Relating to procedures related to juvenile justice proceedings, the treatment of children placed in or committed to a juvenile facility, and certain offenses or conduct committed by a child or by a person placed in or committed to certain juvenile facilities; changing the eligibility for community supervision.

89(R) HB 31 - House Committee Report version - Bill Text

89R25403 CJD-D

By: Thompson

H.B. No. 31

Substitute the following for H.B. No. 31:

By: Rodríguez Ramos

C.S.H.B. No. 31

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to procedures related to juvenile justice proceedings, the

treatment of children placed in or committed to a juvenile

facility, and certain offenses or conduct committed by a child or by

a person placed in or committed to certain juvenile facilities;

changing the eligibility for community supervision.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 42A, Code of Criminal

Procedure, is amended by adding Article 42A.061 to read as follows:

Art.

42A.061.

PLACEMENT ON COMMUNITY SUPERVISION

PROHIBITED FOR CERTAIN OFFENSES COMMITTED IN CERTAIN JUVENILE

FACILITIES. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, a

defendant is not eligible for community supervision, including

deferred adjudication community supervision, under this chapter

for an offense punishable as a felony committed:

(1)

when the defendant was at least 17 years of age;

and

(2) while the defendant was:

(A)

committed to the Texas Juvenile Justice

Department;

(B)

placed in a halfway house operated by or

under contract with the Texas Juvenile Justice Department; or

(C)

placed in a secure correctional facility or

secure detention facility, as defined by Section 51.02, Family

Code.

SECTION 2. Section 51.02, Family Code, is amended by adding

Subdivision (7-a) to read as follows:

(7-a) "Mitigating evidence" means evidence presented at

a proceeding under this title that:

(A) reduces the culpability of a child;

(B)

is used to assess the growth and maturity of a

child; and

(C) takes into consideration:

(i)

the diminished culpability of children,

as compared to that of adults;

(ii) the hallmark features of youth; and

(iii)

the greater capacity of children for

change, as compared to that of adults.

SECTION 3. Chapter 51, Family Code, is amended by adding

Sections 51.22, 51.23, and 51.24 to read as follows:

Sec.

51.22.

USE OF CHEMICAL DISPENSING DEVICE ON PREGNANT

CHILD PROHIBITED. (a) In this section:

(1)

"Chemical dispensing device" means a device that

is designed, made, or adapted for the purpose of dispensing a

substance capable of causing an adverse psychological or

physiological effect on a human being. The term includes pepper

spray, capsicum spray, OC gas, and oleoresin capsicum.

(2)

"Juvenile facility" has the meaning assigned by

Section 39.04, Penal Code.

(b)

An employee, contractor, volunteer, intern, or service

provider working in a juvenile facility may not use a chemical

dispensing device against a pregnant child in the facility.

Sec.

51.23.

ANNUAL USE OF FORCE AUDIT. (a) In this

section:

(1)

"Chemical dispensing device" has the meaning

assigned by Section 51.22.

(2)

"Department" means the Texas Juvenile Justice

Department.

(3)

"Juvenile facility" has the meaning assigned by

Section 39.04, Penal Code.

(b)

The department shall annually conduct an audit of use

of force incidents to identify patterns, deficiencies, or instances

of noncompliance with de-escalation protocols and the prohibition

on the use of chemical dispensing devices on pregnant children in

juvenile facilities.

(c)

The administrator of a juvenile facility operated by or

under contract with a juvenile board or other local governmental

unit shall annually report to the department data regarding use of

force incidents in the facility. An administrator shall make the

report required by this subsection in a form and by a date

prescribed by the department.

(d)

Not later than August 31 of each year, the department

shall deliver a report to the legislature regarding the findings of

the audit conducted under Subsection (b).

(e)

The department shall timely post on the department's

Internet website the audit findings and aggregate data collected

during the audit.

Sec.

51.24.

SOLITARY CONFINEMENT; REPORT. (a) In this

section:

(1)

"Department" means the Texas Juvenile Justice

Department.

