Tex.
Code of Crim. Proc. Article 24.22
Witness Fined and Attached
(a)
If a witness summoned from outside the county refuses to obey a subpoena, the witness shall be fined by the court or magistrate not exceeding five hundred dollars, which fine and judgment shall be final, unless set aside after due notice to show cause why it should not be final, which notice may immediately issue, requiring the defaulting witness to appear at once or at the next term of the court, in the discretion of the magistrate issuing the subpoena, to answer for the default.(b)
At the time a fine is imposed under Subsection (a), on request of the defendant or the attorney representing the state, the court may cause to be issued an attachment for the witness, directed to the proper county, commanding the officer to whom the attachment is directed to take the witness into custody and have the witness before the court at the time specified in the attachment; in which case the witness shall receive no fees, unless it appears to the court that the disobedience is excusable, when the witness may receive the same pay as if the witness had not been attached.(c)
A request for the issuance of an attachment under Subsection (b) must include the applicable affidavit described by Article 24.12 (When Attachment May Issue).(d)
The fine when made final and all related costs shall be collected in the same manner as in other criminal cases. The fine and judgment may be set aside in vacation or at the time or any subsequent term of the court for good cause shown, after the witness testifies or has been discharged.(e)
The following words shall be written or printed on the face of a subpoena for an out-of-county witness: “A disobedience of this subpoena is punishable by fine not exceeding five hundred dollars, to be collected as fines and costs in other criminal cases.”
Source:
Article 24.22 — Witness Fined and Attached, https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/CR/htm/CR.24.htm#24.22 (accessed Jun. 5, 2024).
