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Committee adopts committee substitute for bill to shield sexual‑assault survivors from live-streaming and protect sensitive evidence
Summary
Sen. Paxton introduced a committee substitute for Senate Bill 836 that would prohibit live streaming of sexual‑assault trials without consent, allow pseudonym requests earlier in prosecution, and expand protective orders for forensic and invasive recordings.
Sen. Paxton presented a committee substitute for Senate Bill 836 aimed at protecting the privacy and dignity of sexual‑assault survivors in the criminal justice process. The substitute prohibits live streaming of trials that involve sexual‑assault offenses (and some related protective‑order proceedings) unless both parties consent, permits the use of a pseudonym during prosecution rather than only during investigation, and puts forensic‑medical evidence and invasive visual recordings under protective order to limit public exposure.
Survivors and advocates provided detailed invited testimony. Sophia Strother Lewis, a survivor, described severe ongoing harms after public exposure of trial materials and urged passage. Bronwyn Blake of Texas Advocacy Project and longtime sexual‑assault nurse‑examiner Brenda Garrison testified in support, stressing that live streaming can re‑traumatize victims and expose them to harassment. The Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association said it had no opposition to the committee substitute after negotiations.
The committee adopted the committee substitute for consideration and then accepted the adoption motion without objection; the measure was left pending for future action.
