Subject search results

7 Document(s) [ Subject: Sex%20offenders ]

Committee: Senate Criminal Justice
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report to the 81st Legislature
Subjects: Capital murder trials | Child abuse | Correctional officers | Criminal justice | Criminal Justice, Texas Department of | Deferred adjudication | Drug trafficking | Homicide | Juvenile justice system | Mental health services | Mentally ill inmates | Methamphetamine | Occupational licenses | Ombudsmen | Pardons and Paroles, Texas Board of | Penalties and sentences (Criminal justice) | Police officers | Prison population | Prison security | Prisoner re-entry | Privately-operated prisons | Pseudoephedrine | Recidivism | Searches and seizures | Sex offenders | Substance abuse | Texas Code of Criminal Procedure | Theft | Youth Commission, Texas | Youthful offenders |
Library Call Number: L1836.80 C868
Session: 80th R.S. (2007)
Online version: View report [113 pages  File size: 13,967 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Determine how private prisons are complying with state laws and how cost, safety, living conditions and rehabilitative services at private prisons compare with state-run facilities. Include an assessment of the staff turnover rates and compensation of private contractors when compared with state-operated facilities, and of the contract bidding processes used by the Texas Youth Commission and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
2. Monitor the implementation of SB 103, 80th R.S., and the continuing reforms to the Texas Youth Commission and the juvenile criminal justice system. Identify barriers to effective implementation and provide recommendations to ensure that the goals of this legislation are achieved. Provide recommendations relating to best practices and identify needed additional treatment programs for juvenile sex offenders.
3. Study the impact of laws designed to reduce illegal drug use and make recommendations for reducing access to illegal drugs and for developing best practices for preventative programs, focusing on drugs targeted for the younger population, such as cheese heroin. Assess the impact of limiting access to pseudoephedrine, including the impact restrictions have had on illegal manufacturers' methods for producing methamphetamine.
4. Monitor the implementation of the new and expanded programs provided to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) within the Fiscal Year 2008 and 2009 budget, and identify their impact on the criminal justice populations. Study security issues within TDCJ, including staffing issues, use of lock down procedures, the control and containment of infectious diseases and the introduction and control of contraband within the institutions. Review the use of career ladders for employees of TDCJ and issues surrounding the retention of professional corrections staff. Study the issues of independent oversight of TDCJ, including the use and effectiveness of the TDCJ ombudsman system. Provide recommendations for the reduction or elimination of barriers to an effective corrections system.
5. Study and make recommendations for reducing the number of law enforcement officer deaths in the line of duty. This study should include:
  • an assessment of the types of calls and assignments that put law enforcement officers most at risk;
  • the geographic regions of the state that suffer the most deaths;
  • the agencies experiencing the highest rate of deaths in the line of duty;
  • the time in an officer's career, and the officer's age that he or she is most susceptible to death in the line of duty; and
  • the times of year, month, and day that are most dangerous.
6. Study the issue of criminal asset seizure and the use of seized and forfeiture funds by district attorneys and law enforcement agencies. Review the oversight of these matters by the Texas Attorney General and provide recommendations to improve the dissemination of information concerning these funds. Ensure that these funds have the appropriate accountability and fiscal controls required for public funds.
7. Study the system of deferred adjudication in Texas courts and make recommendations for resolving any problems and reducing the potential for release of dangerous criminals.
8. Study and recommend best practices for reducing re-victimization of child abuse victims associated with delay in resolution of criminal cases. Recommend options for reducing the time lapse between child victimization and criminal hearings.
9. Review the processes for re-entry of criminal offenders into communities. Identify barriers to the successful return to law-abiding behavior, including the absence of employment opportunities created by restriction on obtaining certain state occupational licenses. Provide recommendations for improvements to our current statutes governing this matter.
10. Study whether Articles 36.09 (relating to trying multiple defendants from the same transaction either separately or jointly) and 36.10 (relating to severing defendants that show prejudice from a joint trial) of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure provide sufficient safeguards to ensure fair and reliable trial results in capital cases with multiple defendants. Determine whether the articles provide trial judges with sufficient instruction regarding joinder or severance of defendants and, if not, make recommendations to improve procedures.
