Bill Text: TX HB166 | 2017 | 85th Legislature 1st Special Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to the collection, storage, and analysis of sexual assault evidence and evidence of other sex offenses.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-07-26 - Left pending in committee [HB166 Detail]
Download: Texas-2017-HB166-Introduced.html
| 85S10378 LHC-D | ||
| By: Minjarez | H.B. No. 166 | |
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| relating to the collection, storage, and analysis of sexual assault | ||
| evidence and evidence of other sex offenses. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 420, Government Code, is | ||
| amended by adding Section 420.035 to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 420.035. EVIDENCE RELEASE AND STORAGE. (a) If a | ||
| health care facility or other entity that performs a medical | ||
| examination to collect evidence of a sexual assault or other sex | ||
| offense receives signed, written consent to release the evidence as | ||
| provided by Section 420.0735, the facility or entity shall notify | ||
| either the law enforcement agency investigating the alleged sexual | ||
| assault or other sex offense, if known, or the local law enforcement | ||
| agency not later than 24 hours after receiving consent. | ||
| (b) A law enforcement agency that receives notice from a | ||
| health care facility or other entity under Subsection (a) shall | ||
| take possession of the evidence not later than the 14th day after | ||
| the date the law enforcement agency receives notice. | ||
| (c) If a law enforcement agency that takes possession of | ||
| evidence under Subsection (b) determines that the agency does not | ||
| have jurisdiction over the investigation of the alleged sexual | ||
| assault or other sex offense, the law enforcement agency shall | ||
| notify the law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the | ||
| investigation not later than the 14th day after the date that | ||
| determination is made. | ||
| (d) A law enforcement agency that receives notice under | ||
| Subsection (c) shall take possession of the evidence not later than | ||
| the 14th day after the date the law enforcement agency receives | ||
| notice. | ||
| (e) A health care facility or other entity that performs a | ||
| medical examination to collect evidence of a sexual assault or | ||
| other sex offense that has not obtained signed, written consent as | ||
| provided by Section 420.0735 shall provide the survivor with | ||
| information relating to: | ||
| (1) the facility's or entity's evidence storage policy | ||
| for evidence of a sexual assault or other sex offense, including a | ||
| statement of the period for which the evidence will be stored before | ||
| the evidence is destroyed; and | ||
| (2) the ways in which the survivor can release the | ||
| evidence to a law enforcement agency. | ||
| (f) A health care facility or other entity that performs a | ||
| medical examination must store evidence of a sexual assault or | ||
| other sex offense that is not released to a law enforcement agency | ||
| until at least the first anniversary of the date the evidence was | ||
| collected. | ||
| (g) The failure of a health care facility or other entity or | ||
| a law enforcement agency to comply with the requirements of this | ||
| section does not constitute grounds in a criminal proceeding for: | ||
| (1) a defendant to challenge the validity of a DNA | ||
| match obtained by comparison under Section 420.043; or | ||
| (2) a court to exclude DNA evidence. | ||
| (h) A person accused or convicted of committing a sexual | ||
| assault or other sex offense against the survivor does not have | ||
| standing to object to the failure of a health care facility or other | ||
| entity or a law enforcement agency to comply with the requirements | ||
| of this section. Failure of a facility, entity, or agency to comply | ||
| with the requirements of this section does not constitute grounds | ||
| for setting aside the conviction of a person convicted of | ||
| committing a sexual assault or other sex offense against the | ||
| survivor. | ||
| SECTION 2. Section 420.042, Government Code, is amended by | ||
| amending Subsections (a), (c), and (e) and adding Subsections (f) | ||
| and (g) to read as follows: | ||
| (a) A law enforcement agency that receives sexual assault | ||
| evidence or evidence of another sex offense collected under this | ||
| chapter or other law shall assign a unique number to the evidence | ||
| and shall submit that evidence to a public accredited crime | ||
| laboratory for analysis not later than the 14th [ |
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| date on which that evidence was received. Evidence submitted to a | ||
