(a) Any benefits, funds, or account balances payable on the death of a member or annuitant may not be paid to a person convicted of or adjudicated as having caused that death but instead are payable as if the convicted person had predeceased the decedent.
(b) A person who becomes eligible under this section to select death or survivor benefits may select benefits as if the person were the designated beneficiary.

Terms Used In Texas Government Code 814.007

  • Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
  • Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
  • Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • Decedent: A deceased person.
  • Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
  • 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
  • Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.

(c) The retirement system shall reduce any annuity computed in part on the age of the convicted or adjudicated person to a lump sum equal to the present value of the remainder of the annuity. The reduced amount is payable to a person entitled as provided by this section to receive the benefit.
(d) The retirement system is not required to change the recipient of any benefits, funds, or account balances under this section unless it receives actual notice of the conviction or adjudication of a beneficiary. However, the retirement system may delay payment of any benefits, funds, or account balances payable on the death of a member or annuitant pending the results of a criminal investigation or civil proceeding and other legal proceedings relating to the cause of death.
(e) For the purposes of this section, a person has been convicted of or adjudicated as having caused the death of a member or annuitant if the person:
(1) pleads guilty or nolo contendere to, or is found guilty by a court or jury in a criminal proceeding of, causing the death of the member or annuitant, regardless of whether sentence is imposed or probated, and no appeal of the conviction is pending and the time provided for appeal has expired; or
(2) is found liable by a court or jury in a civil proceeding for causing the death of the member or annuitant and no appeal of the judgment is pending and the time provided for appeal has expired.

  Previous section
Next section  
 Subchapter A Contents