Relating to the video recording of a deposition taken of the testimony of certain elderly or disabled persons in a criminal case.
ModeratePlan for compliance
Low Cost
Effective:2025-06-20
Enforcing Agencies
Texas Criminal Courts • District Attorneys Offices
01
Compliance Analysis
Key implementation requirements and action items for compliance with this legislation
Implementation Timeline
Effective Date:June 20, 2025 (Note: While standard legislation is effective September 1, this bill secured the supermajority vote required for immediate effect).
Compliance Deadline:June 20, 2025. You must apply these protocols to any criminal deposition commencing on or after this date.
Agency Rulemaking: None. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals will likely define "availability" through case law. There is no regulatory grace period.
Immediate Action Plan
1.Immediate Audit: Identify all criminal depositions scheduled on or after June 20, 2025, involving elderly witnesses.
2.Staff Re-assignment: Swap out contract videographers for permanent staff on identified dockets immediately.
3.Contract Update: Issue an addendum to all contract videographers acknowledging the requirement to appear for future testimony.
4.Data Segregation: Tag these video files in your digital asset management system as "HB2348 Restricted" to prevent deletion or unauthorized file conversion that could break the chain of custody.
Operational Changes Required
Contracts
Vendor Agreements (MSAs): Legal support firms must revise subcontractor agreements to mandate trial availability. Include penalty clauses for subcontractors who fail to appear for authenticity hearings.
Employment Agreements: Update contracts for staff videographers to include a Post-Employment Cooperation Clause. This must legally compel former employees to return for testimony regarding work performed during their tenure, with pre-negotiated per diem rates.
Client Engagement Letters: Explicitly state that time spent by videographers testifying in court (including travel and wait time) is a billable expense to the retaining law firm.
Hiring/Training
Staffing Restrictions: Do not assign temporary staff or high-turnover contract workers to criminal depositions involving elderly or disabled witnesses. Assign long-term, W-2 employees to ensure future availability.
Chain of Custody Training: Operators must be trained to document the exact handling of the digital file from recording to server upload. The operator's testimony will rely on this documentation.
Reporting & Record-Keeping
Operator Logs: Maintain a centralized "Deposition Operator Log" distinct from standard billing records. This log must track the specific operator for every relevant deposition and require quarterly contact info updates for at least three years post-deposition.
Affidavits: While the law requires live availability, require operators to sign a "Verification of Authenticity" affidavit immediately upon concluding the deposition to serve as contemporaneous evidence if the operator becomes incapacitated.
Fees & Costs
Insurance Premiums: Review Errors & Omissions (E&O) policies. Confirm that "spoliation of evidence" coverage applies if a videographer is unavailable and the deposition is ruled inadmissible.
Testimony Costs: Budget for potential travel and lodging costs to bring former employees back to the venue for trial.
Strategic Ambiguities & Considerations
"Available to Testify": The statute does not explicitly state whether remote testimony (e.g., via Zoom) satisfies the requirement for the operator's availability. Until appellate courts rule on this, assume physical presence is required and budget accordingly.
Scope of "Disabled": The definition of "disabled" in this context is broad. Prosecutors may apply this statute to any deposition involving a nursing home resident or home-health patient. When in doubt, apply HB2348 protocols to *all* healthcare-related criminal depositions to prevent evidence suppression.
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Information presented is for general knowledge only and is provided without warranty, express or implied. Consult qualified government affairs professionals and legal counsel before making compliance decisions.
