Art. 45A.003 APPLICABILITY

If you have a criminal case in justice court or municipal court, this law says the case has to follow the rules laid out in this specific chapter of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. These are the main rules judges and courts must use when handling your case.

Sometimes this chapter won't cover every situation that comes up in a case. When that happens, the judge is allowed to look at other parts of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure for guidance. The judge will use those other rules only as much as needed to make sure the case is handled the way this chapter intends. This gives judges a way to fill in gaps without ignoring the main rules that are supposed to apply to justice and municipal court cases.