11. Study the relationship between the public mental health system and the criminal justice and civil courts systems, including the identification and sharing of information regarding mentally ill offenders, including minors, among criminal justice and mental health agencies, the courts, state hospitals, and the Veterans Administration. Study how current confidentiality laws impact the exchange of information among groups described above. Study the sentencing of mentally ill offenders compared to non-mentally ill offenders, including minors, and the affect that has on statewide prison capacity and on the health care provided to mentally ill offenders. (Joint Charge with Senate State Affairs Committee)
12. Monitor the implementation of legislation addressed by the Criminal Justice Committee, 80th R.S., and make recommendations for any legislation needed to improve, enhance, and/or complete implementation. Specifically, report on the implementation of SB 909, 80th R.S., the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Sunset legislation, including provisions relating to the Board of Pardons and Paroles, and monitor implementation of the new laws relating to copper theft (SB 1154, 80th R.S., HB 1766, 80th R.S., and HB 1767, 80th R.S.).
Committee: House Corrections
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: House Committee on Corrections, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 2006 : a report to the House of Representatives, 80th Texas Legislature
Subjects: After school programs | County jails | Crime prevention | Criminal Justice Advisory Council | Criminal Justice Policy Council | Criminal Justice, Texas Department of | Criminally insane | Disciplinary alternative education programs | Drug rehabilitation programs | Elderly inmates | Inmate education | Inmate health | Inmate rehabilitation | Inmates | Juvenile crime | Juvenile justice alternative education programs | Juvenile justice system | Juvenile Probation Commission, Texas | Mentally disabled inmates | Mentally ill inmates | Prison population | Privately-operated prisons | Probation | Sex offenders | State employee turnover | Windham School District | Women inmates | Youth Commission, Texas |
Library Call Number: L1836.79 C817
Session: 79th R.S. (2005)
Online version: View report [150 pages  File size: 34,034 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study the organizational structure of the department to determine if the current system is effectively and efficiently addressing the needs of all components of the criminal justice system in conjunction with the Sunset review of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) in 2007.
2. Examine the probation system and reforms debated during the 79th Legislature, including using strategies such as graduated sanctions and specialized courts for reducing revocations and recidivism. Study the organization and cost of our probation system and make recommendations about how to prioritize and strengthen general supervision.
3. Evaluate the correctional health care systems in other states as they compare to the Texas health care system, with a focus on greater accountability and competition among providers.
4. Assess the programming needs for special populations in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ).
5. Review the operation and organization of the Windham School District.
6. Study the adequacy of the state accountability system in measuring the effectiveness of Disciplinary Alternative Education Programs (DAEPs) based on academic performance, behavior modification and percentage of students referred to the juvenile justice system. (Joint interim charge with the House Committee on Public Education.)
7. Study the effectiveness of prevention programs, such as after school programs, in reducing the actual indices of crime and the rate of young offenders entering the criminal justice system. (Joint interim charge with the House Committee on Juvenile Justice and Family Issues.)
8. Monitor the agencies and programs under the committee's oversight and monitor the Governor's Judicial Advisory Council.
Committee: House Corrections
Title: Interim Report
Library Catalog Title: House Committee on Corrections, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 2004 : a report to the House of Representatives, 79th Texas Legislature
Subjects: Criminal justice | Mentally disabled inmates | Mentally ill inmates | Parole | Privately-operated prisons | Probation | Sex offenders |
Library Call Number: L1836.78 C817
Session: 78th R.S. (2003)
Online version: View report [49 pages  File size: 2,742 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Review the effectiveness, efficiency and funding mechanisms of the community supervision and parole supervision systems. Examine accountability for various community supervision programs administered through local community supervision and corrections departments. Study the advisability, methods and costs of creating a progressive-sanctions model for the adult criminal justice system. (Joint interim charge with House Appropriations Committee)
2. Study targeted contracting and review strategies and initiatives in the prison system related to oversight, efficiency, effectiveness and potential cost-savings of contracted services by private sector vendors.
