CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS
PENAL CODE
TITLE 1. INTRODUCTORY PROVISIONS
CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 1.01. SHORT TITLE. This code shall be known and may be
cited as the Penal Code.
Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974.
Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, Sec. 1.01, eff. Sept.
1, 1994.
Sec. 1.02. OBJECTIVES OF CODE. The general purposes of this
code are to establish a system of prohibitions, penalties, and
correctional measures to deal with conduct that unjustifiably and
inexcusably causes or threatens harm to those individual or
public interests for which state protection is appropriate. To
this end, the provisions of this code are intended, and shall be
construed, to achieve the following objectives:
(1) to insure the public safety through:
(A) the deterrent influence of the penalties hereinafter
provided;
(B) the rehabilitation of those convicted of violations of this
code; and
(C) such punishment as may be necessary to prevent likely
recurrence of criminal behavior;
(2) by definition and grading of offenses to give fair warning
of what is prohibited and of the consequences of violation;
(3) to prescribe penalties that are proportionate to the
seriousness of offenses and that permit recognition of
differences in rehabilitation possibilities among individual
offenders;
(4) to safeguard conduct that is without guilt from condemnation
as criminal;
(5) to guide and limit the exercise of official discretion in
law enforcement to prevent arbitrary or oppressive treatment of
persons suspected, accused, or convicted of offenses; and
(6) to define the scope of state interest in law enforcement
against specific offenses and to systematize the exercise of
state criminal jurisdiction.
Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974.
Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, Sec. 1.01, eff. Sept.
1, 1994.
Sec. 1.03. EFFECT OF CODE. (a) Conduct does not constitute an
offense unless it is defined as an offense by statute, municipal
ordinance, order of a county commissioners court, or rule
authorized by and lawfully adopted under a statute.
(b) The provisions of Titles 1, 2, and 3 apply to offenses
defined by other laws, unless the statute defining the offense
provides otherwise; however, the punishment affixed to an offense
defined outside this code shall be applicable unless the
punishment is classified in accordance with this code.
(c) This code does not bar, suspend, or otherwise affect a right
or liability to damages, penalty, forfeiture, or other remedy
authorized by law to be recovered or enforced in a civil suit for
conduct this code defines as an offense, and the civil injury is
not merged in the offense.
Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974.
Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, Sec. 1.01, eff. Sept.
1, 1994.
Sec. 1.04. TERRITORIAL JURISDICTION. (a) This state has
jurisdiction over an offense that a person commits by his own
conduct or the conduct of another for which he is criminally
responsible if:
(1) either the conduct or a result that is an element of the
offense occurs inside this state;
(2) the conduct outside this state constitutes an attempt to
commit an offense inside this state;
(3) the conduct outside this state constitutes a conspiracy to
commit an offense inside this state, and an act in furtherance of
the conspiracy occurs inside this state; or
(4) the conduct inside this state constitutes an attempt,
solicitation, or conspiracy to commit, or establishes criminal
responsibility for the commission of, an offense in another
jurisdiction that is also an offense under the laws of this
state.
(b) If the offense is criminal homicide, a "result" is either
the physical impact causing death or the death itself. If the
body of a criminal homicide victim is found in this state, it is
presumed that the death occurred in this state. If death alone is
the basis for jurisdiction, it is a defense to the exercise of
jurisdiction by this state that the conduct that constitutes the
offense is not made criminal in the jurisdiction where the
conduct occurred.
(c) An offense based on an omission to perform a duty imposed on
an actor by a statute of this state is committed inside this
state regardless of the location of the actor at the time of the
offense.
(d) This state includes the land and water and the air space
above the land and water over which this state has power to
define offenses.
Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974.
Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, Sec. 1.01, eff. Sept.
1, 1994.
Sec. 1.05. CONSTRUCTION OF CODE. (a) The rule that a penal
statute is to be strictly construed does not apply to this code.
The provisions of this code shall be construed according to the
fair import of their terms, to promote justice and effect the
objectives of the code.
(b) Unless a different construction is required by the context,
Sections 311.011, 311.012, 311.014, 311.015, and 311.021 through
311.032 of Chapter 311, Government Code (Code Construction Act),
apply to the construction of this code.
(c) In this code:
(1) a reference to a title, chapter, or section without further
identification is a reference to a title, chapter, or section of
this code; and
(2) a reference to a subchapter, subsection, subdivision,
paragraph, or other numbered or lettered unit without further
identification is a reference to a unit of the next-larger unit
of this code in which the reference appears.
Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974.
Amended by Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 479, Sec. 69, eff. Sept. 1,
1985; Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, Sec. 1.01, eff. Sept. 1,
1994.
Sec. 1.06. COMPUTATION OF AGE. A person attains a specified age
on the day of the anniversary of his birthdate.
Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974.
Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, Sec. 1.01, eff. Sept.
1, 1994.
Sec. 1.07. DEFINITIONS. (a) In this code:
(1) "Act" means a bodily movement, whether voluntary or
involuntary, and includes speech.
(2) "Actor" means a person whose criminal responsibility is in
issue in a criminal action. Whenever the term "suspect" is used
in this code, it means "actor."
(3) "Agency" includes authority, board, bureau, commission,
committee, council, department, district, division, and office.
(4) "Alcoholic beverage" has the meaning assigned by Section
1.04, Alcoholic Beverage Code.
(5) "Another" means a person other than the actor.
(6) "Association" means a government or governmental subdivision
or agency, trust, partnership, or two or more persons having a
joint or common economic interest.
(7) "Benefit" means anything reasonably regarded as economic
gain or advantage, including benefit to any other person in whose
welfare the beneficiary is interested.
(8) "Bodily injury" means physical pain, illness, or any
impairment of physical condition.
(9) "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.
(10) "Conduct" means an act or omission and its accompanying
mental state.
(11) "Consent" means assent in fact, whether express or
apparent.
(12) "Controlled substance" has the meaning assigned by Section
481.002, Health and Safety Code.
(13) "Corporation" includes nonprofit corporations, professional
associations created pursuant to statute, and joint stock
companies.
(14) "Correctional facility" means a place designated by law for
the confinement of a person arrested for, charged with, or
convicted of a criminal offense. The term includes:
(A) a municipal or county jail;
(B) a confinement facility operated by the Texas Department of
Criminal Justice;
(C) a confinement facility operated under contract with any
division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice; and
(D) a community corrections facility operated by a community
supervision and corrections department.
(15) "Criminal negligence" is defined in Section 6.03 (Culpable
Mental States).
(16) "Dangerous drug" has the meaning assigned by Section
483.001, Health and Safety Code.
(17) "Deadly weapon" means:
(A) a firearm or anything manifestly designed, made, or adapted
for the purpose of inflicting death or serious bodily injury; or
(B) anything that in the manner of its use or intended use is
capable of causing death or serious bodily injury.
(18) "Drug" has the meaning assigned by Section 481.002, Health
and Safety Code.
(19) "Effective consent" includes consent by a person legally
authorized to act for the owner. Consent is not effective if:
(A) induced by force, threat, or fraud;
(B) given by a person the actor knows is not legally authorized
to act for the owner;
(C) given by a person who by reason of youth, mental disease or
defect, or intoxication is known by the actor to be unable to
make reasonable decisions; or
(D) given solely to detect the commission of an offense.
(20) "Electric generating plant" means a facility that generates
electric energy for distribution to the public.
(21) "Electric utility substation" means a facility used to
switch or change voltage in connection with the transmission of
electric energy for distribution to the public.
(22) "Element of offense" means:
(A) the forbidden conduct;
(B) the required culpability;
(C) any required result; and
(D) the negation of any exception to the offense.
(23) "Felony" means an offense so designated by law or
punishable by death or confinement in a penitentiary.
(24) "Government" means:
(A) the state;
(B) a county, municipality, or political subdivision of the
state; or
(C) any branch or agency of the state, a county, municipality,
or political subdivision.
(25) "Harm" means anything reasonably regarded as loss,
disadvantage, or injury, including harm to another person in
whose welfare the person affected is interested.
(26) "Individual" means a human being who is alive, including an
unborn child at every stage of gestation from fertilization until
birth.
(27) Repealed by Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 87, Sec.
25.144, eff. September 1, 2009.
(28) "Intentional" is defined in Section 6.03 (Culpable Mental
States).
(29) "Knowing" is defined in Section 6.03 (Culpable Mental
States).
(30) "Law" means the constitution or a statute of this state or
of the United States, a written opinion of a court of record, a
municipal ordinance, an order of a county commissioners court, or
a rule authorized by and lawfully adopted under a statute.
