TX HB4915

Expands criteria for appointing counsel to indigent defendants with habeas corpus claims to include any "potentially meritorious claim" likely to provide relief, such as actual innocence, guilt of only a lesser offense, conviction under an unconstitutional law, or constitutional violations

Requires magistrates conducting initial appearances via videoconference to ensure arrested persons can connect to and understand the proceedings, and mandates appointment of counsel if the person cannot understand or participate due to mental illness or intellectual disability

Allows counties to fund attorney appointments specifically for indigent persons' initial magistrate appearances, and permits private criminal defense attorneys to work part-time for public defender offices solely for these initial hearings

Expands managed assigned counsel programs to include appointing investigators and experts, approving payments for support services, overseeing attorney quality, and authorizes these programs to access confidential client information and criminal history records without fees

Increases reimbursable expenses for appointed counsel to include travel time and costs for visiting defendants confined more than 50 miles away, including food, lodging, and remote communication costs, and requires magistrate proceeding records to be retained for at least two years after case conclusion