TEXAS ADMINSTRATIVE CODE
TITLE 37 PUBLIC SAFETY AND CORRECTIONS
PART 5 TEXAS BOARD OF PARDONS AND PAROLES
CHAPTER 143 EXECUTIVE CLEMENCY
SUBCHAPTER A FULL PARDON AND RESTORATION OF RIGHTS OF CITIZENSHIP
RULE §143.1 Authority to Grant Pardons
Except in cases of treason or impeachment, after conviction or successful completion of a term of deferred adjudication community supervision, the Governor may grant a full pardon upon the recommendation and advice of a majority of the Board as authorized by the Texas Constitution, Article IV, Section 11 and Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, Articles 48.01 and 48.03.
RULE §143.2 Pardons for Innocence
(a) On the grounds of innocence of the offense for which convicted or successfully completed a term of deferred adjudication community supervision, the Board will consider applications for recommendation to the Governor for a pardon for innocence upon receipt of:
(1) a written recommendation of at least two of the current trial officials of the sentencing court, with one trial official submitting documentary evidence of actual innocence; or
(2) a certified order or judgment of a court having jurisdiction accompanied by a certified copy of the findings of fact and conclusions of law where the court recommends that the Court of Criminal Appeals grant state habeas relief on the grounds of actual innocence.
(b) Evidence submitted under subsection (a)(1) of this section shall include the results and analysis of pre-trial and post-trial forensic DNA testing of biological material as defined in the Chapter 64, Code of Criminal Procedure, if any, and may also include affidavits of witnesses upon which the recommendation of actual innocence is based.
RULE §143.3 Twelve Months on Parole
When any offender has served 12 months on parole for an offense committed on or before August 28, 1977, in a manner acceptable to the Board, upon request, the Board may review the offender’s record upon application therefore and make a determination whether to recommend to the Governor that the offender be pardoned and finally discharged from the sentence under which he/she is serving as authorized by the Texas Constitution, Article IV, Section 11 and Code of Criminal Procedure, Article 42.12, §24, 59th Legislature, R.S., Volume 2, Page 317, Chapter 722.
RULE §143.4 Parolee Discharging Sentence
Whenever any offender who has been paroled for an offense committed on or before August 28, 1977, has complied with the rules and conditions governing his parole until the end of the term to which he/she was sentenced, and without a revocation of his parole, the Board may report such fact to the Governor prior to the issuance of the final order of discharge. The Board may, at this time, recommend to the Governor a full pardon as authorized by the Texas Constitution, Article IV, Section 11 and Code of Criminal Procedure, Article 42.12, §24, 59th Legislature, R.S., Volume 2, Page 317, Chapter 722.
RULE §143.5 Discharged Offender
Upon request from a person who has discharged a felony sentence or successfully completed a term of deferred adjudication community supervision, the Board will consider recommending a full pardon. Applicant’s name, TDCJ-CID or SID number, county of conviction, offense, and length of sentence shall be furnished for identification.
RULE §143.6 Offender in Texas Department of Criminal Justice-Correctional Institutions Division
A full pardon will not be considered for an offender while in TDCJ-CID, except when exceptional circumstances exist. The burden of showing such exceptional circumstances rests upon the applicant.
RULE §143.6 Offender in Texas Department of Criminal Justice-Correctional Institutions Division
A full pardon will not be considered for an offender while in TDCJ-CID, except when exceptional circumstances exist. The burden of showing such exceptional circumstances rests upon the applicant.
RULE §143.8 Suspended Sentence, Felony Conviction
Upon a written application from the applicant or person acting on their behalf, the Board will consider recommending full pardon for a suspended sentence. Applicant’s name, SID number, the county of conviction, offense, and sentence shall be furnished when the request is made.
RULE §143.9 Sentence of Probation, Felony Conviction
The Board will consider recommending a full pardon for a sentence of probation only upon a showing of receipt of maximum relief available through the court of conviction, and then, only in an extreme or unusual circumstance which prevents the applicant from gaining a livelihood or in the event of loss of civil rights. The burden of showing such extreme or unusual circumstance rests upon the applicant.
RULE §143.10 Misdemeanor
The Board will consider recommending a full pardon in misdemeanor cases only when exceptional, extreme, and unusual circumstances exist. The burden of showing such exceptional, extreme, and unusual circumstances rests upon the applicant.
RULE §143.11 Request of the Governor
The Board shall consider a recommendation for a full pardon or request for restoration of firearm rights in any case upon the request of the Governor as authorized by Texas Government Code, Section 508.050.
