ch. 352

  3. 2025-05-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. became Pub. Ch. 352

  4. 2025-05-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Governor.

  5. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Transmitted to Governor for his action.

  6. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Senate Speaker

  7. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by H. Speaker

  8. 2025-04-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Enrolled; ready for sig. of H. Speaker.

  9. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed Senate, Ayes 31, Nays 0

  10. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Amendment withdrawn. (Amendment 1 - SA0392)

  11. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate substituted House Bill for companion Senate Bill.

  12. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Received from House, Passed on First Consideration

  13. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  14. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Companion House Bill substituted

  15. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Engrossed; ready for transmission to Sen.

  16. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed H., as am., Ayes 91, Nays 2, PNV 1

  17. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. adopted am. (Amendment 1 - HA0383)

  18. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 4/15/2025

  19. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate Reset on calendar for 4/15/2025

  20. 2025-04-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 4/14/2025

  21. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/14/2025

  22. 2025-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 4/10/2025

  23. 2025-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass. if am., ref. to Calendar & Rules Committee

  24. 2025-04-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 8, Nays 0 PNV 0

  25. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Judiciary Committee for 4/9/2025

  26. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in Judiciary Committee to 4/9/2025

  27. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 4/8/2025

  28. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action deferred in Senate Judiciary Committee to 4/8/2025

  29. 2025-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 4/2/2025

  30. 2025-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action deferred in Senate Judiciary Committee to 4/2/2025

  31. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 4/1/2025

  32. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action deferred in Senate Judiciary Committee to 4/1/2025

  33. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  34. 2025-03-28 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  35. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Judiciary Committee for 4/2/2025

  36. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec for pass if am by s/c ref. to Judiciary Committee

  37. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/31/2025

  38. 2025-03-24 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  39. 2025-03-24 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  40. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Criminal Justice Subcommittee for 3/26/2025

  41. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Criminal Justice Subcommittee

  42. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Ref. to Judiciary Committee

  43. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, caption bill, held on desk - pending amdt.

  44. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Judiciary Committee

  45. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  46. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  47. 2025-02-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  48. 2025-02-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

ON APRIL 14, 2025, THE HOUSE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 1256, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 rewrites the bill to, instead, revise provisions of present law relative to placing certain defendants on a fugitives list for failure to appear to, instead, provide the following:



If a court issues a bench warrant or a capias due to a defendant's failure to appear on a felony or on a Class A or Class B misdemeanor that is violent or sexual in nature as determined by the court, or if a defendant is charged with a failure to appear, then the defendant
must
be placed on any available state or federal list or database as a fugitive from justice, including the National Crime Information Center.



If necessary, the judicial official must sign the bench warrant or capias by the end of business on the day of the defendant's failure to appear. The clerk
must
transmit
the

bench warrant or capias to the entering agency by the end of the next business day after issuance
. The entering agency
must
enter the bench warrant or capias into any available state or federal list or database, including the National Crime Information Center.



A surety is not liable for any undertaking if the defendant has not been placed on the available state or federal list or database within three business days of the entering agency's receipt of the bench warrant or capias.



If the defendant is apprehended outside the state by a law enforcement agency in a jurisdiction that is outside the limitation entered into the state or federal list or database, then the district attorney general must determine, within one business day of being notified of the apprehension, whether to initiate extradition proceedings for the defendant's return.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
SENATE BILL 1133
By Gardenhire

HOUSE BILL 1256
By Doggett

HB1256
003229
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 8;
Title 10; Title 33; Title 36; Title 37; Title 38; Title
39; Title 40; Title 41; Title 49; Title 50; Title 55 and
Title 70, relative to criminal justice.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 39-16-202(a)(1), is amended by
deleting "five (5)" and substituting "three (3)".
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.