(31) "Misdemeanor" means an offense so designated by law or
punishable by fine, by confinement in jail, or by both fine and
confinement in jail.
(32) "Oath" includes affirmation.
(33) "Official proceeding" means any type of administrative,
executive, legislative, or judicial proceeding that may be
conducted before a public servant.
(34) "Omission" means failure to act.
(35) "Owner" means a person who:
(A) has title to the property, possession of the property,
whether lawful or not, or a greater right to possession of the
property than the actor; or
(B) is a holder in due course of a negotiable instrument.
(36) "Peace officer" means a person elected, employed, or
appointed as a peace officer under Article 2.12, Code of Criminal
Procedure, Section 51.212 or 51.214, Education Code, or other
law.
(37) "Penal institution" means a place designated by law for
confinement of persons arrested for, charged with, or convicted
of an offense.
(38) "Person" means an individual, corporation, or association.
(39) "Possession" means actual care, custody, control, or
management.
(40) "Public place" means any place to which the public or a
substantial group of the public has access and includes, but is
not limited to, streets, highways, and the common areas of
schools, hospitals, apartment houses, office buildings, transport
facilities, and shops.
(41) "Public servant" means a person elected, selected,
appointed, employed, or otherwise designated as one of the
following, even if he has not yet qualified for office or assumed
his duties:
(A) an officer, employee, or agent of government;
(B) a juror or grand juror; or
(C) an arbitrator, referee, or other person who is authorized by
law or private written agreement to hear or determine a cause or
controversy; or
(D) an attorney at law or notary public when participating in
the performance of a governmental function; or
(E) a candidate for nomination or election to public office; or
(F) a person who is performing a governmental function under a
claim of right although he is not legally qualified to do so.
(42) "Reasonable belief" means a belief that would be held by an
ordinary and prudent man in the same circumstances as the actor.
(43) "Reckless" is defined in Section 6.03 (Culpable Mental
States).
(44) "Rule" includes regulation.
(45) "Secure correctional facility" means:
(A) a municipal or county jail; or
(B) a confinement facility operated by or under a contract with
any division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
(46) "Serious bodily injury" means bodily injury that creates a
substantial risk of death or that causes death, serious permanent
disfigurement, or protracted loss or impairment of the function
of any bodily member or organ.
(46-a) "Sight order" means a written or electronic instruction
to pay money that is authorized by the person giving the
instruction and that is payable on demand or at a definite time
by the person being instructed to pay. The term includes a
check, an electronic debit, or an automatic bank draft.
(47) "Swear" includes affirm.
(48) "Unlawful" means criminal or tortious or both and includes
what would be criminal or tortious but for a defense not
amounting to justification or privilege.
(49) "Death" includes, for an individual who is an unborn child,
the failure to be born alive.
(b) The definition of a term in this code applies to each
grammatical variation of the term.
Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974.
Amended by Acts 1975, 64th Leg., p. 912, ch. 342, Sec. 1, eff.
Sept. 1, 1975; Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2123, ch. 848, Sec. 1,
eff. Aug. 29, 1977; Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 1113, ch. 530, Sec.
1, eff. Aug. 27, 1979; Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 1520, ch. 655,
Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1979; Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 167, Sec.
5.01(a)(43), eff. Sept. 1, 1987; Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 997,
Sec. 1, eff. Aug. 28, 1989; Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 543, Sec.
1, eff. Sept. 1, 1991; Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, Sec. 1.01,
eff. Sept. 1, 1994; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 822, Sec. 2.01,
eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
Amended by:
Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch.
87, Sec. 25.144, eff. September 1, 2009.
Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch.
421, Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2009.
Sec. 1.08. PREEMPTION. No governmental subdivision or agency
may enact or enforce a law that makes any conduct covered by this
code an offense subject to a criminal penalty. This section shall
apply only as long as the law governing the conduct proscribed by
this code is legally enforceable.
Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974.
Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, Sec. 1.01, eff. Sept.
1, 1994.
Sec. 1.09. CONCURRENT JURISDICTION UNDER THIS CODE TO PROSECUTE
OFFENSES THAT INVOLVE STATE PROPERTY. With the consent of the
appropriate local county or district attorney, the attorney
general has concurrent jurisdiction with that consenting local
prosecutor to prosecute under this code any offense an element of
which occurs on state property or any offense that involves the
use, unlawful appropriation, or misapplication of state property,
including state funds.
Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch.
378, Sec. 1, eff. June 15, 2007.