CHAPTER 61. RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF PARENTS AND OTHER ELIGIBLE PERSONS

FAMILY CODE

TITLE 3. JUVENILE JUSTICE CODE

CHAPTER 61. RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF PARENTS AND OTHER

ELIGIBLE PERSONS

SUBCHAPTER A. ENTRY OF ORDERS AGAINST PARENTS AND OTHER ELIGIBLE

PERSONS

Sec. 61.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:

(1) "Juvenile court order" means an order by a juvenile court in

a proceeding to which this chapter applies requiring a parent or

other eligible person to act or refrain from acting.

(2) "Other eligible person" means the respondent's guardian, the

respondent's custodian, or any other person described in a

provision under this title authorizing the court order.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.002. APPLICABILITY. (a) Except as provided by

Subsection (b), this chapter applies to a proceeding to enter a

juvenile court order:

(1) for payment of probation fees under Section 54.061;

(2) for restitution under Sections 54.041(b) and 54.048;

(3) for payment of graffiti eradication fees under Section

54.0461;

(4) for community service under Section 54.044(b);

(5) for payment of costs of court under Section 54.0411 or other

provisions of law;

(6) requiring the person to refrain from doing any act injurious

to the welfare of the child under Section 54.041(a)(1);

(7) enjoining contact between the person and the child who is

the subject of a proceeding under Section 54.041(a)(2);

(8) ordering a person living in the same household with the

child to participate in counseling under Section 54.041(a)(3);

(9) requiring a parent or guardian of a child found to be truant

to participate in an available program addressing truancy under

Section 54.041(f);

(10) requiring a parent or other eligible person to pay

reasonable attorney's fees for representing the child under

Section 51.10(e);

(11) requiring the parent or other eligible person to reimburse

the county for payments the county has made to an attorney

appointed to represent the child under Section 51.10(j);

(12) requiring payment of deferred prosecution supervision fees

under Section 53.03(d);

(13) requiring a parent or other eligible person to attend a

court hearing under Section 51.115;

(14) requiring a parent or other eligible person to act or

refrain from acting to aid the child in complying with conditions

of release from detention under Section 54.01(r);

(15) requiring a parent or other eligible person to act or

refrain from acting under any law imposing an obligation of

action or omission on a parent or other eligible person because

of the parent's or person's relation to the child who is the

subject of a proceeding under this title; or

(16) for payment of fees under Section 54.0462.

(b) This subchapter does not apply to the entry and enforcement

of a child support order under Section 54.06.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Amended by:

Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch.

1209, Sec. 5, eff. September 1, 2009.

Sec. 61.003. ENTRY OF JUVENILE COURT ORDER AGAINST PARENT OR

OTHER ELIGIBLE PERSON. (a) To comply with the requirements of

due process of law, the juvenile court shall:

(1) provide sufficient notice in writing or orally in a recorded

court hearing of a proposed juvenile court order; and

(2) provide a sufficient opportunity for the parent or other

eligible person to be heard regarding the proposed order.

(b) A juvenile court order must be in writing and a copy

promptly furnished to the parent or other eligible person.

(c) The juvenile court may require the parent or other eligible

person to provide suitable identification to be included in the

court's file. Suitable identification includes fingerprints, a

driver's license number, a social security number, or similar

indicia of identity.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.0031. TRANSFER OF ORDER AFFECTING PARENT OR OTHER

ELIGIBLE PERSON TO COUNTY OF CHILD'S RESIDENCE. (a) This

section applies only when:

(1) a juvenile court has placed a parent or other eligible

person under a court order under this chapter;

(2) the child who was the subject of the juvenile court

proceedings in which the order was entered:

(A) resides in a county other than the county in which the order

was entered;

(B) has moved to a county other than the county in which the

order was entered and intends to remain in that county for at

least 60 days; or

(C) intends to move to a county other than the county in which

the order was entered and to remain in that county for at least

60 days; and

(3) the parent or other eligible person resides or will reside

in the same county as the county in which the child now resides

or to which the child has moved or intends to move.