RULE §143.12 Restoration of Firearm Rights
(a) The Board will consider recommending restoration of the right to receive, possess, bear, and transport in commerce a firearm only in extreme and unusual circumstances which prevent the applicant from gaining a livelihood, and only if the applicant:
(1) provides either proof of clearance by a previously granted full pardon or a request for such express restoration in a pending application for a full pardon from jurisdiction(s) of the relevant conviction(s) or successful completion of a punishment similar to a term of deferred adjudication community supervision; and
(2) provides proof of application under the United States Code, Title 18, Section 925(c), for exemption, relief from disabilities to the Director of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and furnishes copies of all relevant applications and responses thereto by the Director of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives including any final actions by said Director of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
(b) The burden of showing such extreme and unusual circumstance rests upon the applicant.
RULE §143.13 Posthumous Pardon
Upon request from a person acting on behalf of a deceased person who was convicted of a felony offense, the Board will consider recommending a full pardon for the deceased person.
RULE §143.14 Consideration of Request or Application
(a) The Board will consider a written request or application for executive clemency submitted pursuant to Subchapter A of this chapter (relating to Full Pardon and Restoration of Rights of Citizenship).
(b) When an application for executive clemency is denied by the Governor or not recommended by the Board, a person may submit a subsequent written application for executive clemency on or after the second anniversary of the denial.
SUBCHAPTER B CONDITIONAL PARDONS
RULE §143.21 Definition
A conditional pardon is a form of executive clemency which, upon application, may be recommended by the Board to the Governor, except in cases of treason or impeachment, and if granted, serves to release a person from the conditions of his or her sentence and/or any disabilities imposed by law thereby, subject to the conditions contained in the clemency proclamation. A person released pursuant to the terms of a conditional pardon is considered for the purposes of revocation thereof to be a releasee, §141.111 of this title (relating to Definitions), and all such revocation proceedings are governed by the sections for revocation of release, §§146.3 – 146.12 of this title (relating to Revocation of Parole or Mandatory Supervision).
RULE §143.22 Consideration of Application
The Board will consider a written application for conditional pardon, only to release an offender to another country or in cases where extreme, exceptional, and unusual circumstances exist, and only after minimum statutory parole eligibility has been attained. The burden of showing such extreme, exceptional, and unusual circumstances rests upon the applicant.
RULE §143.23 Revocation of Conditional Pardon
(a) A conditional pardon may be revoked if the terms and conditions of the clemency proclamation are breached. All such revocation proceedings shall be conducted in accordance with the sections applicable to a releasee who is the subject of the revocation process.
(b) The Board or parole panel, on order of the Governor, is responsible for ordering the issuance of any warrant upon being notified by the Division that a violation has occurred. The warrant shall issue to appropriate law enforcement authorities, authorizing any sheriff, peace officer, or other addressee named therein to arrest and hold the named releasee until further order of the Governor the Board or until such time as he/she may be placed in the custody of an agent of the TDCJ-CID, or until further order of the Governor or the Board.
RULE §143.24 Request of the Governor
The Board shall consider a recommendation for conditional pardon in any case upon the request of the Governor as authorized by Texas Government Code, Section 508.050.
SUBCHAPTER E COMMUTATION OF SENTENCE
RULE §143.51 Commutation of Sentence
Except in cases of treason and impeachment, upon the recommendation of the Board, the Governor may grant a commutation of sentence as authorized by the Texas Constitution, Article IV, Section 11.
RULE §143.52 Commutation of Sentence, Felony, or Misdemeanor
(a) The Board will consider recommending to the Governor a commutation of sentence upon a request accompanied by the written recommendation of a majority of the trial officials.
(b) If the offender has the recommendation of two of the current trial officials and no written communication is received from the third trial official, the Board shall give the remaining trial official notice that such a clemency recommendation is being considered by the Board.
(c) In cases tried prior to the tenure of the present office-holders, the recommendation of persons holding such offices at the time of the trial of the case may be used to bolster and support the recommendation of the current trial officials, if in compliance with the requirements of subsection (d) of this section.
(d) The requirements of a recommendation of the current trial officials for commutation of sentence must include the following:
(1) a statement that the penalty now appears to be excessive;
(2) a recommendation of a definite term now considered by the officials as just and proper; and
(3) a statement of the reasons for the recommendation based upon facts directly related to the facts of the cases and in existence, but not available to, the court or jury at the time of the trial, or a statutory change in penalty for the crime which would appear to make the original penalty excessive.
(e) If the offender is not confined in the TDCJ-CID, a certified copy of the judgment and sentence must be furnished.
