New laws (Corpus Christi, Morton: crime, how much, felony)

[oldtoiletsmkgdflrpots]

http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/directo...n/pr083111.pdf

[Willsson]

Thanks for the link...

[Trainwreck20]

Kids can't ride in boats while you tow them. Funny what we actually have to pass laws about .

[plwhit]

I wonder how much this one is going to cost?

Crime laboratories are required to preserve biological evidence used in the investigation or prosecution of a felony for at least 40 years, or until the applicable statute of limitations has expired if there is an un‐apprehended actor associated with the offense. (SB 1616, effective June 17, 2011)

[Trainwreck20]

I wonder how much this one is going to cost?

Considering the number of people that have been exonerated by DNA testing, I would think that one is well worth the cost.

[jtur88]

A person may carry a handgun, knife, or club in a watercraft under the person’s ownership or control. The handgun, knife, or club may not be in plain view, used while engaging in criminal activity, or carried by a member of a criminal street gang. (HB 25)

Interpretation: Lunch can be served on a boat, but the owner or operator of the boat has to cut your food up for you and then hide the knife. It is not clear whether this applies to plastic knives placed in the bag with carry-out fast food, whether serrated or unserrated..

Note that it is finally illegal to use something while engaged in criminal activity, which is a big step forward. Criminals have been getting off scot-free by engaging in their criminal activity while leaving a club in plain view while on a boat. It is a relief to know that there are now some teeth in the law against engaging in criminal activity. The police can now fight crime effectively by going aboard watercraft looking for plain-view clubs, and use that lead to apprehend those people who are engaged in criminal activity while using the clubs. We're safe at last.

What about members of a "criminal river gang"---do they get a pass?

I just saw this in the Corpus Christi paper:

Nueces County District Attorney Mark Skurka briefed staff and police last week about what changes lie ahead.“We have to get up to speed on those pretty quickly,” he said flipping through the new laws. “There’s all sorts of things people might not be aware of that we’ve got to read about and prepare for,” he said.

In other words: "It doesn't matter if the general public is aware of them or not---we have to be ready to arrest them and prosecute them to the full extent of the law."

[CptnRn]

Originally Posted by jtur88

A person may carry a handgun, knife, or club in a watercraft under the person’s ownership or control. The handgun, knife, or club may not be in plain view, used while engaging in criminal activity, or carried by a member of a criminal street gang. (HB 25)

Interpretation: Lunch can be served on a boat, but the owner or operator of the boat has to cut your food up for you and then hide the knife. It is not clear whether this applies to plastic knives placed in the bag with carry-out fast food, whether serrated or unserrated..

Note that it is finally illegal to use something while engaged in criminal activity, which is a big step forward. Criminals have been getting off scot-free by engaging in their criminal activity while leaving a club in plain view while on a boat. It is a relief to know that there are now some teeth in the law against engaging in criminal activity. The police can now fight crime effectively by going aboard watercraft looking for plain-view clubs, and use that lead to apprehend those people who are engaged in criminal activity while using the clubs. We're safe at last.

What about members of a "criminal river gang"---do they get a pass?

I just saw this in the Corpus Christi paper:

Nueces County District Attorney Mark Skurka briefed staff and police last week about what changes lie ahead.“We have to get up to speed on those pretty quickly,” he said flipping through the new laws. “There’s all sorts of things people might not be aware of that we’ve got to read about and prepare for,” he said.

In other words: "It doesn't matter if the general public is aware of them or not---we have to be ready to arrest them and prosecute them to the full extent of the law."

So a fisherman can't wear his fishing knife in plain view, that is nuts.

[smtimelevi]

This law was meant for CHL holders. It used to be illegal to carry your handgun on your own boat. I dont know how strictly this was enforced. Now theres clarity about being able to carry your gun in your boat, after all it is your boat and why not if you can do it it your car. The rest of the wording is just jibberish and complicates things so the government can interpret it how they feel like that particular day.

[CptnRn]

Yes, I get the gun part, but the rest of this is nuts.

Originally Posted by CptnRn

So a fisherman can't wear his fishing knife in plain view, that is nuts.

And clubs too! Stun clubs are common gear on fishing boats, now they have to be hidden?

[Willsson]

I wonder how much this one is going to cost?

Originally Posted by Trainwreck20

Considering the number of people that have been exonerated by DNA testing, I would think that one is well worth the cost.

That's going down in Williamson County now...

Despite Questions of Bias, John Bradley Will Stay on Innocence Appeal — Texas Judicial System | The Texas Tribune

...the case of Michael Morton, whose 1987 murder conviction has been called into question after new DNA evidence suggests someone else killed his wife.