Texas Code of Criminal Procedure
§ 38.43 — EVIDENCE CONTAINING BIOLOGICAL MATERIAL
CR § 38.43Title 1. CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE · Ch. 38. EVIDENCE IN CRIMINAL ACTIONS
Statute text
View on source(a)In this article, "biological evidence" means:
(1)the contents of a sexual assault examination kit; or
(2)any item that contains blood, semen, hair, saliva, skin tissue, fingernail scrapings, bone, bodily fluids, or any other identifiable biological material that was collected as part of an investigation of an alleged felony offense or conduct constituting a felony offense that might reasonably be used to:
(A)establish the identity of the person committing the offense or engaging in the conduct constituting the offense; or
(B)exclude a person from the group of persons who could have committed the offense or engaged in the conduct constituting the offense.
(b)This article applies to a governmental or public entity or an individual, including a law enforcement agency, prosecutor's office, court, public hospital, or crime laboratory, that is charged with the collection, storage, preservation, analysis, or retrieval of biological evidence.
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Legislative history
Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 206 (S.B. 1401), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2023. Acts 2025, 89th Leg., R.S., Ch. 11 (S.B. 836), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2025.