HBA-SEP C.S.H.B. 2517 77(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 2517
By: Garcia
Criminal Jurisprudence
4/12/2001
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Current law provides that a person commits an offense if a lawfully
arrested person refuses to provide the person's name, residence address, or
date of birth or if a person who is lawfully arrested, detained, or witness
to a criminal offense intentionally deceives a peace officer in regard to
that information.  C.S.H.B. 2517 provides that the oral statement of a
lawfully detained person is sufficient means of providing identifying
information to an officer, and that it is an exception to the application
of such provisions that a person who intentionally refuses to give
identifying information to a peace officer is being interrogated in
connection with a criminal investigation and is not being arrested at that
time.   

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

C.S.H.B. 2517 amends the Penal Code to specify that a person commits an
offense if the person, who the officer has good cause to believe is a
witness to a criminal offense and is not suspected by the officer as being
a party to a criminal offense, intentionally gives a false or fictitious
name, residence address, or date of birth to a peace officer.  The bill
provides that an oral statement is a sufficient means of providing
identifying information to a peace officer.  The bill provides that it is
an exception to the application of provisions regarding refusal to provide
identifying information that a person who intentionally refuses to give
identifying information to a peace officer is being detained or otherwise
interrogated in connection with a criminal investigation and is not being
arrested at that time.   

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

C.S.H.B. 2517 modifies the original to specify that a person who is
believed to be a witness to a criminal offense and is not suspected by the
officer as being a party to a criminal offense, rather than only that
offense, commits an offense if the person intentionally refuses to give the
person's identifying information to a peace officer.  The substitute
removes the qualification that an oral statement is sufficient means of
providing information to a peace officer only in regard to a person who is
lawfully detained.  The substitute removes the provision that the officer
has the burden to establish the actor's intentional deception.  The
substitute removes the provision that a peace officer investigating
intentional deception is prohibited from arresting the person for that
offense unless the officer concurrently arrests the person for a separate
offense. The substitute provides that it is an exception to the application
of provisions regarding refusal to provide identifying information that a
person who intentionally refuses to give identifying information to a peace
officer is being interrogated in connection with a criminal investigation
and is not being arrested at that time.