Texas

Delinquency proceedings: Juvenile delinquency hearings for juveniles 14 years old or older generally are open to the public in Texas unless the court for good cause determines that the public should be excluded. Hearings for juveniles 13 years old or younger are closed unless the court finds that the interests of the child or of the public would be better served by an open hearing. Tex. Fam. Code Ann. § 54.08 (Vernon 2011). The state intermediate appellate court held that the juvenile court did not err in allowing the media, but not the general public, to attend the transfer hearing of a juvenile charged with capital murder. R.A.G. v. State, 870 S.W.2d 79, 83 (Tex. App. 1993), judgment rev’d on other grounds, Matter of R.A.G., 866 S.W.2d 199 (Tex. 1993).

Delinquency records: Juvenile delinquency and law enforcement records are confidential and may be inspected only by certain individuals and agencies designated by statute and with leave of the court by those with a legitimate interest in the proceeding or in the work of the court. Id. § 58.005. But certain identifying information, including the child’s name, photograph and a description of the conduct the child is alleged to have committed, may be publicly disclosed to help locate or apprehend certain juveniles for whom an arrest warrant has been issued, and the state and national Crime Information Centers may release information about a child who has been reported missing by a parent. A juvenile probation department also is authorized to release information without leave of the court pursuant to guidelines it has adopted. Id. §§ 58.005, 58.106.

Dependency proceedings and records: Texas law does not specify whether the overwhelming majority of juvenile dependency proceedings and records are open in Texas, although it does state that hearings and records in cases involving certain abandoned children of whom the state takes emergency possession are closed. Id. § 262.308. But if the state Department of Family and Protective Services is investigating a case of child abuse or neglect that results in the death of the child, the state must release within five days of a request the age and sex of the child, the date of death and certain information related to where the child was living and the state’s role at the time of death. If after an investigation the department determines that the death was in fact caused by abuse or neglect, it must “promptly” release on request additional facts, including, among others, a summary of previous reports of abuse or neglect involving that child or another child while living with the same person and a description of any services provided to the child and the child’s family as a result. Information that would identify the reporter of the abuse or neglect or anyone besides the child or alleged perpetrator, as well as details that would jeopardize an ongoing investigation or prosecution, endanger the life or safety of any individual or be confidential under state or federal law will be redacted. If the department is unable to release the information before the eleventh day after it receives the request or the date the investigation is over, whichever is later, it must inform the person requesting the information of the date it will release the materials. Id. § 261.203.

Restrictions on coverage: Texas law allows victims and witnesses 12 years old or younger to testify about serious felony offenses such as murder, aggravated kidnapping and sexual performance by a child outside the presence of the defendant via video-recorded testimony or closed-circuit television. Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Ann. art. 38.071. However, the state’s highest appellate court for criminal cases last year held that the provision allowing the use of child-abuse forensic interview statements and videotapes violates the defendant’s constitutional right to confront his or her accuser unless the child testifies during the trial or the defendant had a prior opportunity to cross-examine the child. The court reiterated a prior ruling upholding the constitutionality of the use of closed-circuit television, which “allow[s] for rigorous, contemporaneous cross-examination, as well as any necessary objections to the questions or answers given.” Coronado v. State, 351 S.W.3d 315, 320 n.26, 325—26 (Tex. Crim. App. 2011). Thus, it is likely this procedure will continued to be used, but the statute authorizing it does not specify whether the media and public may remain in the courtroom when this testimony is broadcast there. Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Ann. art. 38.071.