(2)

"Juvenile facility" has the meaning assigned by

Section 39.04, Penal Code.

(3)

"Solitary confinement" means, with respect to a

child in a juvenile facility, the involuntary separation of the

child from other children placed in the facility in an area or room

from which the child is prevented from leaving for a coercive,

disciplinary, punitive, or retaliatory purpose.

The term does not

include the involuntary separation of the child for an

administrative, medical, protective, or emergency interventional

purpose in a manner consistent with applicable laws, including

applicable administrative rules.

(b)

A juvenile facility may not place a child in solitary

confinement unless:

(1)

the child poses an immediate risk of physical harm

to the child's self or another;

(2)

placement in solitary confinement does not violate

principles of trauma-informed care and does not interfere with

de-escalation strategies;

(3)

all other less restrictive methods of addressing

the immediate risk of physical harm have been exhausted; and

(4)

the child is placed in solitary confinement for a

period that does not exceed the shortest period permitted for

placement of a child in solitary confinement by a state or federal

law, including an administrative rule.

(c)

The administrator or superintendent of a juvenile

facility shall:

(1)

create a report documenting each instance a child

in the facility is placed in solitary confinement and include in the

report:

(A) the reason for the placement;

(B) the duration of the placement; and

(C)

any intervention attempted before the child

was placed in solitary confinement; and

(2)

annually submit the report under Subdivision (1)

to the department.

(d)

The department shall monitor and enforce compliance

with the requirements of this section by regularly auditing and

reviewing juvenile facility practices related to placing children

in solitary confinement.

SECTION 4. Section 54.02, Family Code, is amended by

amending Subsections (a), (d), (f), (h), (l), and (n) and adding

Subsections (d-1) and (d-2) to read as follows:

(a) The juvenile court may waive its exclusive original

jurisdiction and transfer a child to the appropriate district court

or criminal district court for criminal proceedings if:

(1) the child is alleged to have violated a penal law

of the grade of felony;

(2) the child was:

(A) 14 years of age or older at the time
the child

[
he
] is alleged to have committed the offense, if the offense is a

capital felony[
, an aggravated controlled substance felony, or a

felony of the first degree,
] and no adjudication hearing has been

conducted concerning that offense; or

(B) 15 years of age or older at the time the child

is alleged to have committed the offense, if
:

(i)
the offense
constitutes serious felony

conduct, as defined by Section 54.04;
[
is a felony of the second or

third degree or a state jail felony,
] and

(ii)
no adjudication hearing has been

conducted concerning
the
[
that
] offense; and

(3) after a full investigation and a hearing, the

juvenile court determines that there is probable cause to believe

that the child before the court committed the offense alleged and

that because of the seriousness of the offense alleged or the

background of the child the welfare of the community requires

criminal proceedings.

(d) Prior to the hearing, the juvenile court shall
admonish

the child in open court and in the presence of the child's attorney

regarding:

(1)

the court's consideration of waiving its

jurisdiction over the child and transferring the child to criminal

court for criminal proceedings; and

(2)

the child's right to participate or to decline to

participate in any diagnostic study, social evaluation, or

investigation ordered by the juvenile court under Subsection (d-1).

(d-1)

After the admonishment under Subsection (d), the

juvenile court shall
order [
and obtain
] a complete diagnostic

study, social evaluation, and full investigation of the child,
the

child's
[
his
] circumstances, and the circumstances of the alleged

offense
and shall set the date of the transfer hearing
.
If the

child declines to participate in a study, evaluation, or

investigation, the child's attorney shall state the refusal to the

court in open court or in writing not later than the fifth business

day after the date the court ordered the study, evaluation, or

investigation.

(d-2)

In a hearing under this section, a presumption exists

that it is in the best interest of the child and of justice that the

juvenile court retain jurisdiction over the child. The burden is on

the state to overcome this presumption.

