Art. 102.017. COURT COSTS; COURTHOUSE SECURITY FUND; MUNICIPAL COURT BUILDING SECURITY FUND; JUSTICE COURT BUILDING SECURITY FUND. (a) A defendant convicted of a felony offense in a district court shall pay a $5 security fee as a cost of court.
(b) A defendant convicted of a misdemeanor offense in a county court, county court at law, or district court shall pay a $3 security fee as a cost of court. A defendant convicted of a misdemeanor offense in a justice court shall pay a $4 security fee as a cost of court. The governing body of a municipality by ordinance may create a municipal court building security fund and may require a defendant convicted of a misdemeanor offense in a municipal court to pay a $3 security fee as a cost of court.
(c) In this article, a person is considered convicted if:
(1) a sentence is imposed on the person;
(2) the person receives community supervision, including deferred adjudication; or
(3) the court defers final disposition of the person's case.
(d) Except as provided by Subsection (d-2), the clerks of the respective courts shall collect the costs and pay them to the county or municipal treasurer, as appropriate, or to any other official who discharges the duties commonly delegated to the county or municipal treasurer, as appropriate, for deposit in a fund to be known as the courthouse security fund or a fund to be known as the municipal court building security fund, as appropriate. Money deposited in a courthouse security fund may be used only for security personnel, services, and items related to buildings that house the operations of district, county, or justice courts, and money deposited in a municipal court building security fund may be used only for security personnel, services, and items related to buildings that house the operations of municipal courts. For purposes of this subsection, operations of a district, county, or justice court include the activities of associate judges, masters, magistrates, referees, hearing officers, criminal law magistrate court judges, and masters in chancery appointed under:
(1) Section 61.311, Alcoholic Beverage Code;
(2) Section 51.04(g) or Chapter 201, Family Code;
(3) Section 574.0085, Health and Safety Code;
(4) Section 33.71, Tax Code;
(5) Chapter 54A, Government Code; or
(6) Rule 171, Texas Rules of Civil Procedure.
(d-1) For purposes of this article, the term "security personnel, services, and items" includes:
(1) the purchase or repair of X-ray machines and conveying systems;
(2) handheld metal detectors;
(3) walkthrough metal detectors;
(4) identification cards and systems;
(5) electronic locking and surveillance equipment;
(6) video teleconferencing systems;
(7) bailiffs, deputy sheriffs, deputy constables, or contract security personnel during times when they are providing appropriate security services;
(8) signage;
(9) confiscated weapon inventory and tracking systems;
(10) locks, chains, alarms, or similar security devices;
(11) the purchase or repair of bullet-proof glass;
(12) continuing education on security issues for court personnel and security personnel; and
(13) warrant officers and related equipment.
(d-2)(1) This subsection applies only to a justice court located in a county in which one or more justice courts are located in a building that is not the county courthouse.
(2) The county treasurer shall deposit one-fourth of the cost of court collected under Subsection (b) in a justice court described by Subdivision (1) into a fund to be known as the justice court building security fund. A fund designated by this subsection may be used only for the purpose of providing security personnel, services, and items for a justice court located in a building that is not the county courthouse.
(e) The courthouse security fund and the justice court building security fund shall be administered by or under the direction of the commissioners court. The municipal court building fund shall be administered by or under the direction of the governing body of the municipality.
(f) A local administrative judge shall provide to the Office of Court Administration of the Texas Judicial System a written report regarding any security incident involving court security that occurs in or around a building housing a court for which the judge serves as local administrative judge not later than the third business day after the date the incident occurred.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 818, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993. Amended by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 764, Sec. 2, eff. Aug. 28, 1995; Subsecs. (a), (b), (d) amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 12, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1997; Subsec. (d) amended by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 110, Sec. 1, eff. May 17, 1999.
Amended by:
Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 83 (S.B. 550), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2005.
Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 1087 (H.B. 1934), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2005.
Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 1087 (H.B. 1934), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2005.
Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 221 (H.B. 1380), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2007.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 664 (S.B. 1521), Sec. 1, eff. June 17, 2011.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1031 (H.B. 2847), Sec. 7, eff. September 1, 2011.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., 1st C.S., Ch. 3 (H.B. 79), Sec. 6.07, eff. January 1, 2012.
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 161 (S.B. 1093), Sec. 3.012, eff. September 1, 2013.
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