Penal Code Chapters 19-20

TYPES OF CRIMINAL HOMICIDE

(a) A person commits criminal homicide if he intentionally, knowingly, recklessly, or with criminal negligence causes the death of an individual.(b) Criminal homicide is murder, capital murder, manslaughter, or criminally negligent homicide.

Adequate cause

means cause that would commonly produce a degree of anger, rage, resentment, or terror in a person of ordinary temper, sufficient to render the mind incapable of cool reflection.

Sudden passion

means passion directly caused by and arising out of provocation by the individual killed or another acting with the person killed which passion arises at the time of the offense and is not solely the result of former provocation.

MURDER

A person commits an offense if he:(1) intentionally or knowingly causes the death of an individual;(2) intends to cause serious bodily injury and commits an act clearly dangerous to human life that causes the death of an individual; or(3) commits or attempts to commit a felony, other than manslaughter, and in the course of and in furtherance of the commission or attempt, or in immediate flight from the commission or attempt, he commits or attempts to commit an act clearly dangerous to human life that causes the death of an individual.(c) Except as provided by Subsection (d), an offense under this section is a felony of the first degree.(d) At the punishment stage of a trial, the defendant may raise the issue as to whether he caused the death under the immediate influence of sudden passion arising from an adequate cause. If the defendant proves the issue in the affirmative by a preponderance of the evidence, the offense is a felony of the second degree

CAPITAL MURDER

A person commits an offense if the person commits murder as defined under Section 19.02(b)(1) and:(1) the person murders a peace officer or fireman who is acting in the lawful discharge of an official duty and who the person knows is a peace officer or fireman;(2) the person intentionally commits the murder in the course of committing or attempting to commit kidnapping, burglary, robbery, aggravated sexual assault, arson, obstruction or retaliation, or terroristic threat under Section 22.07(a)(1), (3), (4), (5), or (6);(3) the person commits the murder for remuneration or the promise of remuneration or employs another to commit the murder for remuneration or the promise of remuneration;(4) the person commits the murder while escaping or attempting to escape from a penal institution;(5) the person, while incarcerated in a penal institution, murders another:(A) who is employed in the operation of the penal institution; or(B) with the intent to establish, maintain, or participate in a combination or in the profits of a combination;(6) the person:(A) while incarcerated for an offense under this section or Section 19.02, murders another; or(B) while serving a sentence of life imprisonment or a term of 99 years for an offense under Section 20.04, 22.021, or 29.03, murders another;(7) the person murders more than one person:(A) during the same criminal transaction; or(B) during different criminal transactions but the murders are committed pursuant to the same scheme or course of conduct;(8) the person murders an individual under 10 years of age;(9) the person murders an individual 10 years of age or older but younger than 15 years of age; or(10) the person murders another person in retaliation for or on account of the service or status of the other person as a judge or justice of the supreme court, the court of criminal appeals, a court of appeals, a district court, a criminal district court, a constitutional county court, a statutory county court, a justice court, or a municipal court.(b) An offense under this section is a capital felony.(c) If the jury or, when authorized by law, the judge does not find beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant is guilty of an offense under this section, he may be convicted of murder or of any other lesser included offense.

MANSLAUGHTER

(a) A person commits an offense if he recklessly causes the death of an individual.(b) An offense under this section is a felony of the second degree.

CRIMINALLY NEGLIGENT HOMICIDE

(a) A person commits an offense if he causes the death of an individual by criminal negligence.(b) An offense under this section is a state jail felony.

APPLICABILITY TO CERTAIN CONDUCT

This chapter does not apply to the death of an unborn child if the conduct charged is:(1) conduct committed by the mother of the unborn child;(2) a lawful medical procedure performed by a physician or other licensed health care provider with the requisite consent, if the death of the unborn child was the intended result of the procedure;(3) a lawful medical procedure performed by a physician or other licensed health care provider with the requisite consent as part of an assisted reproduction as defined by Section 160.102, Family Code; or(4) the dispensation of a drug in accordance with law or administration of a drug prescribed in accordance with law.

