Texas Codes

Tex. Fam. Code § 55.44 (2026)

Discretionary Transfer To Criminal Court On 18th Birthday Of Child

✓ current as of May 2026

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Sec. 55.44. DISCRETIONARY TRANSFER TO CRIMINAL COURT ON 18TH BIRTHDAY OF CHILD. (a) The juvenile court may waive its exclusive original jurisdiction and transfer all pending proceedings from the juvenile court to a criminal court on or after the 18th birthday of a child for whom the juvenile court or a court to which the child's case is referred has ordered inpatient mental health services or residential care for persons with an intellectual disability if:

(1) the child is not discharged or currently on furlough from the facility before reaching 18 years of age; and

(2) the child is alleged to have engaged in delinquent conduct that included a violation of a penal law listed in Section 53.045 and no adjudication concerning the alleged conduct has been made.

(b) A court conducting a waiver of jurisdiction and discretionary transfer hearing under this section shall conduct the hearing according to Sections 54.02(j), (k), and (l).

(c) If after the hearing the juvenile court waives its jurisdiction and transfers the case to criminal court, the juvenile court shall send notification of the transfer of a child under Subsection (a) to the facility. The criminal court shall, before the 91st day after the date of the transfer, institute proceedings under Chapter 46B, Code of Criminal Procedure. If those or any subsequent proceedings result in a determination that the defendant is competent to stand trial, the defendant may not receive a punishment for the delinquent conduct described by Subsection (a)(2) that results in confinement for a period longer than the maximum period of confinement the defendant could have received if the defendant had been adjudicated for the delinquent conduct while still a child and within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court.

Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1477, Sec. 14, eff. Sept. 1, 1999. Amended by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 35, Sec. 8, eff. Jan. 1, 2004.

Amended by:

Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 908 (H.B. 2884), Sec. 14, eff. September 1, 2007.

Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1 (S.B. 219), Sec. 1.016, eff. April 2, 2015.

Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1166 (S.B. 1585), Sec. 11, eff. September 1, 2023.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 2 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 2019–2022 · leading case: Brown, Ex Parte Sulia Lawrence (Tex. Crim. App. 2022).

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Brown, Ex Parte Sulia Lawrence (Tex. Crim. App. 2022). · cites it 8× “See TEX. FAM. CODE § 55.44(a) (requiring juvenile court to transfer juvenile case to criminal court by the offender’s 18th birthday if he has been found unfit to proceed in juvenile proceedings and remains so).”

Ex Parte Sulia Lawrence Brown (Tex. App. 2019). · cites it 4× “Tex. Fam. Code Ann. § 55.44 . 11 subsection (a)(2) authorizes a transfer of a juvenile who was “alleged to have engaged in delinquent conduct that included a violation of a penal law listed in Section 53.”

— Tex. Fam. Code § 55.44(a) — 1 case

Brown, Ex Parte Sulia Lawrence (Tex. Crim. App. 2022). “See TEX. FAM. CODE § 55.44(a) (requiring juvenile court to transfer juvenile case to criminal court by the offender’s 18th birthday if he has been found unfit to proceed in juvenile proceedings and remains so).”

— Tex. Fam. Code § 55.44(b) — 1 case

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