(b) A juvenile court that enters an order described by

Subsection (a)(1) may transfer the order to the juvenile court of

the county in which the parent now resides or to which the parent

has moved or intends to move.

(c) The juvenile court shall provide the parent or other

eligible person written notice of the transfer. The notification

must identify the court to which the order has been transferred.

(d) The juvenile court to which the order has been transferred

shall require the parent or other eligible person to appear

before the court to notify the person of the existence and terms

of the order. Failure to do so renders the order unenforceable.

(e) If the notice required by Subsection (d) is provided, the

juvenile court to which the order has been transferred may

modify, extend, or enforce the order as though the court

originally entered the order.

Added by Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch.

949, Sec. 26, eff. September 1, 2005.

Sec. 61.004. APPEAL. (a) The parent or other eligible person

against whom a final juvenile court order has been entered may

appeal as provided by law from judgments entered in civil cases.

(b) The movant may appeal from a judgment denying requested

relief regarding a juvenile court order as provided by law from

judgments entered in civil cases.

(c) The pendency of an appeal initiated under this section does

not abate or otherwise affect the proceedings in juvenile court

involving the child.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

SUBCHAPTER B. ENFORCEMENT OF ORDER AGAINST PARENT OR OTHER

ELIGIBLE PERSON

Sec. 61.051. MOTION FOR ENFORCEMENT. (a) A party initiates

enforcement of a juvenile court order by filing a written motion.

In ordinary and concise language, the motion must:

(1) identify the provision of the order allegedly violated and

sought to be enforced;

(2) state specifically and factually the manner of the person's

alleged noncompliance;

(3) state the relief requested; and

(4) contain the signature of the party filing the motion.

(b) The movant must allege in the same motion for enforcement

each violation by the person of the juvenile court orders

described by Section 61.002(a) that the movant had a reasonable

basis for believing the person was violating when the motion was

filed.

(c) The juvenile court retains jurisdiction to enter a contempt

order if the motion for enforcement is filed not later than six

months after the child's 18th birthday.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.052. NOTICE AND APPEARANCE. (a) On the filing of a

motion for enforcement, the court shall by written notice set the

date, time, and place of the hearing and order the person against

whom enforcement is sought to appear and respond to the motion.

(b) The notice must be given by personal service or by certified

mail, return receipt requested, on or before the 10th day before

the date of the hearing on the motion. The notice must include a

copy of the motion for enforcement. Personal service must comply

with the Code of Criminal Procedure.

(c) If a person moves to strike or specially excepts to the

motion for enforcement, the court shall rule on the exception or

motion to strike before the court hears evidence on the motion

for enforcement. If an exception is sustained, the court shall

give the movant an opportunity to replead and continue the

hearing to a designated date and time without the requirement of

additional service.

(d) If a person who has been personally served with notice to

appear at the hearing does not appear, the juvenile court may not

hold the person in contempt, but may issue a capias for the

arrest of the person. The court shall set and enforce bond as

provided by Subchapter C, Chapter 157. If a person served by

certified mail, return receipt requested, with notice to appear

at the hearing does not appear, the juvenile court may require

immediate personal service of notice.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.053. ATTORNEY FOR THE PERSON. (a) In a proceeding on a

motion for enforcement where incarceration is a possible

punishment against a person who is not represented by an

attorney, the court shall inform the person of the right to be

represented by an attorney and, if the person is indigent, of the

right to the appointment of an attorney.

(b) If the person claims indigency and requests the appointment

of an attorney, the juvenile court may require the person to file

an affidavit of indigency. The court may hear evidence to

determine the issue of indigency.

(c) The court shall appoint an attorney to represent the person

if the court determines that the person is indigent.

(d) The court shall allow an appointed or retained attorney at

least 10 days after the date of the attorney's appointment or

retention to respond to the movant's pleadings and to prepare for

the hearing. The attorney may waive the preparation time or agree

to a shorter period for preparation.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.054. COMPENSATION OF APPOINTED ATTORNEY. (a) An

attorney appointed to represent an indigent person is entitled to

a reasonable fee for services to be paid from the general fund of

the county according to the schedule for compensation adopted by

the county juvenile board. The attorney must meet the

qualifications required of attorneys for appointment to Class B

misdemeanor cases in juvenile court.

