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SB0963 • 2026

Criminal Procedure

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 33; Title 40 and Title 52, relative to persons found incompetent to stand trial.

Crime
Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Hatcher, Williams
Last action
2025-05-27
Official status
Comp. became Pub. Ch. 519
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official bill text does not provide an effective date, only that it takes effect upon becoming a law.

Changes to Rules for Incompetent Defendants

This bill extends the time limit for retiring misdemeanor charges of incompetent defendants from 11 months and 29 days to two years and adds requirements for notifying courts and providing treatment plans when these individuals are released.

What This Bill Does

  • Extends the time from 11 months and 29 days to two years for misdemeanor charges to be retired if a defendant is found incompetent.
  • Requires the chief officer to notify the court when an incompetent defendant who had their charges retired is released into the community.
  • Requires the chief officer to provide the court and sheriff with an outpatient treatment plan that considers community safety when releasing an incompetent defendant.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People found incompetent to stand trial
  • Courts handling misdemeanor cases
  • Law enforcement agencies

Terms To Know

Incompetent to Stand Trial
A legal determination that a person is unable to understand the charges against them or participate in their own defense.
Misdemeanor Charges
Less serious criminal offenses, typically punishable by fines and/or up to one year in jail.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify how much it will cost the state to extend hospital stays for incompetent defendants beyond 11 months and 29 days.
  • It is unclear when exactly this law will take effect after becoming public chapter number 519.

Amendments

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

Amendment 1-0 to HB1177

Plain English: The amendment changes how Tennessee handles misdemeanor charges for people found incompetent to stand trial.

  • Misdemeanor charges will be dismissed after two years if a defendant is still found incompetent at that time and has not been restored to competency.
  • When an incompetent person with retired charges is released, the chief officer must notify the court and provide an outpatient treatment plan.
  • The amendment text does not specify what happens if a defendant is restored to competency before the two-year deadline.
  • It's unclear how this change will affect current cases or those pending at the time of implementation.
Amendment 2-0 to HB1177

Plain English: The amendment changes how misdemeanor charges are handled when a person is found incompetent to stand trial.

  • Misdemeanor charges will be dismissed after two years if the defendant has not been restored to competency by then, unless the defendant becomes competent before that time.
  • When a defendant who had their charges retired under this rule is released into the community, the chief officer must notify the court and provide an outpatient treatment plan.
  • The amendment text does not specify what happens if the defendant is restored to competency after two years but before trial.
  • It's unclear how the outpatient treatment plan will be enforced or monitored.
Amendment 1-0 to SB0963

Plain English: The amendment changes how Tennessee handles misdemeanor charges for people found incompetent to stand trial.

  • Misdemeanor charges will be dismissed after two years if a defendant is still found incompetent at that time and has not been restored to competency.
  • When an incompetent person with retired charges is released, the chief officer must notify the court and provide an outpatient treatment plan.
  • The amendment text does not specify what happens if a defendant is restored to competency before the two-year deadline.
  • It's unclear how this change will affect current cases or those pending at the time of implementation.

Bill History

  1. 2025-05-27 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. became Pub. Ch. 519

  2. 2025-05-27 Tennessee General Assembly

    Effective date(s) 07/01/2025

  3. 2025-05-27 Tennessee General Assembly

    Pub. Ch. 519

  4. 2025-05-21 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Governor.

  5. 2025-05-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Transmitted to Governor for his action.

  6. 2025-05-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Senate Speaker

  7. 2025-04-30 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by H. Speaker

  8. 2025-04-28 Tennessee General Assembly

    Enrolled; ready for sig. of H. Speaker.

  9. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Companion House Bill substituted

  10. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar 2 for 4/22/2025

  11. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate Reset on Senate Regular Calendar #2 4/22/25

  12. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed Senate, Ayes 31, Nays 0

  13. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Amendment withdrawn. (Amendment 1 - SA0354)

  14. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate substituted House Bill for companion Senate Bill.

  15. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Received from House, Passed on First Consideration

  16. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Engrossed; ready for transmission to Sen.

  17. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed H., as am., Ayes 90, Nays 5, PNV 0

  18. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  19. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. adopted am. (Amendment 2 - HA0514)

  20. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. adopted am. (Amendment 1 - HA0120)

  21. 2025-04-21 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 4/22/2025

  22. 2025-04-21 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate Reset on calendar for 4/22/2025

  23. 2025-04-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 4/21/2025

  24. 2025-04-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/21/2025

  25. 2025-04-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 4/17/2025

  26. 2025-04-17 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  27. 2025-04-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass by s/c ref. to Finance, Ways, and Means Committee

  28. 2025-04-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 4/17/2025

  29. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage, refer to Senate Calendar Committee

  30. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee calendar for 4/15/2025

  31. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rule #83(8) Suspended, to be heard in Senate Finance, Ways & Means Committee on 4/15/2025

  32. 2025-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 4/14/2025

  33. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed behind the budget

  34. 2025-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee Ayes 9, Nays 0 PNV 0

  35. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  36. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  37. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  38. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 4/2/2025

  39. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action Def. in s/c Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee to 4/2/2025

  40. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 3/26/2025

  41. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee

  42. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass. if am., ref. to Finance, Ways, and Means Committee

  43. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Judiciary Committee for 3/19/2025

  44. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  45. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Criminal Justice Subcommittee for 3/12/2025

  46. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  47. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action Def. in s/c Criminal Justice Subcommittee to 3/12/2025

  48. 2025-02-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Criminal Justice Subcommittee for 3/5/2025

  49. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Judiciary Committee

  50. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Criminal Justice Subcommittee

  51. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, ref. to Judiciary Committee

  52. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  53. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  54. 2025-02-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  55. 2025-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

ON APRIL 22, 2025, THE HOUSE ADOPTED AMENDMENTS #1 AND #2 AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 1177, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 rewrites the bill to, instead, make the following revisions to present l
aw:



Revises the provision generally requiring misdemeanor charges
pending at the time of
an
incompetency determination
to
be retired no later than 11 months and 29 days after the date of arrest when the misdemeanor charge or charges have not otherwise been disposed of
to instead, require such charges to be retired no later than two years after the date of arrest when they have not been disposed of.



Adds that when
a defendant whose charges were so retired is released into the community, the chief officer must (i) notify the court of the defendant's discharge and

(ii) provide the court and the sheriff with an outpatient treatment plan that accounts for the safety of the community.



Removes the provision requiring a reporting obligation under present law to
cease at the point that misdemeanor charges are retired for defendants with no other charges
and, instead, provides that i
f a defendant is charged with a misdemeanor offense and remains hospitalized
two
years after the date of arrest, then the reporting obligation

must continue until the defendant is discharged.

AMENDMENT #2 increases from 11 months and 29 days to two years from the date of arrest the time within which misdemeanor charges against a defendant who has been found incompetent must be retired u
nless the defendant is restored to competency. This amendment adds to present law that, w
hen a defendant whose
misdemeanor
charges were retired
due to a finding of incompetency
is released into the community, the chief officer
is required to
:

(
1
) Notif
y the court of the defendant's discharge; and

(i
2
Provide the court and the sheriff with an outpatient treatment plan that accounts for the safety of the community.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HOUSE BILL 1177
By Williams

SENATE BILL 963
By Hatcher

SB0963
001626
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 33;
Title 40 and Title 52, relative to persons found
incompetent to stand trial.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 33-7-301(d), is amended by deleting
the subsection in its entirety.
SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 52-6-102(e)(2), is amended by
deleting the subdivision in its entirety.
SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.