(a) Definitions.
(1) Jurisdictional Authority is a sentencing court,
the Board of Pardons and Paroles (BPP), or a division of the Texas
Department of Criminal Justice as applicable to the offender.
(2) Sex Crime is a reportable offense under Texas Code
of Criminal Procedure Article 62.001(5) or an offense identified as
a sexual offense by the Texas Penal Code laws of the United States,
another state, another country, or the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
(3) Sex Offender is an offender who:
(A) is convicted of committing or adjudicated to have
committed a sex crime;
(B) is awarded deferred adjudication for a sex crime;
or
(C) has been ordered by the jurisdictional authority
to participate in sex offender supervision or treatment.
(b) A community supervision and corrections department
(CSCD) supervising sex offenders shall ensure consistency in the manner
in which sex offenders are supervised throughout the department. Policies
and procedures shall be developed that, at a minimum, include the
following:
(1) contact standards as per 37 Texas Administrative
Code §163.35(c)(5);
(2) sex offender registration as per Texas Code of
Criminal Procedure Chapter 62;
(3) DNA collection as per Texas Code of Criminal Procedure
Article 42A.301(b)(21);
(4) violation procedures as per 37 Texas Administrative
Code §163.35(c)(7);
(5) victim notification as per Texas Government Code §76.016;
(6) treatment referral process as per Texas Code of
Criminal Procedure Article 42A.453(i);
(7) treatment participation requirements;
(8) team approach to supervision;
(9) sharing of information and documentation with the
appropriate agencies; and
(10) specialized caseload size, if applicable.
(c) Each CSCD shall develop policies and procedures
that address the needs and safety of victims or potential victims.
The policies may include collaborating with victims, victim advocates,
or sexual assault task forces in the supervision and treatment of
sex offenders.
(d) Community supervision officers (CSOs) shall use
a record keeping system to document all significant actions, decisions,
services rendered, and periodic evaluations in each offender's case
file, including the offender's level of supervision, compliance with
the conditions of community supervision, progress with the supervision
plan, and responses to intervention.
(e) CSOs shall collaborate with collateral sources,
including treatment providers, polygraph examiners, significant others,
sex offender registration personnel, sex offenders' families, local
law enforcement, schools, Child Protective Services, employers, chaperones,
and victim service providers.
(f) CSOs shall recommend that conditions be tailored
to the sex offender's identified risk.
(g) CSOs shall make face-to-face field visits and collateral
contacts with the offender, family, community resources, or other
persons consistent with a supervision plan and the level of supervision
on which the offender is being supervised. Each CSCD director shall
establish supervision contact and casework standards at a level appropriate
for that jurisdiction, but in all cases, offenders at higher levels
of supervision shall receive a higher level of contacts than offenders
at lower levels of supervision. Supervision contacts shall be specified
in the CSCD written policies and procedures.
(h) Each CSCD director shall work with the local judiciary
to specify written policies and procedures wherein CSOs may make recommendations
to the courts regarding violations of conditions of community supervision,
as well as when violations may be handled administratively. The continuum
of sanctions or alternatives to incarceration shall be considered
by the CSO and recommended to the court in eligible cases as determined
appropriate by the jurisdiction.
(i) CSOs shall timely transmit information regarding
supervision and treatment upon transfer of supervision.
(j) In addition to the above, a CSCD may operate specialized
caseloads for sex offenders. In this event, the CSCD shall have a
written policy that:
(1) establishes minimum qualifications and training
requirements for CSOs supervising sex offenders; and
(2) specifies the number of staff required for the
increased level of supervision essential for the specialized supervision
of sex offenders. The caseload size shall not exceed 60 offenders
per caseload.
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Source Note: The provisions of this §163.38 adopted to be effective April 17, 2003, 28 TexReg 3066; amended to be effective April 17, 2008, 33 TexReg 2961; amended to be effective April 28, 2013, 38 TexReg 2513; amended to be effective September 13, 2018, 43 TexReg 5809 |