(b) For purposes of compensation, a proceeding in the supreme

court is the equivalent of a proceeding in the court of criminal

appeals.

(c) The juvenile court may order the parent or other eligible

person for whom it has appointed counsel to reimburse the county

for the fees the county pays to appointed counsel.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.055. CONDUCT OF ENFORCEMENT HEARING. (a) The juvenile

court shall require that the enforcement hearing be recorded as

provided by Section 54.09.

(b) The movant must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the

person against whom enforcement is sought engaged in conduct

constituting contempt of a reasonable and lawful court order as

alleged in the motion for enforcement.

(c) The person against whom enforcement is sought has a

privilege not to be called as a witness or otherwise to

incriminate himself or herself.

(d) The juvenile court shall conduct the enforcement hearing

without a jury.

(e) The juvenile court shall include in its judgment findings as

to each violation alleged in the motion for enforcement and the

punishment, if any, to be imposed.

(f) If the person against whom enforcement is sought was not

represented by counsel during any previous court proceeding

involving a motion for enforcement, the person may through

counsel raise any defense or affirmative defense to the

proceeding that could have been lodged in the previous court

proceeding but was not because the person was not represented by

counsel.

(g) It is an affirmative defense to enforcement of a juvenile

court order that the juvenile court did not provide the parent or

other eligible person with due process of law in the proceeding

in which the court entered the order.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.056. AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE OF INABILITY TO PAY. (a) In

an enforcement hearing in which the motion for enforcement

alleges that the person against whom enforcement is sought failed

to pay restitution, court costs, supervision fees, or any other

payment ordered by the court, it is an affirmative defense that

the person was financially unable to pay.

(b) The burden of proof to establish the affirmative defense of

inability to pay is on the person asserting it.

(c) In order to prevail on the affirmative defense of inability

to pay, the person asserting it must show that the person could

not have reasonably paid the court-ordered obligation after the

person discharged the person's other important financial

obligations, including payments for housing, food, utilities,

necessary clothing, education, and preexisting debts.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.057. PUNISHMENT FOR CONTEMPT. (a) On a finding of

contempt, the juvenile court may commit the person to the county

jail for a term not to exceed six months or may impose a fine in

an amount not to exceed $500, or both.

(b) The court may impose only a single jail sentence not to

exceed six months or a single fine not to exceed $500, or both,

during an enforcement proceeding, without regard to whether the

court has entered multiple findings of contempt.

(c) On a finding of contempt in an enforcement proceeding, the

juvenile court may, instead of issuing a commitment to jail,

enter an order requiring the person's future conduct to comply

with the court's previous orders.

(d) Violation of an order entered under Subsection (c) may be

the basis of a new enforcement proceeding.

(e) The juvenile court may assign a juvenile probation officer

to assist a person in complying with a court order issued under

Subsection (c).

(f) A juvenile court may reduce a term of incarceration or

reduce payment of all or part of a fine at any time before the

sentence is fully served or the fine fully paid.

(g) A juvenile court may reduce the burden of complying with a

court order issued under Subsection (c) at any time before the

order is fully satisfied, but may not increase the burden except

following a new finding of contempt in a new enforcement

proceeding.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

SUBCHAPTER C. RIGHTS OF PARENTS

Sec. 61.101. DEFINITION. In this subchapter, "parent" includes

the guardian or custodian of a child.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.102. RIGHT TO BE INFORMED OF PROCEEDING. (a) The

parent of a child referred to a juvenile court is entitled as

soon as practicable after the referral to be informed by staff

designated by the juvenile board, based on the information

accompanying the referral to the juvenile court, of:

(1) the date and time of the offense;

(2) the date and time the child was taken into custody;

(3) the name of the offense and its penal category;