3. Study the Council on Sex Offender Treatment, including treatment methods and effectiveness and explore the possibility of licensing of registered sex offender treatment providers.
4. Study the criminal justice mental health initiative in coordination with the Texas Correctional Office on Offenders with Medical or Mental Impairments.
5. Monitor the agencies and programs under the committee's oversight jurisdiction.
Committee: House Criminal Jurisprudence
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence, Texas House of Representatives interim report, 1998 : a report to the House of Representatives, 76th Texas Legislature.
Subjects: At-risk youth | Child crimes | Civil commitment of sex offenders | Court costs and fees | Criminal Justice, Texas Department of | Good-conduct time | Indigent criminal defense | Juvenile crime | Juvenile justice system | Pardons and Paroles, Texas Board of | Parole | Sex offenders | Sexual assault | Youth Commission, Texas |
Library Call Number: L1836.75 c868h
Session: 75th R.S. (1997)
Online version: View report [186 pages  File size: 7,610 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Review and assess the consistency of all statutes that pertain to the age of criminal responsibility.
2. Study the issues relating to the civil commitment of violent offenders after their criminal sentence is served. Review civil commitment laws enacted in other states.
3. Study the cost of legal services for the indigent in the Texas criminal justice system.
4. Assess the effect that state-imposed municipal and county court fees have on a city, municipality, or county's revenue over time, and how it affects the violator's ability to pay.
5. Examine the policies of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles regarding parole revocations, and to examine the calculation of current time, the forfeiture of good time, and program options for all felony cases, with special attention to substance abuse initiatives.
Committee: Senate Sex Offenders, Interim
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Report to the 76th Legislature.
Subjects: Ashley's Laws | Civil commitment of sex offenders | Criminal Justice, Texas Department of | Inmate rehabilitation | Juvenile Probation Commission, Texas | Parole | Sex offenders | Youth Commission, Texas |
Library Call Number: L1836.75 se91r
Session: 75th R.S. (1997)
Online version: View report [97 pages  File size: 3,117 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study and make recommendations for policy or statutory changes, if needed, that would allow for the civil commitment of sexual predators, both adults and juveniles. The Committee should consider similar laws enacted in Kansas and other states.
2. Evaluate the need for any additional facilities or resources that may be required if sexual predators are committed for treatment in a state agency. The Committee should consider the fiscal impact and possible funding sources for its recommendations.
3. Review current practices and policies of the Department of Criminal Justice, the Youth Commission and Juvenile Probation Commission in the treatment of adult and juvenile sex offenders, including the methods of assessment, evaluation, and tracking of all sex offenders while incarcerated and while on parole. If legislative or regulatory action is necessary, make recommendations.
4. Study federal laws regarding sex offenders and victims of sexual offenses to ensure compliance, to determine necessary statutory or policy modifications, and to ensure maximum availability of federal funds for Texas.
Committee: Senate Criminal Justice
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Interim report, 75th Legislature.
Subjects: Blood alcohol concentration | Criminal Justice, Texas Department of | Driving while intoxicated | Drug rehabilitation programs | Gun laws | Guns | Handguns - Registration | Inmate rehabilitation | Open container laws | Parole | Prison construction | Prison population | Privately-operated prisons | Probation | Public Safety, Texas Department of | Recidivism | Right to Carry Act | Services for persons with disabilities | Sex offenders | State jail system | Statutory revision | Substance abuse |
Library Call Number: L1836.74 c868
Session: 74th R.S. (1995)
Online version: View report [32 pages  File size: 1,664 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study and determine if there are any needed changes in the Driving While Intoxicated or related statutes, with a review of statutes in other states. This review should include, but not be limited to: the use of sobriety checkpoints; prohibition of open alcoholic beverage containers in motor vehicles; changing the blood alcohol threshold; and penalties for DWI offenses, including Intoxication Manslaughter.