Restrain

to restrict a person's movements without consent, so as to interfere substantially with the person's liberty, by moving the person from one place to another or by confining the person. Restraint is "without consent" if it is accomplished by:(A) force, intimidation, or deception; or(B) any means, including acquiescence of the victim, if:(i) the victim is a child who is less than 14 years of age or an incompetent person and the parent, guardian, or person or institution acting in loco parentis has not acquiesced in the movement or confinement; or(ii) the victim is a child who is 14 years of age or older and younger than 17 years of age, the victim is taken outside of the state and outside a 120-mile radius from the victim's residence, and the parent, guardian, or person or institution acting in loco parentis has not acquiesced in the movement.

Abduct

to restrain a person with intent to prevent his liberation by:(A) secreting or holding him in a place where he is not likely to be found; or(B) using or threatening to use deadly force.

Relative

a parent or stepparent, ancestor, sibling, or uncle or aunt, including an adoptive relative of the same degree through marriage or adoption.

Person

an individual or a corporation, association, limited liability company, or other entity or organization governed by the Business Organizations Code.

individual

a human being who has been born and is alive.

Agricultural land

land that is located in this state and that is suitable for:(A) use in production of plants and fruits grown for human or animal consumption, or plants grown for the production of fibers, floriculture, viticulture, horticulture, or planting seed;(B) forestry and the growing of trees for the purpose of rendering those trees into lumber, fiber, or other items used for industrial, commercial, or personal consumption; or(C) domestic or native farm or ranch animals kept for use or profit.

Firearm

any device designed, made, or adapted to expel a projectile through a barrel by using the energy generated by an explosion or burning substance or any device readily convertible to that use. Firearm does not include a firearm that may have, as an integral part, a folding knife blade or other characteristics of weapons made illegal by this chapter and that is:(A) an antique or curio firearm manufactured before 1899; or(B) a replica of an antique or curio firearm manufactured before 1899, but only if the replica does not use rim fire or center fire ammunition.

Special investigator

includes an agent of the United States Department of Homeland Security.

UNLAWFUL RESTRAINT

(a) A person commits an offense if he intentionally or knowingly restrains another person.(b) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this section that:(1) the person restrained was a child younger than 14 years of age;(2) the actor was a relative of the child; and(3) the actor's sole intent was to assume lawful control of the child.(c) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor, except that the offense is:(1) a state jail felony if the person restrained was a child younger than 17 years of age;(2) a felony of the third degree if:(A) the actor recklessly exposes the victim to a substantial risk of serious bodily injury;(B) the actor restrains an individual the actor knows is a public servant while the public servant is lawfully discharging an official duty or in retaliation or on account of an exercise of official power or performance of an official duty as a public servant; or(C) the actor while in custody restrains any other person; or(3) notwithstanding Subdivision (2)(B), a felony of the second degree if the actor restrains an individual the actor knows is a peace officer or judge while the officer or judge is lawfully discharging an official duty or in retaliation or on account of an exercise of official power or performance of an official duty as a peace officer or judge.(d) It is no offense to detain or move another under this section when it is for the purpose of effecting a lawful arrest or detaining an individual lawfully arrested.(e) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this section that:(1) the person restrained was a child who is 14 years of age or older and younger than 17 years of age;(2) the actor does not restrain the child by force, intimidation, or deception; and(3) the actor is not more than three years older than the child.

KIDNAPPING

(a) A person commits an offense if he intentionally or knowingly abducts another person.(b) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this section that:(1) the abduction was not coupled with intent to use or to threaten to use deadly force;(2) the actor was a relative of the person abducted; and(3) the actor's sole intent was to assume lawful control of the victim.(c) An offense under this section is a felony of the third degree.

AGGRAVATED KIDNAPPING

(a) A person commits an offense if he intentionally or knowingly abducts another person with the intent to:(1) hold him for ransom or reward;(2) use him as a shield or hostage;(3) facilitate the commission of a felony or the flight after the attempt or commission of a felony;(4) inflict bodily injury on him or violate or abuse him sexually;(5) terrorize him or a third person; or(6) interfere with the performance of any governmental or political function.(b) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally or knowingly abducts another person and uses or exhibits a deadly weapon during the commission of the offense.(c) Except as provided by Subsection (d), an offense under this section is a felony of the first degree.(d) At the punishment stage of a trial, the defendant may raise the issue as to whether he voluntarily released the victim in a safe place. If the defendant proves the issue in the affirmative by a preponderance of the evidence, the offense is a felony of the second degree.

