Amends TCA Title 39; Title 40 and Title 55.

This bill makes several changes to present law concerning criminal offenses.<br /> <br /> AGGRAVATED VEHICULAR ASSAULT<br /> <br /> Under the present Motor Vehicle Habitual Offenders Act, when a person who is convicted of three or more certain criminal offenses involving motor vehicles within a five-year period, or who has five or more such convictions within a 10-year period, the district attorney must petition a court to hold a hearing to determine whether the person is a habitual offender. If a person is determined to be a habitual offender, the court must issue an order prohibiting the person from operating a motor vehicle. After three years, a habitual offender may petition the court for reinstatement of the person's driving privileges. It is a Class E felony offense for a habitual offender to operate a motor vehicle while the habitual offender's driving privileges are revoked. Additionally, prior violations of the motor vehicle habitual offender law may be used as aggravating factors for the Class C felony offense aggravated vehicular assault.<br /> <br /> This bill repeals the Motor Vehicle Habitual Offenders Act.<br /> <br /> FAILURE TO APPEAR<br /> <br /> Under present law, failure to appear on a criminal summons, citation, or appearance bond is generally a Class A misdemeanor offense. If the occasion for which the defendant's appearance is required is a Class A misdemeanor or a felony, failure to appear is a Class E felony offense. Present law authorizes courts to order that any sentence imposed for failure to appear be served consecutively to any sentence received for the offense for which the defendant failed to appear. <br /> <br /> This bill makes all incidences of failure to appear a Class A misdemeanor offense and requires that any sentence imposed for failure to appear be served consecutively to any sentence received for the offense for which the defendant failed to appear.<br /> <br /> Under present law, a person who fails to appear on a sheriff's release citation commits a Class A misdemeanor offense, punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $250.<br /> <br /> This bill increases the penalty for failure to appear on a sheriff's release citation to the standard penalty for a Class A misdemeanor, up to 11 months and 29 days in a jail and a fine of up to $2,500.<br /> <br /> CONTRABAND IN PENAL INSTITUTIONS<br /> <br /> Under present law, the criminal offense of taking contraband into a penal institution without the chief administrator's written consent is classified as follows:<br /> <br /> (1) If the contraband is a weapon, ammunition, or explosive, the offense is a Class C felony;<br /> (2) If the contraband is an intoxicant, a legend drug, or any controlled substance or controlled substance analogue, the offense is a Class C felony; and<br /> (3) If the contraband is a telecommunications device, the offense is a Class E felony.<br /> <br /> This bill revises the classification of the criminal offense of taking contraband into a penal institution as follows:<br /> <br /> (1) For a weapon, ammunition, or explosive, the offense remains a Class C felony;<br /> (2) For an intoxicant, a legend drug, or any controlled substance or controlled substance analogue, the offense will be reduced to a Class D felony; and<br /> (3) For a telecommunications device, the offense will be increased to a Class D felony.<br /> <br /> THEFT<br /> <br /> Under present law, the criminal offense of theft is classified based on the value of the property with a range of Class A misdemeanor to Class A felony. The punishment for the offense depends on the classification.<br /> <br /> This bill imposes a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 days confinement for theft of a firearm.<br /> <br /> DUI<br /> <br /> Under present law, repeat DUI offenders are subject to enhanced punishments if the immediately preceding violation occurred within 10 years of the current conviction. For purposes of determining if a person convicted of DUI is a multiple offender, a prior conviction for vehicular assault, aggravated vehicular assault, vehicular homicide, or aggravated vehicular homicide is treated the same as a prior conviction for DUI; provided, the person was convicted of the prior offense before the current DUI.<br /> <br /> ON APRIL 17, 2019, THE HOUSE ADOPTED AMENDMENTS #1 AND #2 AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 167, AS AMENDED.<br /> <br /> AMENDMENT #1 deletes a provision of this bill that would have made possession of a telecommunications device in a penal institution without the chief administrator's consent a criminal offense. This amendment does not remove the present law offense of knowingly and with unlawful intent taking, sending, or otherwise causing to be taken into any penal institution where prisoners are quartered or under custodial supervision, which this bill increases in classification from a Class E felony to a Class D felony.<br /> <br /> This amendment changes the effective date of this bill's provision that authorizes a person whose driver license has been revoked or restricted due solely to the person's status as a motor vehicle habitual offender prior to July 1, 2019, to petition a court for reinstatement of the person's driver license. Under this amendment, instead of taking effect July 1, 2019, such provision will take effect 30 days after the date upon which the commissioner of safety provides written notification to the secretary of state and the executive secretary of the Tennessee code commission that the department of safety's "A-list" driver license program is capable of implementing this bill or January 1, 2020, whichever is earlier.<br /> <br /> This amendment removes release eligibility for a person who commits DUI, on or after January 1, 2019, if the person has at least six prior DUI convictions. This amendment requires that any such person serve 100 percent of the sentence imposed by the court less sentence credits earned and retained, not to exceed a reduction in the sentence of more than 15 percent.<br /> <br /> AMENDMENT #2 adds that the judges of chancery and circuit courts have statewide jurisdiction to issue search warrants in any district.<br /> <br /> ON APRIL 30, 2019, THE SENATE SUBSTITUTED HOUSE BILL 167 FOR SENATE BILL 403, ADOPTED AMENDMENT #3, AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 167, AS AMENDED.<br /> <br /> AMENDMENT #3 removes the change made by House Amendment #2 and adds a change to present law concerning alternative facilities for incarceration of DUI offenders.<br /> <br /> Present law requires that an offender sentenced to a period of incarceration for a DUI commence service of the sentence within 30 days of conviction or, if space is not immediately available in the appropriate municipal or county jail or workhouse within such time, as soon as such space is available. If, in the opinion of the sheriff or chief administrative officer of a local jail or workhouse, space will not be available to allow a DUI offender to commence service of the sentence, present law requires the sheriff or administrative officer to use alternative facilities for the incarceration of the offender. This amendment makes use of alternative facilities by a sheriff or chief administrative officer of a local jail or workhouse for the incarceration of DUI offenders permissive.<br /> <br /> ON MAY 1, 2019, THE HOUSE RETURNED HOUSE BILL 167 TO THE SENATE.<br /> <br /> ON MAY 1, 2019, THE SENATE LIFTED THE TABLING MOTION AND RECONSIDERED ITS ACTIONS IN PASSING HOUSE BILL 167, ADOPTED AMENDMENT #4, AND REPASSED HOUSE BILL 167, AS AMENDED BY SENATE AMENDMENTS #3 AND #4.<br /> <br /> AMENDMENT #4 restores the change described in the Summary for House Amendment #2.<br /> <br />