Texas Health and Safety Code 242.842 – Criminal and Civil Liability
(a) It is a defense to prosecution under § 16.02, Penal Code, or any other statute of this state under which it is an offense to intercept a communication or disclose or use an intercepted communication, that the communication was intercepted by an electronic monitoring device placed in the room of a resident of an institution.
(b) This subchapter does not affect whether a person may be held to be civilly liable under other law in connection with placing an electronic monitoring device in the room of a resident of an institution or in connection with using or disclosing a tape or recording made by the device except:
(1) as specifically provided by this subchapter; or
(2) to the extent that liability is affected by:
(A) a consent or waiver signed under this subchapter; or
(B) the fact that authorized electronic monitoring is required to be conducted with notice to persons who enter a resident’s room.
Terms Used In Texas Health and Safety Code 242.842
- Person: includes corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- Signed: includes any symbol executed or adopted by a person with present intention to authenticate a writing. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
(c) A communication or other sound acquired by an audio electronic monitoring device installed under the provisions of this subchapter concerning authorized electronic monitoring is not considered to be:
(1) an oral communication as defined by Article 18A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure; or
(2) a communication as defined by § 123.001, Civil Practice and Remedies Code.