(f) In making the determination required by Subsection (a)

of this section, the court shall consider, among other matters:

(1) whether the alleged offense was against person or

property, with greater weight in favor of transfer given to

offenses against the person;

(2) the sophistication and maturity of the child;

(3) the record and previous history of the child;

[
and
]

(4) the prospects of adequate protection of the public

and the likelihood of the rehabilitation of the child by use of

procedures, services, and facilities currently available to the

juvenile court
;

(5)

the substantive requirements for waiving

jurisdiction;

(6)

relevant information ascertained in the full

investigation of the child; and

(7)

the benefits or harm of retaining the child in the

juvenile justice system
.

(h) If the juvenile court waives jurisdiction, it shall

state specifically in the order its reasons for waiver
. The

statement of reasons must set forth a rational basis for the waiver

of jurisdiction, with sufficient specificity to permit meaningful

review, and must include case-specific findings of fact that do not

rely solely on the nature or seriousness of the offense. The court

shall
[
and
] certify its action, including the written order and

findings of the court, and shall transfer the person to the

appropriate court for criminal proceedings and cause the results of

the diagnostic study of the person ordered under Subsection
(d-1)

[
(d)
], including psychological information, to be transferred to

the appropriate criminal prosecutor. On transfer of the person for

criminal proceedings, the person shall be dealt with as an adult and

in accordance with the Code of Criminal Procedure, except that if

detention in a certified juvenile detention facility is authorized

under Section 152.0015, Human Resources Code, the juvenile court

may order the person to be detained in the facility pending trial or

until the criminal court enters an order under Article 4.19, Code of

Criminal Procedure. A transfer of custody made under this

subsection is an arrest.

(l) The juvenile court shall conduct a hearing without a

jury to consider waiver of jurisdiction under Subsection (j).

Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, a waiver of

jurisdiction under Subsection (j) may be made without the necessity

of conducting the diagnostic study [
or complying with the

requirements of discretionary transfer proceedings
] under

Subsection
(d-1)
[
(d)
]. If requested by the attorney for the person

at least 10 days before the transfer hearing, the court shall order

that the person be examined pursuant to Section 51.20(a) and that

the results of the examination be provided to the attorney for the

person and the attorney for the state at least five days before the

transfer hearing.

(n) A mandatory transfer under Subsection (m) may be made

without conducting the study required in discretionary transfer

proceedings by Subsection
(d-1)
[
(d)
]. The requirements of

Subsection (b) that the summons state that the purpose of the

hearing is to consider discretionary transfer to criminal court

does not apply to a transfer proceeding under Subsection (m). In a

proceeding under Subsection (m), it is sufficient that the summons

provide fair notice that the purpose of the hearing is to consider

mandatory transfer to criminal court.

SECTION 5. Section 54.04, Family Code, is amended by

amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsection (s) to read as

follows:

(d) If the court or jury makes the finding specified in

Subsection (c) allowing the court to make a disposition in the case:

(1) the court or jury may, in addition to any order

required or authorized under Section 54.041 or 54.042, place the

child on probation on such reasonable and lawful terms as the court

may determine:

(A) in the child's own home or in the custody of a

relative or other fit person; or

(B) subject to the finding under Subsection (c)

on the placement of the child outside the child's home, in:

(i) a suitable foster home;

(ii) a suitable public or private

residential treatment facility licensed by a state governmental

entity or exempted from licensure by state law, except a facility

operated by the Texas Juvenile Justice Department; or

(iii) a suitable public or private

post-adjudication secure correctional facility that meets the

requirements of Section 51.125, except a facility operated by the

Texas Juvenile Justice Department;

(2) if the court or jury found at the conclusion of the

adjudication hearing that the child engaged in delinquent conduct

that
constitutes serious felony conduct
[
violates a penal law of

this state or the United States of the grade of felony
], the court

or jury made a special commitment finding under Section 54.04013,

and the petition was not approved by the grand jury under Section

53.045, the court may commit the child to the Texas Juvenile Justice

Department under Section 54.04013[
, or a post-adjudication secure

correctional facility under Section 54.04011(c)(1), as

applicable,
] without a determinate sentence;

