Bohac’s Anti-Crime Agenda Making Progress
AUSTIN - State Representative Dwayne Bohac, R-Houston, is pleased to report that three anti-crime bills he authored or co-authored this legislative session are moving closer to becoming state law. These measures will protect homeowners who use deadly force to protect themselves, increase the penalty for burglary of an automobile, and assist police in finding stolen property.
Senate Bill 378 focuses on the right of self defense by putting the “Castle Doctrine” into state law, bringing Texas in line with 15 other states.
Currently, when faced with an intruder, a homeowner has an obligation to retreat before taking action to defend himself. If a homeowner does shoot the attacker - the homeowner, because of the law, may be liable for the intruder’s death or injury.
SB 378 changes state law so that the use of any force is presumed to be reasonable if you are attacked in your home, vehicle, or place of business or employment, shifting the full burden of the criminal justice system from the victim onto the criminal in self-defense cases, where it belongs.
The bill clearly states that you have no duty to retreat from a violent encounter if you are in a place where you have a right to be, if you did not provoke the attack, and if you are not engaged in criminal activity yourself.
“It’s hard to believe, but under current law it is possible that before this bill that a person could shoot and kill an intruder in their home and be sued by the intruder’s family for defending himself,” Bohac said. “The home is a sacred place - it’s your castle - and you have a right to defend it. We’re not going to ask you to run away anymore.”
In addition, Bohac co-authored House Bill 1887 which raises the penalties for criminals who repeatedly burglarize motor vehicles from a Class A Misdemeanor to a State Jail Felony.
“Many of my friends and neighbors have told me stories of purses, computers, wallets, car stereos and the like being stolen from their car,” Bohac said. “In fact, a year ago I had one car stolen from my driveway and the other ransacked. We have to get tougher on this type of crime.”
Another bill on Bohac’s agenda focuses on the relationship between pawnshop owners and police detectives. HB 1454 requires pawn shop owners to electronically send receipts of pawned items within seven days to the police or sheriff’s department, making it easier for detectives to analyze potential criminal activity. Currently, detectives must drive to each pawn shop to collect the receipts and then analyze those receipts by hand. This takes months to do, and often the cases have grown cold.
The Texas Association of Police Chiefs and the Police Chiefs of Houston, Dallas, Austin, Fort Worth, El Paso and San Antonio have all endorsed Bohac’s HB 1454.
“The current system is archaic and time consuming - this bill moves the investigative process into the 21st century,” Bohac said. “These are highly trained investigators and their time should be spent solving crimes and recovering stolen property, not driving from pawnshop to pawnshop picking up paper receipts.”
Bohac is encouraged that all three bills have received broad, bipartisan support and are well on their way through the legislative process. SB 378, the “Castle Doctrine,” has already passed both the House and the Senate and was the first bill signed into law this session by Governor Perry.