SMUGGLING OF PERSONS

(a) A person commits an offense if the person knowingly:(1) uses a motor vehicle, aircraft, watercraft, or other means of conveyance to transport an individual with the intent to:(A) conceal the individual from a peace officer or special investigator; or(B) flee from a person the actor knows is a peace officer or special investigator attempting to lawfully arrest or detain the actor;(2) encourages or induces a person to enter or remain in this country in violation of federal law by concealing, harboring, or shielding that person from detection; or(3) assists, guides, or directs two or more individuals to enter or remain on agricultural land without the effective consent of the owner.(b) An offense under this section is a felony of the third degree, except that the offense is:(1) a felony of the second degree if:(A) the actor commits the offense in a manner that creates a substantial likelihood that the smuggled individual will suffer serious bodily injury or death;(B) the smuggled individual is a child younger than 18 years of age at the time of the offense;(C) the offense was committed with the intent to obtain a pecuniary benefit;(D) during the commission of the offense the actor, another party to the offense, or an individual assisted, guided, or directed by the actor knowingly possessed a firearm; or(E) the actor commits the offense under Subsection (a)(1)(B); or(2) a felony of the first degree if:(A) it is shown on the trial of the offense that, as a direct result of the commission of the offense, the smuggled individual became a victim of sexual assault, as defined by Section 22.011, or aggravated sexual assault, as defined by Section 22.021; or(B) the smuggled individual suffered serious bodily injury or death.(c) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution of an offense under this section, other than an offense punishable under Subsection (b)(1)(A) or (b)(2), that the actor is related to the smuggled individual within the second degree of consanguinity or, at the time of the offense, within the second degree of affinity.(d) If conduct constituting an offense under this section also constitutes an offense under another section of this code, the actor may be prosecuted under either section or under both sections.

Child

a person younger than 18 years of age.

Coercion

means a threat, however communicated:(A) to commit an offense;(B) to inflict bodily injury in the future on the person threatened or another;(C) to accuse a person of any offense;(D) to expose a person to hatred, contempt, or ridicule;(E) to harm the credit or business repute of any person; or(F) to take or withhold action as a public servant, or to cause a public servant to take or withhold action.(A) destroying, concealing, confiscating, or withholding from a trafficked person, or threatening to destroy, conceal, confiscate, or withhold from a trafficked person, the person's actual or purported:(i) government records; or(ii) identifying information or documents;(B) causing a trafficked person, without the person's consent, to become intoxicated, as defined by Section 49.01, to a degree that impairs the person's ability to appraise the nature of or resist engaging in any conduct, including performing or providing labor or services; or(C) withholding alcohol or a controlled substance to a degree that impairs the ability of a trafficked person with a chemical dependency, as defined by Section 462.001, Health and Safety Code, to appraise the nature of or resist engaging in any conduct, including performing or providing labor or services.

Forced labor or services

labor or services, other than labor or services that constitute sexual conduct, that are performed or provided by another person and obtained through an actor's use of force, fraud, or coercion.

Premises

real property and all buildings and appurtenances pertaining to the real property.

School

a public or private primary or secondary school.

Sexual conduct

sexual contact, actual or simulated sexual intercourse, deviate sexual intercourse, sexual bestiality, masturbation, sado-masochistic abuse, or lewd exhibition of the genitals, the anus, or any portion of the female breast below the top of the areola.

Traffic

to transport, entice, recruit, harbor, provide, or otherwise obtain another person by any means.