(3) if the court or jury found at the conclusion of the

adjudication hearing that the child engaged in delinquent conduct

that included a violation of a penal law listed in Section 53.045(a)

and if the petition was approved by the grand jury under Section

53.045, the court or jury may sentence the child to commitment in

the Texas Juvenile Justice Department [
or a post-adjudication

secure correctional facility under Section 54.04011(c)(2)
] with a

possible transfer to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for a

term of:

(A) not more than 40 years if the conduct

constitutes:

(i) a capital felony;

(ii) a felony of the first degree; or

(iii) an aggravated controlled substance

felony;

(B) not more than 20 years if the conduct

constitutes a felony of the second degree; or

(C) not more than 10 years if the conduct

constitutes a felony of the third degree;

(4) the court may assign the child an appropriate

sanction level and sanctions as provided by the assignment

guidelines in Section 59.003;

(5) the court may place the child in a suitable

nonsecure correctional facility that is registered and meets the

applicable standards for the facility as provided by Section

51.126; or

(6) if applicable, the court or jury may make a

disposition under Subsection (m) [
or Section 54.04011(c)(2)(A)
].

(s)

In this section, "serious felony conduct" means

conduct:

(1)

that constitutes an offense under any of the

following provisions of the Penal Code:

(A) Section 19.02 (murder);

(B) Section 19.03 (capital murder);

(C) Section 19.04 (manslaughter);

(D) Section 20.03 (kidnapping);

(E) Section 20.04 (aggravated kidnapping);

(F)

Section 20A.03 (continuous trafficking of

persons);

(G)

Section 21.02 (continuous sexual abuse of

young child or disabled individual);

(H) Section 21.11 (indecency with a child);

(I) Section 22.011 (sexual assault);

(J) Section 22.02 (aggravated assault);

(K) Section 22.021 (aggravated sexual assault);

(L)

Section 22.04 (injury to a child, elderly

individual, or disabled individual);

(M) Section 28.02 (arson);

(N) Section 29.03 (aggravated robbery); or

(O) Section 49.08 (intoxication manslaughter);

(2)

for which it is shown that a deadly weapon, as

defined by Section 1.07, Penal Code, was used or exhibited during

the commission of the conduct or during immediate flight from the

commission of the conduct; or

(3)

that constitutes habitual felony conduct as

described by Section 51.031.

SECTION 6. Section 54.04013, Family Code, is amended to

read as follows:

Sec. 54.04013. SPECIAL COMMITMENT TO TEXAS JUVENILE JUSTICE

DEPARTMENT.
(a)
Notwithstanding any other provision of this code,

after a disposition hearing held in accordance with Section 54.04

or a hearing to modify a disposition held in accordance with Section

54.05
, the juvenile court may commit a child who is found to have

engaged in delinquent conduct that constitutes
serious felony

conduct, as defined by Section 54.04,
[
a felony offense
] to the

Texas Juvenile Justice Department without a determinate sentence if

the court makes a special commitment finding that the child has

behavioral health or other special needs that cannot be met with the

resources available in the community. The court should consider

the findings of a validated risk and needs assessment and the

findings of any other appropriate professional assessment

available to the court.

(b)

In making a special commitment finding under Subsection

(a), the court may consider mitigating evidence of the child's

circumstances.

SECTION 7. Sections 54.05(f) and (j), Family Code, are

amended to read as follows:

(f) Except as provided by Subsection (j), a disposition

based on a finding that the child engaged in delinquent conduct that

violates a penal law of this state or the United States of the grade

of felony may be modified so as to commit the child to the Texas

Juvenile Justice Department [
or, if applicable, a

post-adjudication secure correctional facility operated under

Section 152.0016, Human Resources Code,
] if the court after a

hearing to modify disposition finds by a preponderance of the

evidence that the child violated a reasonable and lawful order of

the court
and makes a special commitment finding under Section

54.04013
. A disposition based on a finding that the child engaged

in habitual felony conduct as described by Section 51.031 or in

delinquent conduct that included a violation of a penal law listed

in Section 53.045(a) may be modified to commit the child to the

Texas Juvenile Justice Department [
or, if applicable, a

post-adjudication secure correctional facility operated under

Section 152.0016, Human Resources Code,
] with a possible transfer

to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for a definite term

prescribed by[
, as applicable,
] Section 54.04(d)(3) [
or Section

152.0016(g), Human Resources Code,
] if the original petition was

approved by the grand jury under Section 53.045 and if after a

hearing to modify the disposition the court finds that the child

violated a reasonable and lawful order of the court.

(j) If, after conducting a hearing to modify disposition

without a jury, the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence

that a child violated a reasonable and lawful condition of

probation ordered under Section 54.04(q), the court may modify the

disposition to commit the child to the Texas Juvenile Justice

Department under Section 54.04(d)(3) [
or, if applicable, a

post-adjudication secure correctional facility operated under

Section 152.0016, Human Resources Code,
] for a term that does not

exceed the original sentence assessed by the court or jury.

SECTION 8. Section 54.051, Family Code, is amended by

amending Subsections (b), (d), (d-1), (e), (e-2), (f), and (i) and

adding Subsections (f-1) and (f-2) to read as follows:

(b) The hearing must be conducted before the person's 19th

birthday[
, or before the person's 18th birthday if the offense for

which the person was placed on probation occurred before September

1, 2011,
] and must be conducted in the same manner as a hearing to

modify disposition under Section 54.05.

(d)
Except as provided by Subsection (f-1), if
[
If
], after a

hearing, the court determines to transfer the child, the court

shall transfer the child to an appropriate district court on the

child's 19th birthday.

(d-1) After a transfer to district court under
this section

[
Subsection (d)
], only the petition, the grand jury approval, the

judgment concerning the conduct for which the person was placed on

determinate sentence probation, and the transfer order are a part

of the district clerk's public record.

(e) A district court that exercises jurisdiction over a

person transferred under
this section
[
Subsection (d)
] shall place

the person on community supervision under Chapter 42A, Code of

Criminal Procedure, for the remainder of the person's probationary

period and under conditions consistent with those ordered by the

juvenile court.

(e-2) If a person who is placed on community supervision

under this section violates a condition of that supervision or if

the person violated a condition of probation ordered under Section

54.04(q) and that probation violation was not discovered by the

state before the
date the person was transferred to the district

court
[
person's 19th birthday
], the district court shall dispose of

the violation of community supervision or probation, as

appropriate, in the same manner as if the court had originally

exercised jurisdiction over the case. If the judge revokes

community supervision, the judge may reduce the prison sentence to

any length without regard to the minimum term imposed by Article

42A.755(a), Code of Criminal Procedure.

(f)
Except as provided by Subsection (f-1), the
[
The
]

juvenile court may transfer a child to an appropriate district

court as provided by this section without a showing that the child

violated a condition of probation ordered under Section 54.04(q).

(f-1)

If a motion filed under Subsection (a) includes an

allegation that, after the child's 18th birthday, the child

violated a condition of probation ordered under Section 54.04(q),

the juvenile court may hold a hearing to determine whether there is

probable cause to believe that the child committed the alleged

violation.

If the court determines that there is probable cause to

believe that the child committed the alleged violation, the court

may immediately transfer the child to an appropriate district

court.

(f-2)

A district court exercising jurisdiction over a child

transferred under this section does not have jurisdiction over an

alleged violation of a condition of probation known to the juvenile

court before the child was transferred to the district court.

(i) If the juvenile court exercises jurisdiction over a

person who is [
18 or
] 19 years of age or older[
, as applicable,
]

under Section 51.041 or 51.0412, the court or jury may, if the

person is otherwise eligible, place the person on probation under

Section 54.04(q). The juvenile court shall set the conditions of

probation and immediately transfer supervision of the person to the

appropriate court exercising criminal jurisdiction under

Subsection (e).

