HBA-AMW H.B. 1332 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1332 By: Giddings Criminal Jurisprudence 3/15/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE In 1998, people age 25 and younger committed 57 percent of all gun homicides for which the age of the offender was known and juvenile offenders accounted for 12 percent of these homicides. Current law does not prohibit a person under the age of 21 from possessing a handgun and, instead of holding the individual accountable, many federal and state gun possession laws focus on regulating gun dealers. House Bill 1332 prohibits the unlawful possession of a handgun by an underage person and provides criminal penalties for certain weapons offenses involving underage persons. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 1332 amends the Penal Code to provide that a person commits a Class A misdemeanor if the person is younger than 21 years of age and possesses a handgun. The bill provides that a person commits an offense if the person with criminal negligence, rather than intentionally or knowingly, sells, rents, leases, or gives or offers to sell, rent, lease, or give a firearm, club, or illegal knife to a person [(unlawful transfer of certain weapons)] who is younger than 18 years of age or, if the weapon that is the subject of the offense is a handgun, younger than 21 years of age. The bill also provides that it is an offense if the unlawful transfer of certain weapons is to a person who the actor knows or should know intends to deliver the firearm, club, or illegal knife to a person who is younger than 18 years of age or, if the weapon that is the subject of the offense is a handgun, younger than 21 years of age. The bill provides that it is an affirmative defense to prosecution for such offenses that the transfer of the weapon was to a parent or another having legal custody of the person for whom the weapon is purchased, rented, leased, or accepted. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.