Texas Statutes
Chapter 51 - General Provisions
Section 51.13. Effect of Adjudication or Disposition

Sec. 51.13. EFFECT OF ADJUDICATION OR DISPOSITION. (a) Except as provided by Subsections (d) and (e), an order of adjudication or disposition in a proceeding under this title is not a conviction of crime. Except as provided by Chapter 841, Health and Safety Code, an order of adjudication or disposition does not impose any civil disability ordinarily resulting from a conviction or operate to disqualify the child in any civil service application or appointment.
(b) The adjudication or disposition of a child or evidence adduced in a hearing under this title may be used only in subsequent:
(1) proceedings under this title in which the child is a party;
(2) sentencing proceedings in criminal court against the child to the extent permitted by the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, 1965; or
(3) civil commitment proceedings under Chapter 841, Health and Safety Code.
(c) A child may not be committed or transferred to a penal institution or other facility used primarily for the execution of sentences of persons convicted of crime, except:
(1) for temporary detention in a jail or lockup pending juvenile court hearing or disposition under conditions meeting the requirements of Section 51.12;
(2) after transfer for prosecution in criminal court under Section 54.02, unless the juvenile court orders the detention of the child in a certified juvenile detention facility under Section 54.02(h);
(3) after transfer from the Texas Juvenile Justice Department under Section 245.151(c), Human Resources Code; or
(4) after transfer from a post-adjudication secure correctional facility, as that term is defined by Section 54.04011.
(d) An adjudication under Section 54.03 that a child engaged in conduct that occurred on or after January 1, 1996, and that constitutes a felony offense resulting in commitment to the Texas Juvenile Justice Department under Section 54.04(d)(2), (d)(3), or (m) or 54.05(f) or commitment to a post-adjudication secure correctional facility under Section 54.04011 for conduct that occurred on or after December 1, 2013, is a final felony conviction only for the purposes of Sections 12.42(a), (b), and (c)(1) or Section 12.425, Penal Code.
(e) A finding that a child engaged in conduct indicating a need for supervision as described by Section 51.03(b)(6) is a conviction only for the purposes of Sections 43.261(c) and (d), Penal Code.
Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 1460, ch. 544, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1973. Amended by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 385, Sec. 3, eff. Sept. 1, 1987; Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 799, Sec. 1, eff. June 18, 1993; Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 262, Sec. 13, eff. Jan. 1, 1996; Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1086, Sec. 5, eff. Sept. 1, 1997; Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1188, Sec. 4.02, eff. Sept. 1, 1999; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 283, Sec. 6, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
Amended by:
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 85 (S.B. 653), Sec. 3.004, eff. September 1, 2011.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1087 (S.B. 1209), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2011.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1322 (S.B. 407), Sec. 17, eff. September 1, 2011.
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1299 (H.B. 2862), Sec. 11, eff. September 1, 2013.
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1323 (S.B. 511), Sec. 1, eff. December 1, 2013.
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 854 (S.B. 1149), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2015.
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 935 (H.B. 2398), Sec. 19, eff. September 1, 2015.
Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 324 (S.B. 1488), Sec. 7.003, eff. September 1, 2017.
Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 685 (H.B. 29), Sec. 22, eff. September 1, 2017.