| public accredited crime laboratory under this subsection must | ||
| include the unique number assigned to the evidence by the agency. | ||
| (c) If sufficient personnel and resources are available, a | ||
| public accredited crime laboratory, as soon as practicable but not | ||
| later than the 60th day after the date on which the laboratory | ||
| received the evidence, shall complete its analysis of [ |
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| (e) The failure of a law enforcement agency to take | ||
| possession of sexual assault evidence or evidence of another sex | ||
| offense within the period required by Section 420.035 or to submit | ||
| that [ |
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| section does not affect the authority of: | ||
| (1) the agency to take possession of the evidence; | ||
| (2) the agency to submit the evidence to an accredited | ||
| crime laboratory for analysis; [ |
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| (3) [ |
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| the evidence or provide the results of that analysis to appropriate | ||
| persons; or | ||
| (4) the department to compare the DNA profile obtained | ||
| from the biological evidence with DNA profiles in a database under | ||
| Section 420.043. | ||
| (f) The failure of a law enforcement agency or public | ||
| accredited crime laboratory to comply with the requirements of this | ||
| section does not constitute grounds in a criminal proceeding for: | ||
| (1) the defendant to challenge the validity of a DNA | ||
| match obtained by comparison under Section 420.043; or | ||
| (2) a court to exclude DNA evidence. | ||
| (g) A person accused or convicted of committing a sexual | ||
| assault or other sex offense against the survivor does not have | ||
| standing to object to the failure of a law enforcement agency or | ||
| public accredited crime laboratory to comply with the requirements | ||
| of this section. Failure of an agency or laboratory to comply with | ||
| the requirements of this section does not constitute grounds for | ||
| setting aside the conviction of a person convicted of committing a | ||
| sexual assault or other sex offense against the survivor. | ||
| SECTION 3. Section 420.043, Government Code, is amended to | ||
| read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 420.043. DATABASE COMPARISON REQUIRED. After [ |
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| kit containing biological evidence has been analyzed by an | ||
| accredited crime laboratory and any necessary quality assurance | ||
| reviews have been performed, the department shall compare the DNA | ||
| profile obtained from the biological evidence with DNA profiles | ||
| maintained in: | ||
| (1) state databases, including the DNA database | ||
| maintained under Subchapter G, Chapter 411, if the amount and | ||
| quality of the analyzed sample meet the requirements of the state | ||
| database comparison policies; and | ||
| (2) the CODIS DNA database established by the Federal | ||
| Bureau of Investigation, if the amount and quality of the analyzed | ||
| sample meet the requirements of the bureau's CODIS comparison | ||
| policies. | ||
| SECTION 4. (a) Except as provided by Subsections (b) and | ||
| (c) of this section, the changes in law made by this Act apply only | ||
| to sexual assault evidence and evidence of other sex offenses | ||
| collected on or after the effective date of this Act. Evidence | ||
| collected before the effective date of this Act is governed by the | ||
| law in effect on the date the evidence was collected, and the former | ||
| law is continued in effect for that purpose. | ||
| (b) The change in law made by this Act to Section | ||
| 420.042(a), Government Code, applies only to sexual assault | ||
| evidence and evidence of other sex offenses received by a law | ||
| enforcement agency not earlier than the 14th day before the | ||
| effective date of this Act. Evidence received by a law enforcement | ||
| agency earlier than the 14th day before the effective date of this | ||
| Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the evidence was | ||
| received, and the former law is continued in effect for that | ||
| purpose. | ||
| (c) The change in law made by this Act by amending Section | ||
| 420.042(c), Government Code, applies only to sexual assault | ||
| evidence and evidence of other sex offenses received by a public | ||
| accredited crime laboratory on or after the effective date of this | ||
| Act. Evidence received by a public accredited crime laboratory | ||
| before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in | ||
| effect on the date the evidence was received, and the former law is | ||
| continued in effect for that purpose. | ||
| SECTION 5. This Act takes effect December 1, 2017. | ||