(4) the type of weapon, if any, that was used;

(5) the type of property taken or damaged and the extent of

damage, if any;

(6) the physical injuries, if any, to the victim of the offense;

(7) whether there is reason to believe that the offense was

gang-related;

(8) whether there is reason to believe that the offense was

related to consumption of alcohol or use of an illegal controlled

substance;

(9) if the child was taken into custody with adults or other

juveniles, the names of those persons;

(10) the aspects of the juvenile court process that apply to the

child;

(11) if the child is in detention, the visitation policy of the

detention facility that applies to the child;

(12) the child's right to be represented by an attorney and the

local standards and procedures for determining whether the parent

qualifies for appointment of counsel to represent the child; and

(13) the methods by which the parent can assist the child with

the legal process.

(b) If the child was released on field release citation, or from

the law enforcement station by the police, by intake, or by the

judge or associate judge at the initial detention hearing, the

information required by Subsection (a) may be communicated to the

parent in person, by telephone, or in writing.

(c) If the child is not released before or at the initial

detention hearing, the information required by Subsection (a)

shall be communicated in person to the parent unless that is not

feasible, in which event it may be communicated by telephone or

in writing.

(d) Information disclosed to a parent under Subsection (a) is

not admissible in a judicial proceeding under this title as

substantive evidence or as evidence to impeach the testimony of a

witness for the state.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.103. RIGHT OF ACCESS TO CHILD. (a) The parent of a

child taken into custody for delinquent conduct, conduct

indicating a need for supervision, or conduct that violates a

condition of probation imposed by the juvenile court has the

right to communicate in person privately with the child for

reasonable periods of time while the child is in:

(1) a juvenile processing office;

(2) a secure detention facility;

(3) a secure correctional facility;

(4) a court-ordered placement facility; or

(5) the custody of the Texas Youth Commission.

(b) The time, place, and conditions of the private, in-person

communication may be regulated to prevent disruption of scheduled

activities and to maintain the safety and security of the

facility.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.104. PARENTAL WRITTEN STATEMENT. (a) When a petition

for adjudication, a motion or petition to modify disposition, or

a motion or petition for discretionary transfer to criminal court

is served on a parent of the child, the parent must be provided

with a form prescribed by the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission

on which the parent can make a written statement about the needs

of the child or family or any other matter relevant to

disposition of the case.

(b) The parent shall return the statement to the juvenile

probation department, which shall transmit the statement to the

court along with the discretionary transfer report authorized by

Section 54.02(e), the disposition report authorized by Section

54.04(b), or the modification of disposition report authorized by

Section 54.05(e), as applicable. The statement shall be disclosed

to the parties as appropriate and may be considered by the court

at the disposition, modification, or discretionary transfer

hearing.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.105. PARENTAL ORAL STATEMENT. (a) After all the

evidence has been received but before the arguments of counsel at

a hearing for discretionary transfer to criminal court, a

disposition hearing without a jury, or a modification of

disposition hearing, the court shall give a parent who is present

in court a reasonable opportunity to address the court about the

needs or strengths of the child or family or any other matter

relevant to disposition of the case.

(b) The parent may not be required to make the statement under

oath and may not be subject to cross-examination, but the court

may seek clarification or expansion of the statement from the

person giving the statement.

(c) The court may consider and act on the statement as the court

considers appropriate.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.106. APPEAL OR COLLATERAL CHALLENGE. The failure or

inability of a person to perform an act or to provide a right or

service listed under this subchapter may not be used by the child

or any party as a ground for:

(1) appeal;

(2) an application for a post-adjudication writ of habeas

corpus; or

(3) exclusion of evidence against the child in any proceeding or

forum.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.

Sec. 61.107. LIABILITY. The Texas Youth Commission, a juvenile

board, a court, a person appointed by the court, an employee of a

juvenile probation department, an attorney for the state, a peace

officer, or a law enforcement agency is not liable for a failure

or inability to provide a right listed in this chapter.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 28, eff. Sept. 1,

2003.