Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1947 )

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Q,F TEX'AS ,'..
AUSTIN~a.-
PRICE DANIEL
ATTORNEY GENERAL
cctobor 26, 1817
RWA. Charlss C. ~Bannister - Irage 2 (T-418)
doer aot sxoeod tire yeara, the de?wdant
shall have the brnailte OS the auspsnded
sentenos aat.”
There is nc sxprees~ rapeal of Arti 12570,
oontalasd in Bouaa Bill l?o. 120, nor do wa find say lan-
guage in the bill that oould be oonetrued as a repeal by
Rapeala by irplloation are not favored In
2wuoat~oa*
.
The Suspended ntonce Aot originally enaotad
In 1913 (Aotr 193.3, ‘page 8 r is as Sollows:
*Whtwe there is a ootmiotion of a
felony in any dlstriot or orlninal ,distr“f at
oonrt 01 this State, exorpt murder, perjury,
burglaw (Pi a private miidsnoe at night,
robbery, amon, tMa6t, bigamy, seUuatf.on,
and abortion, and tb punIshmeat assessed
by the jury shall BOt 4xoaed rive year8,
ths oourt shall auspsnd eentenoe upon writ-
ten aworn~applioabion made thereior by the
defendant , riled betore th6 trial ’bsgfne.
when the deRmdant ha8 no oouas~l, the oourt
shall appoint oounsal to prepara and present
same it doaired by desendant. In 110oaae
shall sentsnoe be suspended exoept whmthe
proof shall show and the jury shall fihd in
their ‘terdiot that the defendant has never
boforo brm oonviotod ot a ‘felony in this or,
In Amyother State. This law is Bat to bs
oomtxue4 as p~,ematli& ths jury rrom pase-
ing on the guilt ot thq dofsadaat, but he
may eater a plaa OS hot guilty.*
Iz Ztzler 9. Stats, 158 9. W. (Zd,) 495 (4) It
Sa said:
*Artiole 776 0, C. P. epoolttoally ex-
oepta from the suspazsicm of ~sefitenos mph
offonsee aa robbery, arson, eta. The :(appel-
lent) oontends that &!tlole 1227a, Varnon’a
AM. 0. O., rapsalad the former ‘rtatute and
now make8 the suspended sentenoe applicable
to all Selozy aontiotions. Weedo not so oon-
strue the artiola last mntiomd. llrtials
778a, Yoraon~a Ann. 0. ‘0. P. also expres81 ..
lxoepta Wbbery, arson @to,. tram thki app lL
oatioa or the suspended santenoe law. Art.
Hon. Charles U. Bannleter, - Page 3 (V-418)
1257a, supra, deals with the crime of mur-
der 0nly and gives one convicted of murder
the benefit of a suspended sentence if the
punishment do8.s ,not exceed five years, Art.
776, supraa $4 repealed onl insofar a8 it
c4nflleCP with Art’. 12570, &Ws Ann.
f. G. anb this c4nflict extende only to
murder, There is no repesk by Implication
or by express language af any other portion
tbrwich3 776, c. c. o.*
Article 778, Vernon’s Code of Civil Broood-,
ure, a part of the original 3uspencled Sentenoe Agt. shows
olearly that the c(lurt’a auth,erity to suspend a sentenoe
dep,ends upon the defe’ndant’s havl,ng ma&e a written re-,
quest for such suspended sentence, and that the, jury has
recommended such susPenaie& In Its verdiot.
Now, House Bill No., 120 empowers the, courts
of the State havine original juriedlction of f'elony cases
to p&ace det6ndants on prebatlen under, certain aondltions.
The power here Wzited :ln the o4uTt is alearly ,independent
of any request by the defendant-fo,r a jury findlnp recom-
men&k@ suspensloh or probatle@, and Independent Indeed
of the presence of a jury in the ,oase. There is no la&on-
sletsncy In these sets. *TiaS$both stand.
Not only is there no repeal of Article 1257e,
but on the contrary it is expressly declared in Housr BllL
NQ. lstb that *nothIm in this act shall be construed as
repeallnf; ArtloLe 716 through 7$L of Vernon’s Annotated
Ytatutos, Code of Criminal Procedure, commonly known a5
bke Suspend08 Sentence Law.*
Thlr opinion is, in harmony with our Opinion NO.
'v-389.
.iie agree with the opinion expremsed by you in
which you say: “It is my opinion that the Legislature did
not Intend for ii. 5. 120 to affect the provision for sus-
pended sentences ,ln murder casea but the lawuage of the
new statute does not a0 specifically state.** Article 1257a,
‘v’ernonls Penal Code, has not bet3Arepealed by House till1 Noi
120 of the 50th Legislature - The Adult Probation and Pa*-
rele B&t.
goon. Charlea 42. wnalstdm - Pa&O4 (t-418)
lmne will NO. x2q JOYtile WiOth'bE%b
lature, the &d~lt Probafion and 8WolO AOot,
do05 net.re$eal &tilols 12!!7a, VerAO11’8 Pq-
~81 0046, ia rbspeot to eumm4s~ sentenoe
ln'o murder aa8b.
0d:wb Assistant
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