By: Rodriguez	S.B. No. 1083

	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
	AN ACT
	relating to the punishment for a capital felony committed by an
	individual younger than 18 years of age; changing parole
	eligibility.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1.   Section 12.31, Penal Code, is amended to read as
	follows:
	Sec. 12.31.  CAPITAL FELONY.  (a)  An individual adjudged
	guilty of a capital felony in a case in which the state seeks the
	death penalty shall be punished by imprisonment in the Texas
	Department of Criminal Justice for life without parole or by death.
	An individual adjudged guilty of a capital felony in a case in which
	the state does not seek the death penalty shall be punished by
	imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice [for]:
	(1)  for life or for a term of not more than 99 years or
	less than 5 years [life], if the individual committed the offense
	when younger than 18 years of age; or
	(2)  for life without parole, if the individual
	committed the offense when 18 years of age or older.
	(b)  In a capital felony trial in which the state seeks the
	death penalty, prospective jurors shall be informed that a sentence
	of life imprisonment without parole or death is mandatory on
	conviction of a capital felony.  In a capital felony trial in which
	the state does not seek the death penalty, prospective jurors shall
	be informed that the state is not seeking the death penalty and
	that:
	(1)  a sentence of [life] imprisonment either for life
	or for a term of not more than 99 years or less than 5 years is
	mandatory on conviction of a capital felony, if the individual
	committed the offense when younger than 18 years of age; or
	(2)  a sentence of life imprisonment without parole is
	mandatory on conviction of the capital felony, if the individual
	committed the offense when 18 years of age or older.
	SECTION 2.  Section 12.42, Penal Code, is amended by adding
	Subsection (e) to read as follows:
	(e)  For purposes of this section, a person convicted of a
	capital felony who is punished by imprisonment for a term of not
	more than 99 years or less than 5 years is considered to have been
	convicted of a felony of the first degree.
	SECTION 3.  Articles 1.13(a) and (b), Code of Criminal
	Procedure, are amended to read as follows:
	(a)  Subject to Subsection (b), the [The] defendant in a
	criminal prosecution for any offense, other than a capital felony
	case in which the state notifies the court and the defendant that it
	will seek the death penalty or a capital felony case described by
	Section 12.31(a)(2), Penal Code, shall have the right, upon
	entering a plea, to waive the right of trial by jury, conditioned,
	however, that, except as provided by Article 27.19, the waiver must
	be made in person by the defendant in writing in open court with the
	consent and approval of the court, and the attorney representing
	the state.  The consent and approval by the court shall be entered
	of record on the minutes of the court, and the consent and approval
	of the attorney representing the state shall be in writing, signed
	by that attorney, and filed in the papers of the cause before the
	defendant enters the defendant's plea.
	(b)  In a capital felony case described by Section
	12.31(a)(1), Penal Code [in which the attorney representing the
	State notifies the court and the defendant that it will not seek the
	death penalty], the defendant may waive the right to trial by jury
	in writing and in open court.
	SECTION 4.  Section 1, Article 37.071, Code of Criminal
	Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
	Sec. 1.  (a)(1) If a defendant is found guilty in a capital
	felony case in which the state does not seek the death penalty, the
	defendant [judge] shall be sentenced [sentence the defendant to
	life imprisonment or to life imprisonment without parole] as
	described [required] by this section and Section 12.31, Penal Code.
	(2)  The judge shall impose a sentence of imprisonment
	in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for life without parole
	on a defendant who was 18 years of age or older at the time the
	capital felony was committed.
	(3)  The judge or jury shall impose a sentence of
	imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for a term
	of life or for not more than 99 years or less than 5 years on a
	defendant who was younger than 18 years of age at the time the
	capital felony was committed.
	(b)  For purposes of assessing punishment under Subsection
	(a)(3), the court shall conduct a separate sentencing proceeding in
	the trial court and before the trial jury as soon as practicable.
	In the proceeding, the defendant or the defendant's counsel is
	entitled to present evidence tending to diminish defendant's
	culpability or tending to show the defendant's capacity for
	rehabilitation such as the following information about the
	defendant:
	(1)  age at the time of the offense;
	(2)  developmental stage at the time of the offense;
	(3)  family and community environment;
	(4)  ability to appreciate the risks and consequences
	of the conduct;
	(5)  intellectual capacity;
	(6)  the outcome of a comprehensive mental health
	evaluation that is conducted by a disinterested expert, such as a
	psychiatrist or psychologist, who is qualified by education and
	clinical training in adolescent mental health issues and includes;
	(A)  family interviews;
	(B)  family history;
	(C)  prenatal history;
	(D)  developmental history;
	(E)  medical history;
	(F)  history of treatment for substance use;
	(G)  social history; and
	(H)  a psychological evaluation;
	(7)  peer or familial pressure;
	(8)  level of participation in the offense;
	(9)  inability to effectively communicate with defense
	counsel or to participate meaningfully in the defense of the case;
	(10)  capacity for rehabilitation;
	(11)  school records and special education
	evaluations;
	(12)  trauma history;
	(13)  faith and community involvement;
	(14)  involvement in the child welfare system; and
	(15)  any other mitigating factor or circumstance.
	(d)  This section may not be construed to authorize the
	introduction of any evidence secured in violation of the United
	States Constitution or the Texas Constitution.  The court shall
	permit the state and the defendant or the defendant's counsel to
	present arguments relevant to sentencing.  The introduction of
	evidence of extraneous conduct is governed by the notice
	requirements of Section 3(g), Article 37.07.
	SECTION 5.  Section 508.145(b), Government Code, is amended
	to read as follows:
	(b)(1)  An inmate serving a [life] sentence of imprisonment
	for a term of not more than 99 years or less than 5 years under
	Section 12.31(a)(1), Penal Code, for a capital felony is not
	eligible for release on parole until the actual calendar time the
	inmate has served, without consideration of good conduct time,
	equals one-half of the sentence or 25 [40] calendar years,
	whichever is less.
	(2)  An inmate serving a sentence of imprisonment for life
	under Section 12.31(a)(1), Penal Code, for a capital felony is not
	eligible for release on parole until the actual calendar time the
	inmate has served, without consideration of good conduct time,
	equals 25 calendar years.
	SECTION 6.  (a)  Except as provided by Subsection (b) of
	this section, the change in law made by this Act applies to:
	(1)  a criminal action for which a final conviction
	exists on the effective date of this Act if the defendant is serving
	a sentence of life or a sentence of life without parole for the
	offense and was younger than 18 years of age at the time the offense
	was committed; and
	(2)  any other criminal action that is pending, on
	appeal, or commenced on or after the effective date of this Act,
	regardless of whether the criminal action is based on an offense
	committed before, on, or after that date.
	(b)  The change in law made by this Act in adding Section
	12.42(e), Penal Code, applies only to an offense committed on or
	after the effective date of this Act.  An offense committed before
	the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect when
	the offense was committed, and the former law is continued in effect
	for that purpose.  For purposes of this subsection, an offense was
	committed before the effective date of this Act if any element of
	the offense occurred before that date.
	SECTION 7.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
	Act takes effect September 1, 2015.