Tex. Code of Criminal Procedure § 42.08
This is the official text of Tex. Code of Criminal Procedure § 42.08, part of Texas’s Code of Criminal Procedure — sets the procedural rules for criminal cases in Texas.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
§ 42.08. CUMULATIVE OR CONCURRENT SENTENCE.
Official statutory text
(a) When the same defendant has been convicted in two or more cases, judgment and sentence shall be pronounced in each case in the same manner as if there had been but one conviction. Except as provided by Subsections (b), (c), and (d), in the discretion of the court, the judgment in the second and subsequent convictions may either be that the sentence imposed or suspended shall begin when the judgment and the sentence imposed or suspended in the preceding conviction has ceased to operate, or that the sentence imposed or suspended shall run concurrently with the other case or cases, and sentence and execution shall be accordingly; provided, however, that the cumulative total of suspended sentences in felony cases shall not exceed 10 years, and the cumulative total of suspended sentences in misdemeanor cases shall not exceed the maximum period of confinement in jail applicable to the misdemeanor offenses, though in no event more than three years, including extensions of periods of community supervision under Article 42A.752(a)(2), if none of the offenses are offenses under Chapter 49, Penal Code, or four years, including extensions, if any of the offenses are offenses under Chapter 49, Penal Code.
(b) If a defendant is sentenced for an offense committed while the defendant was an inmate in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and serving a sentence for an offense other than a state jail felony and the defendant has not completed the sentence he was serving at the time of the offense, the judge shall order the sentence for the subsequent offense to commence immediately on completion of the sentence for the original offense.
(b-1)(1) A judge sentencing a defendant convicted of an offense under Section 38.112, Penal Code, committed while on parole or mandatory supervision may order the sentence for the offense to:
(A) run concurrently with the sentence for the offense for which the defendant was released on parole or to mandatory supervision; or
(B) if the defendant's parole or mandatory supervision has been revoked, commence immediately on completion of the sentence for the offense for which the defendant was released on parole or to mandatory supervision.
(2) A judge who orders a sentence to be imposed consecutively in the manner described by Subdivision (1)(B) shall, on pronouncing the sentence, order the defendant transferred to the custody of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for purposes of serving the applicable sentences consecutively as described by that subdivision if the defendant has not been taken into custody by the department following the revocation of the defendant's parole or mandatory supervision.
(c) If a defendant has been convicted in two or more cases and the court suspends the imposition of the sentence in one of the cases, the court may not order a sentence of confinement to commence on the completion of a suspended sentence for an offense.
(d) If a defendant has been convicted in two or more cases and was civilly committed as a sexually violent predator under Chapter 841, Health and Safety Code, at the time that any of the offenses were committed, the court shall order the sentences for those offenses to run consecutively.
(b) If a defendant is sentenced for an offense committed while the defendant was an inmate in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and serving a sentence for an offense other than a state jail felony and the defendant has not completed the sentence he was serving at the time of the offense, the judge shall order the sentence for the subsequent offense to commence immediately on completion of the sentence for the original offense.
(b-1)(1) A judge sentencing a defendant convicted of an offense under Section 38.112, Penal Code, committed while on parole or mandatory supervision may order the sentence for the offense to:
(A) run concurrently with the sentence for the offense for which the defendant was released on parole or to mandatory supervision; or
(B) if the defendant's parole or mandatory supervision has been revoked, commence immediately on completion of the sentence for the offense for which the defendant was released on parole or to mandatory supervision.
(2) A judge who orders a sentence to be imposed consecutively in the manner described by Subdivision (1)(B) shall, on pronouncing the sentence, order the defendant transferred to the custody of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for purposes of serving the applicable sentences consecutively as described by that subdivision if the defendant has not been taken into custody by the department following the revocation of the defendant's parole or mandatory supervision.
(c) If a defendant has been convicted in two or more cases and the court suspends the imposition of the sentence in one of the cases, the court may not order a sentence of confinement to commence on the completion of a suspended sentence for an offense.
(d) If a defendant has been convicted in two or more cases and was civilly committed as a sexually violent predator under Chapter 841, Health and Safety Code, at the time that any of the offenses were committed, the court shall order the sentences for those offenses to run consecutively.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Dealing with a criminal defense matter in Texas?
See all Texas Criminal Defense lawyers
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.