Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 117.002 · Chapter 117. LIABILITY FOR AND INDEMNIFICATION OF CERTAIN CLAIMS RELATING TO ENFORCEMENT OF CERTAIN CRIMINAL OFFENSES INVOLVING ILLEGAL ENTRY INTO THIS STATE
CIVIL IMMUNITY FOR AND INDEMNIFICATION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, EMPLOYEES, AND CONTRACTORS.
Text — Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
(a) Except as provided by Subsection (d), a local government official, employee, or contractor is immune from liability for damages arising from a cause of action under state law resulting from an action taken by the official, employee, or contractor to enforce Chapter 51, Penal Code, or an order issued under Article 5B.002, Code of Criminal Procedure, during the course and scope of the official's, employee's, or contractor's office, employment, or contractual performance for or service on behalf of the local government.
(b) Subject to Subsection (c) and except as provided by Subsection (d), a local government shall indemnify an official, employee, or contractor of the local government for damages arising from a cause of action under federal law resulting from an action taken by the official, employee, or contractor to enforce Chapter 51, Penal Code, or an order issued under Article 5B.002, Code of Criminal Procedure, during the course and scope of the official's, employee's, or contractor's office, employment, or contractual performance for or service on behalf of the local government.
(c) Indemnification payments made under Subsection (b) by a local government may not exceed:
(1) $100,000 to any one person or $300,000 for any single occurrence in the case of personal injury or death; or
(2) $10,000 for a single occurrence of property damage.
(d) Subsections (a) and (b) do not apply if the court or jury determines that the local government official, employee, or contractor acted in bad faith, with conscious indifference, or with recklessness.
(e) A local government shall indemnify an official, employee, or contractor of the local government for reasonable attorney's fees incurred in defense of a criminal prosecution against the official, employee, or contractor for an action taken by the official, employee, or contractor to enforce Chapter 51, Penal Code, or an order issued under Article 5B.002, Code of Criminal Procedure, during the course and scope of the official's, employee's, or contractor's office, employment, or contractual performance for or service on behalf of the local government.
(f) This section may not be construed to waive any statutory limits on damages under state law.
Notes and commentary — not statutory text
History
Added by Acts 2023, 88th Leg., 4th C.S., Ch. 2 (S.B. 4), Sec. 3, eff. March 5, 2024.
Source of truth
- Edition
- Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
- Official file
- https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/CP/htm/CP.117.htm
- Text hash
- sha256 88644ab0fcd953a1ce4ed825407a5c7f6fc47e12692386087f58019f90145fdf
- Composed by
- compose_tx.py 2026-10-05: the Legislative Council's chapter files read in document order; verify_tx.py's independent reading (lxml DOM walk) agrees character for character
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