TRAFFICKING OF PERSONS

(a) A person commits an offense if the person knowingly:(1) traffics another person with the intent that the trafficked person engage in forced labor or services;(2) receives a benefit from participating in a venture that involves an activity described by Subdivision (1), including by receiving labor or services the person knows are forced labor or services;(3) traffics another person and, through force, fraud, or coercion, causes the trafficked person to engage in conduct prohibited by:(A) Section 43.02 (Prostitution);(B) Section 43.03 (Promotion of Prostitution);(B-1) Section 43.031 (Online Promotion of Prostitution);(C) Section 43.04 (Aggravated Promotion of Prostitution);(C-1) Section 43.041 (Aggravated Online Promotion of Prostitution); or(D) Section 43.05 (Compelling Prostitution);(4) receives a benefit from participating in a venture that involves an activity described by Subdivision (3) or engages in sexual conduct with a person trafficked in the manner described in Subdivision (3);(5) traffics a child with the intent that the trafficked child engage in forced labor or services;(6) receives a benefit from participating in a venture that involves an activity described by Subdivision (5), including by receiving labor or services the person knows are forced labor or services;(7) traffics a child and by any means causes the trafficked child to engage in, or become the victim of, conduct prohibited by:(A) Section 21.02 (Continuous Sexual Abuse of Young Child or Disabled Individual);(B) Section 21.11 (Indecency with a Child);(C) Section 22.011 (Sexual Assault);(D) Section 22.021 (Aggravated Sexual Assault);(E) Section 43.02 (Prostitution);(E-1) Section 43.021 (Solicitation of Prostitution);(F) Section 43.03 (Promotion of Prostitution);(F-1) Section 43.031 (Online Promotion of Prostitution);(G) Section 43.04 (Aggravated Promotion of Prostitution);(G-1) Section 43.041 (Aggravated Online Promotion of Prostitution);(H) Section 43.05 (Compelling Prostitution);(I) Section 43.25 (Sexual Performance by a Child);(J) Section 43.251 (Employment Harmful to Children); or(K) Section 43.26 (Possession or Promotion of Child Pornography); or(8) receives a benefit from participating in a venture that involves an activity described by Subdivision (7) or engages in sexual conduct with a child trafficked in the manner described in Subdivision (7).(a-1) Repealed by Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 807 (H.B. 1540), Sec. 62(5) and Ch. 905 (H.B. 3521), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2021.(b) Except as otherwise provided by this subsection and Subsection (b-1), an offense under this section is a felony of the second degree. An offense under this section is a felony of the first degree if:(1) the applicable conduct constitutes an offense under Subsection (a)(5), (6), (7), or (8), regardless of whether the actor knows the age of the child at the time of the offense;(2) the commission of the offense results in the death of the person who is trafficked;(3) the commission of the offense results in the death of an unborn child of the person who is trafficked; or(4) the actor recruited, enticed, or obtained the victim of the offense from a shelter or facility operating as a residential treatment center that serves runaway youth, foster children, the homeless, or persons subjected to human trafficking, domestic violence, or sexual assault.(b-1) An offense under this section is a felony of the first degree punishable by imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for life or for a term of not more than 99 years or less than 25 years if it is shown on the trial of the offense that the actor committed the offense in a location that was:(1) on the premises of or within 1,000 feet of the premises of a school; or(2) on premises or within 1,000 feet of premises where:(A) an official school function was taking place; or(B) an event sponsored or sanctioned by the University Interscholastic League was taking place.(c) If conduct constituting an offense under this section also constitutes an offense under another section of this code, the actor may be prosecuted under either section or under both sections.(d) If the victim of an offense under Subsection (a)(7)(A) is the same victim as a victim of an offense under Section 21.02, a defendant may not be convicted of the offense under Section 21.02 in the same criminal action as the offense under Subsection (a)(7)(A) unless the offense under Section 21.02:(1) is charged in the alternative;(2) occurred outside the period in which the offense alleged under Subsection (a)(7)(A) was committed; or(3) is considered by the trier of fact to be a lesser included offense of the offense alleged under Subsection (a)(7)(A).

CONTINUOUS TRAFFICKING OF PERSONS

(a) A person commits an offense if, during a period that is 30 or more days in duration, the person engages two or more times in conduct that constitutes an offense under Section 20A.02 against one or more victims.(b) If a jury is the trier of fact, members of the jury are not required to agree unanimously on which specific conduct engaged in by the defendant constituted an offense under Section 20A.02 or on which exact date the defendant engaged in that conduct. The jury must agree unanimously that the defendant, during a period that is 30 or more days in duration, engaged in conduct that constituted an offense under Section 20A.02.(c) If the victim of an offense under Subsection (a) is the same victim as a victim of an offense under Section 20A.02, a defendant may not be convicted of the offense under Section 20A.02 in the same criminal action as the offense under Subsection (a), unless the offense under Section 20A.02:(1) is charged in the alternative;(2) occurred outside the period in which the offense alleged under Subsection (a) was committed; or(3) is considered by the trier of fact to be a lesser included offense of the offense alleged under Subsection (a).(d) A defendant may not be charged with more than one count under Subsection (a) if all of the conduct that constitutes an offense under Section 20A.02 is alleged to have been committed against the same victim.(e) An offense under this section is a felony of the first degree, punishable by imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for life or for any term of not more than 99 years or less than 25 years.