HBA-JLV H.B. 1654 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1654 By: Talton Criminal Jurisprudence 3/12/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, when law enforcement officers secure arrest warrants for felony suspects who are not in custody, the information related to the identity and the charges are accessible by the public. There have been some instances when parties not associated with the ongoing criminal investigation have contacted or supplied information to others who have contacted the charged suspect and informed them that a warrant has been issued for their arrest. This problem has created a number of substantial safety issues for law enforcement officers when they attempt to arrest the charged suspect who has been previously alerted to the warrant. Because the charged suspect has been notified of the arrest, the individual may have ample time to flee before law enforcement officers arrive. House Bill 1654 disallows the disclosure of public information related to suspects charged with felonies but who are not in custody until the warrant is executed or until after the third day that a warrant is filed, whichever is later. 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 1654 amends the Code of Criminal Procedure to provide that the disclosure to the public of information contained in certain arrest warrants and affidavits filed in connection with the application for those warrants is not required. The bill provides that information in an affidavit filed with a magistrate or information in an arrest warrant issued by a magistrate is not required to be disclosed to the public until the date the warrant is executed or the third day after the date the affidavit is filed or the warrant is issued, whichever is later. If disclosure of the information to the public would assist in the arrest of the individual named in the warrant or if nondisclosure of the information to the public would jeopardize the safety of the public, then the bill provides for the disclosure of information contained within the affidavits or arrest warrants. The provisions of this bill do not apply to a warrant for the arrest of an individual for a misdemeanor offense punishable by fine only or an affidavit filed in connection with the application for the issuance of the warrant. EFFECTIVE DATE On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act takes effect September 1, 2001.