Today the Texas House passed a
revised version of the bill, which applies to a public servant who,
"while acting under color of the person's office or employment, without probable cause to believe the other person committed an offense, performs a search without effective consent for the purpose of granting access to a publicly accessible building or form of transportation" and
"intentionally, knowingly or recklessly touches the anus, sexual organ, buttocks, or breast of the other person, including touching through the clothing." Here is the press release from State Rep. David Simpson, the bill\'s chief sponsor. This afternoon the Texas House of Representatives took the next step toward restricting government officials from groping innocent citizens as a condition of travel without cause, passing HB 41 on second reading by voice vote. Three amendments were offered and passed by the bill’s author Representative David Simpson (R-Longview), Representative Allen Fletcher (R-Houston), and Representative Pete Gallego (D-Alpine).
“We’ve been working with the Attorney General’s office from the very beginning to ensure that the bill will accomplish our goal of stopping the humiliation of travelers while also maintaining language that will withstand judicial scrutiny,” said Simpson.
Simpson continued, “Texas citizens deserve to be protected under the 4th Amendment to the US Constitution and Article 1 Section 9 of the Texas Constitution. Today the Texas House took a positive step toward protecting those rights.”
Onward and upward,
airforce
