Tex.
Code of Crim. Proc. Article 45A.051
Electronic Records
(a)
Notwithstanding any other law, a document issued or maintained by a justice or municipal court or a notice or a citation issued by a law enforcement officer may be created by electronic means, including:(1)
optical imaging;(2)
optical disk;(3)
digital imaging; or(4)
another electronic reproduction technique that does not permit changes, additions, or deletions to the originally created document.(b)
A justice or municipal court may use electronic means to:(1)
produce a document required by law to be written;(2)
record an instrument, paper, or notice that is permitted or required by law to be recorded or filed; or(3)
maintain a docket.(c)
Information in a docket may be processed and stored using electronic data processing equipment, at the discretion of the justice or judge.(d)
A justice or municipal court shall maintain original documents as provided by law.(e)
An electronically recorded judgment has the same force and effect as a written signed judgment.(f)
A record created by electronic means is an original record or a certification of the original record.(g)
A printed copy of an optical image of the original record printed from an optical disk system is an accurate copy of the original record.(h)
A statutory requirement that a document contain the signature of any person, including a judge, clerk of the court, or defendant, is satisfied if the document contains that signature as captured on an electronic device.
Source:
Article 45A.051 — Electronic Records, https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/CR/htm/CR.45A.htm#45A.051 (accessed Jun. 5, 2024).