SECTION 9. Section 41.302, Government Code, is amended to

read as follows:

Sec. 41.302. GENERAL FUNCTION OF SPECIAL PROSECUTION UNIT.

The special prosecution unit is an independent unit that
:

(1)
cooperates with and supports prosecuting

attorneys in prosecuting offenses and delinquent conduct described

by Article 104.003(a), Code of Criminal Procedure
; and

(2)

participates in a hearing described by Section

41.311
.

SECTION 10. Subchapter E, Chapter 41, Government Code, is

amended by adding Section 41.311 to read as follows:

Sec.

41.311.

HEARING TO RETURN CHILD TO INSTITUTION FOR

VIOLATION OF CONDITION OF RELEASE. (a)

At the request of the Texas

Juvenile Justice Department, a prosecuting attorney serving on the

unit may participate in a hearing regarding the return of a child to

an institution under Section 245.051(f)(1), Human Resources Code.

(b)

Except as provided by Subsection (c) and with the

consent of the Texas Juvenile Justice Department, a prosecuting

attorney serving on the unit may serve any role in a hearing

described by Subsection (a).

(c)

A prosecuting attorney serving on the unit may not

represent the child or act as a hearing officer under this section.

SECTION 11. Section 38.112(a), Penal Code, is amended to

read as follows:

(a) A person who is required to submit to electronic

monitoring of the person's location as part of an electronic

monitoring program under Article 42.035, Code of Criminal

Procedure, or as a condition of community supervision, parole,

mandatory supervision, [
or
] release on bail
, probation imposed by a

juvenile court, release under supervision under Section 245.051,

Human Resources Code, or placement in a halfway house operated by or

under contract with the Texas Juvenile Justice Department
commits

an offense if the person knowingly removes or disables, or causes or

conspires or cooperates with another person to remove or disable, a

tracking device that the person is required to wear to enable the

electronic monitoring of the person's location.

SECTION 12. Not later than 180 days after the effective date

of this Act, the Texas Juvenile Justice Board shall adopt rules

necessary to implement Sections 51.22, 51.23, and 51.24, Family

Code, as added by this Act.

SECTION 13. (a) Except as otherwise provided by this

section, this Act applies only to conduct violating a penal law that

occurs or an offense committed on or after the effective date of

this Act. Conduct that occurred or an offense committed before the

effective date of this Act is covered by the law in effect at the

time the conduct occurred or the offense was committed, and the

former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For the

purposes of this section, conduct occurred or an offense was

committed before the effective date of this Act if any element of

the conduct or offense occurred before that date.

(b) Sections 54.02(d-2), 54.04013, and 54.05, Family Code,

as amended by this Act, and Section 41.311, Government Code, as

added by this Act, apply only to a hearing that occurs on or after

the effective date of this Act. A hearing that occurs before the

effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect at the

time the hearing occurred, and the former law is continued in effect

for that purpose.

(c) Section 54.02(h), Family Code, as amended by this Act,

applies only to an order of a juvenile court waiving jurisdiction

and transferring a child to criminal court that is issued on or

after the effective date of this Act. An order of a juvenile court

waiving jurisdiction and transferring a child to criminal court

that is issued before the effective date of this Act is governed by

the law in effect on the date the order was issued, and the former

law is continued in effect for that purpose.

(d) Section 54.051, Family Code, as amended by this Act,

applies to a child placed on probation on or after the effective

date of this Act, regardless of whether the conduct for which the

child was placed on probation was committed before, on, or after the

effective date of this Act.

(e) Section 38.112, Penal Code, as amended by this Act,

applies only to an offense committed under that section or conduct

violating that section that occurs on or after the effective date of

this Act. An offense committed or conduct that occurred before that

date is governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was

committed or the conduct occurred, and the former law is continued

in effect for that purpose. For purposes of this section, an

offense was committed or conduct occurred before the effective date

of this Act if any element of the offense or conduct occurred before

that date.

SECTION 14. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.