2. Review present and future substance abuse treatment programs in community programs, correctional facilities, and parole programs, to determine the number of offenders requiring treatment in all stages of the criminal justice system, the facility and personnel requirements to effectively treat offenders and to provide necessary aftercare by the year 2002, including projections for the next two bienniums.
3. Review the progress of the state jails, including determining; (a) is programming available and effective for all state jail felons and if some are not receiving programming, why not; (b) is there effective programming in both the state operated and locally operated facilities; and (c) are programming efforts including preventing offenders from placing future demands on the criminal justice system.
4. Review alternatives to incarceration that will reduce the need for further prison expansion, while improving public safety in light of the demand for prison space, through the year 2002.
5. Review whether the Legislature should implement funding of the Department of Criminal Justice on performance of their efforts to reduce recidivism, including review of the Task Force on Recidivism.
6. Monitor implementation of SB 60, 74th R.S., Right to Carry Act, and develop legislation to address administrative problems encountered by the Department of Public Safety and any other problems that may be identified.
7. Review the cost and effectiveness of construction and operations, including programming, of Mode I and Mode II state jails, and any correctional facilities that are operated by private entities for use by the state, to determine which type of facility is the most cost effective to operate and which have the most effective programming and treatment, and to make recommendations to improve future operations, including cost effectiveness.
8. Study and make recommendations for any penal or criminal justice issues that are identified as problems in legislation passed in the 74th Legislative Session, including omissions and unintended consequences of the legislation or related statutes, specifically including review of the criminal offenses created in the Education Code that may or may not conflict with provisions of the Penal Code.
9. Review parole issues regarding sex offenders including available treatment and the statutory requirements as to which county the Parole Board may release an offender, to make recommendations for statutory changes, if any, that may be needed.
Committee: Senate Juvenile Justice and Child Support, Interim
Title: Interim report
Library Catalog Title: Senate Interim Committee on Juvenile Justice and Child Support final report submitted to the 75th Legislature.
Subjects: At-risk youth | Attorney General Child Support Division | Child support | Children's health insurance | Criminal Justice Policy Council | Criminal Justice, Texas Department of | Juvenile crime | Juvenile justice alternative education programs | Juvenile justice system | Medically uninsured | Progressive sanctions (Criminal justice) | Protective and Regulatory Services, Texas Department of | Public Safety, Texas Department of | School discipline | Services to Runaways and At-Risk Youth Program | Sex offenders | Texas Child Support Enforcement System | Traffic violations | Youth Commission, Texas |
Library Call Number: L1836.74 j988r
Session: 74th R.S. (1995)
Online version: View report [171 pages  File size: 7,838 kb]
Charges: This report should address the charges below.
1. Study whether the criminal offense of "Failure to Stop and Render Aid," which applies to adults, should apply to juveniles.
2. Study and make recommendations regarding the juvenile justice revisions made by the 74th Legislature, with a special focus on (a) implementation of progressive sanctions and related programming by local entities and (b) the expansion of the STARS (Services to At-Risk Youth) program by the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services, by the Juvenile Justice Reform Bill, HB 327, 74th R.S., and the Appropriations Act, HB 1, 74th R.S..
3. Study and make recommendations for any juvenile justice related issues that are identified as problems in the revisions of juvenile justice, including omissions and unintended consequences of the Juvenile Justice Reform Bill or related statutes and legislation.
4. Review analysis of the Criminal Justice Policy Council and other information required to be reported to the legislature, governor, lieutenant governor, or the Legislative Budget Board by HB 327, 74th R.S., or related statutes and make recommendations from those reports as necessary.
5. Study and make recommendations regarding child support payments, specifically relating to the collection and distribution of child support as in SB 793, 74th R.S..
6. Study and determine whether the expansion of the Texas Youth Commission and local juvenile justice facilities is sufficient to go into the year 2002.

Information on this website is provided as a public service by the Legislative Reference Library. The Legislative Reference Library makes no representation as to its completeness or accuracy and makes no warranty in regard to its use. Users assume all risk of reliance on the information included on this site.