NCJ Number
151359
Journal
Texas Probation Volume: 9 Issue: 3 Dated: (July 1994) Pages: 85-90
Date Published
1994
Length
6 pages
Annotation
Legislation addressing violent offenders in Texas is discussed.
Abstract
This article discusses state jail felony offense legislation. An offender convicted of a crime committed on or after September 1, 1993, that was either a named aggravated offense or an affirmative finding offense under Art. 42.12, Section 3g, C.C.P. is required to serve a minimum of 50 percent of the sentence imposed or 30 years, whichever was less. To make room for the prison system to house these offenders for such a long time, an alternative to imprisonment had to be developed to handle those criminals convicted of lesser offenses. The Texas legislature developed the concept of State jail felony offenses and passed legislation to address this concern. The legislation took effect on September 1, 1994. For State jail felony offenses committed on or after this date, the offender can be sentenced to a state jail for not less than 180 days or more than two years and be assessed a fine not to exceed $10,000. Basically, all property offenses and low- level drug offenses are State jail felonies, subject to mandatory community corrections and other reasonable supervision conditions. A list of State jail felony offenses is provided.