bill keeping insanity acquittee outpatient treatment in the home county

The text as introduced · 1,052 words

89R8941 EAS-F

By: Cook
S.B. No. 2758

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to certain proceedings and supervision following certain

adjudications occurring in a criminal case.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Article 46C.264(a), Code of Criminal Procedure,

is amended to read as follows:

(a) Court-ordered [ The court may order the ] outpatient or

community-based treatment and supervision may [ to ] be provided to

the acquitted person only in a county in which [ in any appropriate

county where the ] necessary resources are available and in which:

(1) the person was acquitted; or

(2) the court receiving jurisdiction over the person

under Article 46C.2645 is located .

SECTION 2. Subchapter F, Chapter 46C, Code of Criminal

Procedure, is amended by adding Article 46C.2645 to read as

follows:

Art. 46C.2645. TRANSFER OF JURISDICTION OVER ACQUITTED

PERSON RECEIVING COURT-ORDERED OUTPATIENT OR COMMUNITY-BASED

TREATMENT AND SUPERVISION. (a) This article applies only with

respect to an acquitted person for whom outpatient or

community-based treatment and supervision are sought to be provided

in a county other than the county in which the committing court is

located.

(b) Either party may file a motion to transfer, to a county

other than the county in which the committing court is located,

jurisdiction over an acquitted person who has been ordered to

receive outpatient or community-based treatment and supervision.

The motion must be filed in the county to which the transfer is

sought and in a court with jurisdiction over the category of offense

of which the person was acquitted and must include:

(1) a description of the alternative placements in the

county of the committing court, as considered by the parties, and

why the placements are unsuitable;

(2) a statement that the local mental health authority

in the proposed county has been notified;

(3) the factors that create the nexus, as described by

Subsection (c)(4), between the acquitted person and the proposed

county; and

(4) any other factors that support the transfer.

(c) Not later than the 45th day after the date a motion

described by Subsection (b) is filed, the court shall conduct a

hearing on the motion. The court shall consider the following

factors in determining whether to accept jurisdiction over the

acquitted person:

(1) whether sufficient resources are available to

provide outpatient or community-based treatment and supervision in

the proposed county;

(2) whether the acquitted person can be adequately

supervised in the proposed county while maintaining the safety of

the community and the acquitted person;

(3) whether the local mental health authority in the

proposed county has agreed to provide the outpatient or

community-based treatment and supervision;

(4) whether there is a nexus between the acquitted

person and the proposed county that would add stability and support

for the person, including the acquitted person having:

(A) an active support network in that county,

including family and friends; and

(B) previously received mental health services

from the local mental health authority in the proposed county at any

time during the five-year period preceding the date of the person's

acquittal;

(5) the acquitted person's proposed outpatient or

community-based treatment plan; and

(6) other factors that the court considers relevant.

(d) After the court makes a determination that accepting

jurisdiction over the acquitted person is appropriate, the

committing court shall transfer the case to that court.

(e) After the case is transferred, the acquitted person's

discharge planning shall be completed by the court accepting

jurisdiction and the applicable local mental health authority and

state hospital serving the county in which that court is located.

SECTION 3. (a) The Health and Human Services Commission

shall conduct a study on persons who were, during the period

beginning on September 1, 2005, and ending on August 31, 2026:

(1) found not guilty by reason of insanity; and

(2) ordered by the court to participate in outpatient

or community-based treatment and supervision.

(b) Not later than December 1, 2026, the commission shall

prepare and submit to the legislature a written report containing

the results of the study and any recommendations for legislative or

other action. The report must include the following, with regard to

the acquitted persons who, during the applicable period described

by Subsection (a) of this section, are ordered by the court to

participate in outpatient or community-based treatment and

supervision:

(1) a list of each county with regard to which

acquitted persons are ordered to participate in treatment and

supervision;

(2) the number of acquitted persons ordered to

participate in treatment and supervision in:

(A) counties in which the court ordering the

treatment and supervision is located; or

(B) counties other than the county in which the

court ordering the treatment and supervision is located;

(3) the reasons acquitted persons are ordered to

participate in treatment and supervision in a county described by

Subdivision (2)(B) of this subsection;

(4) issues identified by treatment providers and other

stakeholders concerning acquitted persons being ordered to

participate in treatment and supervision in a county described by

Subdivision (2)(B) of this subsection;

(5) information on whether there is sufficient funding

for acquitted persons to participate in all types of outpatient

treatment and supervision in this state; and

(6) a description of outcomes for acquitted persons

participating in all types of outpatient treatment and supervision

in this state.

SECTION 4. (a) The changes in law made by this Act in

amending Article 46C.264(a), Code of Criminal Procedure, and adding

Article 46C.2645, Code of Criminal Procedure, apply to any

defendant who is subject to proceedings under Chapter 46C, Code of

Criminal Procedure, before, on, or after the effective date of this

Act.

(b) Notwithstanding Section 5, Chapter 831 (S.B. 837), Acts

of the 79th Legislature, Regular Session, 2005, for a person who

committed any element of the offense before September 1, 2005,

Chapter 46C, Code of Criminal Procedure, as amended by this Act,

governs:

(1) an initial determination of not guilty by reason

of insanity; and

(2) any subsequent proceedings that occur in relation

to a determination of not guilty by reason of insanity made under

Chapter 46C or former Article 46.03, Code of Criminal Procedure, as

applicable, including commitment hearings, recommitment hearings,

and court orders requiring participation in outpatient or

community-based treatment and supervision.

SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.