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Committee: House Criminal Jurisprudence
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Bail | Capital punishment | Capital punishment of mentally ill inmates | Capital punishment of mentally disabled inmates | Court Administration, Texas Office of | Court costs and fees | Courts | Criminal justice | Emergency management | Fines | Gun control | Guns | Hurricane Harvey | Jury instructions | Legal malpractice | Marijuana | Mentally ill persons | Penalties and sentences (Criminal justice) | Prosecutorial misconduct | Risk-based decision-making | School safety | School violence | Sex crimes | Shootings | State jail system |
Library Call Number: L1836.85 C868h
Session: 85th R.S. (2017)
Online version: View report [103 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Evaluate the impact of Hurricane Harvey on the Texas criminal justice system, including its effect on the speed of criminal trials and litigation, criminal courts, district attorneys' ability to prosecute, and attorneys' ability to provide proper defense. Recommend any changes that could improve operational stability of state criminal justice institutions following a natural disaster and changes that would allow for a more effective response.
2. Assess developments in medical science and legal standards related to the imposition of the death penalty on defendants with serious mental illness or intellectual and developmental disabilities. Review statutorily prescribed jury instructions used during capital sentencing.
3. Study current practices for the enforcement of criminal laws against low-level possession of marijuana. Examine the use of alternative punishments and improvements to criminal enforcement mechanisms and community supervision.
4. Examine instances of prosecutorial misconduct and ineffective assistance of defense counsel. Review systemic and structural issues affecting the resolution of criminal cases.
5. Examine the legal framework surrounding sexual assault prosecutions, including statutory definitions, certain age-based offenses, and ongoing developments in evidence collection and processing.
6. Review the Texas state jail system, including its original intent, sentencing guidelines, effectiveness, and recidivism rates. Make recommendations for changes in the state jail system that will improve outcomes. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Corrections)
7. Monitor the work of the Office of Court Administration on pre-trial risk assessment tools for the Texas Judiciary, and study the use of risk assessment tools at various stages in the criminal justice process. Monitor litigation on Harris County pretrial bond practices. Monitor the implementation of the legislation passed by the 85th Legislature regarding the imposition of fines, fees, and court costs in criminal courts.
8. Monitor the agencies and programs under the Committee’s jurisdiction and oversee the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 85th Legislature.
9. Review the applicable portions of the state's penal laws and make legislative recommendations regarding whether existing protective order laws are sufficient or could be amended to include 'red flag' or mental health protective orders or whether 'red flag' or mental health protective orders should be independently created to allow law enforcement, a family member, a school employee, or a district attorney to file a petition seeking removal of firearms from a potentially dangerous person and providing for mental health treatment for the potentially dangerous person, while preserving the fundamental rights of the Second Amendment and ensuring due process.
10. Examine current statutes designed to protect minors from accessing firearms without proper supervision and make recommendations to ensure responsible and safe firearm storage, including enhancing the penalty to a felony when unauthorized access results in death or bodily injury.
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Interim Report
Subjects: Counties | County jails | Ebola | Emergency management | Homelessness | Hospitals | Jail population | Jail Standards, Texas Commission on | Managed care | Marijuana | Medicaid | Mental health services | Population growth | Specialty courts | Veterans |
Library Call Number: L1836.83 C832
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View report [106 pages]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Examine population growth in Texas counties and the impact the growth has had on housing, available land resources, businesses in Texas, as well as the impact of growth on the state's economy. Evaluate Texas's preparedness to respond to future growth and ensure economic stability.
2. Continue oversight of the Texas Commission on Jail Standards and issues jails currently face, including the mental health of those in jail, and make recommendations for refinement or improvement of processes and programs.
3. Monitor the health advisory panel stemming from HB 3793, 83rd R.S..
4. Determine which counties have implemented a cite-and-summons policy, whether the policy has been effective in lessening overcrowding in county jails, and whether those cited by peace officers comply with the policy.
5. Study the implementation of SB 462, 83rd R.S.. Examine which counties currently have veterans courts, as well as veterans courts in other states, and determine how those programs are working and whether these courts provide additional services or resources for veterans. Make appropriate recommendations. (Joint charge with the House Committee on Defense and Veterans' Affairs)
6. Conduct legislative oversight and monitoring of the agencies and programs under the committee’s jurisdiction and the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 83rd Legislature. In conducting this oversight, the committee should: a. consider any reforms to state agencies to make them more responsive to Texas taxpayers and citizens; b. identify issues regarding the agency or its governance that may be appropriate to investigate, improve, remedy, or eliminate; c. determine whether an agency is operating in a transparent and efficient manner; and d. identify opportunities to streamline programs and services while maintaining the mission of the agency and its programs.
Supporting documents
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, May 5, 2014 (Texas Commission on Jail Standards and county jails, HB 3793 mental health advisory panel, cite-and-summons policy, oversight of healthy community collaboratives)
Library Call Number:
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View document [102 pages  File size: 9,604 kb]
Committee: House County Affairs
Title: Committee meeting handouts and testimony, October 20, 2014 (Population growth, Texas Commission on Jail Standards and county jails, HB 3793 mental health advisory panel, emergency response preparedness/ebola)
Library Call Number:
Session: 83rd R.S. (2013)
Online version: View document [171 pages  File size: 12,739 kb]

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