The bill author has informed the committee that Texas has a duty to protect elderly and disabled individuals who may be victims or key witnesses in criminal cases and that these individuals often face significant challenges in providing testimony, including health concerns, mobility limitations, or the stress of courtroom proceedings. While current Texas law provides for the depositions of elderly or disabled witnesses to be taken by the state's attorney in criminal cases, there is no clear requirement for the video recording these testimonies and, as the bill author has informed the committee, without a visual record, important nonverbal cues, demeanor, and context can be lost, potentially weakening the impact of their testimony in court. C.S.H.B. 2348 seeks to modernize Texas' legal process and allow courts to adapt to the needs of victims and witnesses to ensure justice is served effectively by providing for the video recording of depositions for elderly or disabled individuals in criminal cases and requiring the person operating the recording device to be available to testify regarding the authenticity of the video recording and the taking of the deposition for admissibility in court.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
ANALYSIS
C.S.H.B. 2348 amends the Code of Criminal Procedure to authorize a court, on the motion of either party in a criminal action, to order the state's attorney to take a deposition of an elderly or disabled person who is the alleged victim of or witness to an offense by video recording. The bill requires the person operating the video recording device to be available to testify regarding the authenticity of the video recording and the taking of the deposition in order for the video recording to be admissible. The bill authorizes the court to allow a party to offer the entire video recording into evidence without requiring the jury to view the entire video recording during the trial if the court finds that requiring the jury to do so would unnecessarily prolong the trial and that the video recording of the deposition is properly authenticated. This authorization expressly does not preclude the state's attorney, the defendant, or the defendant's attorney from offering into evidence and playing for the jury a portion of a video-recorded deposition.
C.S.H.B. 2348 revises the provision conditioning the reading of a witness deposition taken in a criminal action on an oath being made that one of the qualifying circumstance for use of the deposition applies by specifying that this oath requirement applies to the reading or publication of a written or recorded deposition taken under state law governing witness depositions, depositions of elderly or disabled persons, or depositions of Medicaid or Medicare recipients or caregivers.
C.S.H.B. 2348 applies only to a criminal proceeding that commences on or after the bill's effective date. A criminal proceeding that commences before the bill's effective date is governed by the law in effect on the date the proceeding commenced, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
EFFECTIVE DATE
September 1, 2025.
COMPARISON OF INTRODUCED AND SUBSTITUTE
While C.S.H.B. 2348 may differ from the introduced in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.
While both the substitute and the introduced specify that a certain oath requirement under current law applies to the reading or publication of certain written or recorded depositions taken in a criminal action, the substitute specifies that the applicable deposition is a deposition taken under state law governing witness depositions, depositions of elderly or disabled persons, or depositions of Medicaid or Medicare recipients or caregivers in a criminal action, whereas the introduced specified that the applicable deposition is a deposition taken in a criminal action as described under state law governing depositions of a witness when an examination takes place in a criminal action before a magistrate.
Honorable John T. Smithee, Chair, House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence
FROM:
Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB2348 by Capriglione (Relating to the video recording of a deposition taken of the testimony of certain elderly or disabled persons in a criminal case.), As Introduced
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
It is assumed that any costs associated with the bill could be absorbed using existing resources.
Local Government Impact
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.
Source Agencies:
212 Office of Court Administration, Texas Judicial Council
LBB Staff:
JMc, MGol, NTh
Related Legislation
Explore more bills from this author and on related topics
HB2348 creates a strict chain-of-custody requirement for video depositions of elderly or disabled persons in criminal proceedings, mandating that the recording equipment operator be available to testify regarding authenticity. This legislation effectively eliminates the use of transient or "gig" videographers for these specific cases, as the unavailability of the operator at the time of trial renders the evidence inadmissible and creates significant liability for legal support firms. Implementation Timeline Effective Date: June 20, 2025 (Note: While standard legislation is effective September 1, this bill secured the supermajority vote required for immediate effect).
Q
Who authored HB2348?
HB2348 was authored by Texas Representative Giovanni Capriglione during the Regular Session.
Q
When was HB2348 signed into law?
HB2348 was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on June 20, 2025.
Q
Which agencies enforce HB2348?
HB2348 is enforced by Texas Criminal Courts and District Attorneys Offices.
Q
How urgent is compliance with HB2348?
The compliance urgency for HB2348 is rated as "moderate". Businesses and organizations should review the requirements and timeline to ensure timely compliance.
Q
What is the cost impact of HB2348?
The cost impact of HB2348 is estimated as "low". This may vary based on industry and implementation requirements.
Q
What topics does HB2348 address?
HB2348 addresses topics including aging, criminal procedure, criminal procedure--general, disabilities, persons with and videotape & film.
Legislative data provided by LegiScanLast updated: November 25, 2025
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