RULE §143.53 Commutation of Remainder of Jail Sentence and/or Fine after Reprieve
The Board will consider recommending to the Governor a commutation of the remainder of the time left to serve on a jail sentence and/or commutation of fine after satisfactory completion of a reprieve of the jail sentence and/or fine.
RULE §143.54 Commutation for Jail Time Served before Sentence for Felony Conviction
The Board will consider a written application for commutation, on a felony conviction, resulting in credit for time served in jail from the time of sentence only if the applicant has been continuously in jail during the entire period for which the application is made and only upon receipt in writing of the following information from the judge of the court of conviction:
(1) the name of the convicted defendant;
(2) the cause number and court in which the conviction occurred;
(3) a statement that it was the intent of the sentencing judge, at the time of sentencing, that the applicant be given credit for the jail time served, but that such credit was not given through oversight or error, as the case may be;
(4) a statement of the exact number of days, months, or years which should be credited on the sentence;
(5) a statement that the applicant was continuously in custody and in jail for the total credit period requested;
(6) a request that the Board make favorable recommendation to the Governor that such time credit be allowed.
RULE §143.55 Commutation of Sentence for Time Out of TDCJ-CID on Reprieve
(a) The Board will consider a written request for commutation for time out of TDCJ-CID on reprieve only for medical reprieves.
(b) A request for commutation for time out of TDCJ-CID on medical reprieve will be considered only if:
(1) the offender has returned to the TDCJ-CID;
(2) the calendar time under consideration for commutation is time the offender was actually confined as a resident patient (not an out-patient) in a hospital or institution; and
(3) the offender has in all things complied with the rules of the hospital or institution during the emergency medical reprieve.
(c) Such commutation shall not exceed the actual amount of calendar time that the offender is absent from the TDCJ-CID on emergency medical reprieve.
RULE §143.57 Commutation of Death Sentence to Lesser Penalty
(a) The Board will consider recommending to the Governor a commutation of death sentence to a sentence of life imprisonment or the appropriate maximum penalty that can be imposed upon receipt of:
(1) a request from the majority of the trial officials of the court of conviction; or
(2) a written request of the offender or representative setting forth all grounds upon which the application is based, stating the full name of the offender, the county of conviction, the execution date, and contain the information outlined in §143.42(1) – (6) of this chapter (relating to Reprieve Recommended by the Board).
(b) The written application in behalf of an offender seeking a Board recommendation to the Governor of commutation of the death sentence to a lesser penalty shall be addressed to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles and must be delivered to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, Clemency Section, 8610 Shoal Creek Boulevard, Austin, Texas 78757, not later than the twenty-first calendar day before the day the execution is scheduled. If the twenty-first calendar day before the execution is scheduled falls on a weekend or state observed holiday, the application shall be delivered not later than the next business day.
(c) All supplemental information not filed with the application, including but not limited to amendments, addenda, supplements, or exhibits, must be submitted in writing and delivered to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, Clemency Section, 8610 Shoal Creek Boulevard, Austin, Texas 78757, not later than the fifteenth calendar day before the execution is scheduled. If the fifteenth calendar day before the execution is scheduled falls on a weekend or state observed holiday, all additional information including but not limited to amendments, addenda, supplements, or exhibits shall be delivered not later than the next business day.
(d) The application and any information filed with the application, including but not limited to amendments, addenda, supplements, or exhibits, must be provided by the applicant in an amount determined by the Presiding Officer.
(e) An offender seeking a Board recommendation to the Governor of commutation of the death sentence to a lesser penalty may request an interview with a member of the Board. Such request shall be included in the written application or any supplement filed therewith in accordance with this section.
(f) Upon receipt of a request for an interview, the Presiding Officer (Chair) shall designate at least one member of the Board to conduct the requested interview. Such interview shall occur at the confining unit of TDCJ-CID. Attendance at such interviews shall be limited to the offender, the designated Board Member(s), Board staff, and TDCJ-CID staff. The Board may consider statements made by the offender at such interviews and any other materials the offender delivers to the Board Member during the interview when considering the offender’s application for commutation of the death sentence to a lesser penalty.
(g) The Board shall consider and decide applications for commutation of the death sentence to a lesser penalty. Upon review, a majority of the Board, or a majority thereof, in written and signed form, may:
(1) recommend to the Governor the commutation of the death sentence to a lesser penalty;
(2) not recommend commutation of the death sentence to a lesser penalty; or
(3) set the matter for a hearing pursuant to §143.43 of this chapter (relating to Procedure in Capital Reprieve Cases).
RULE §143.58 Request of the Governor
The Board shall investigate and consider a recommendation of commutation of sentence in any case, upon the written request of the Governor as authorized by Texas Government Code Section 508.050.