State v. Taylor

OPINION

Opinion by

Chief Justice MORRISS.

Judy Pless suffered serious bodily injury in an unprovoked, August 13, 2008, attack by a dog allegedly owned by John Hardy Taylor. In its indictment, the State alleged that Taylor was criminally negligent in failing to secure his dog, in violation of Section 822.005(a)(1) of the Texas Health and Safety Code. 1 The trial court quashed the indictment against Taylor on the basis that the statute on which the indictment is based is unconstitutional in failing to set forth any required culpable mental state. Clearly, Section 822.005(a)(1) sets out a culpable…