THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

OF TEXAS 

Honorable Robert T. Jarvis Opinion No. JM-1041 

Grayson County Attorney 

Justice Center Re: Costs for medical exaSherman, Texas 75090 minations of rape victims 

under article 4447m, V.T.C.S. 

(RQ-1661) 

Dear Mr. Jarvis: 

you ask about the proper construction of article 4447m, 

V.T.C.S., which governs the payment of the cost of medical 

examinations of victims of sexual assault. Article 4447m, 

V.T.C.S., provides: 

Section 1. Any law enforcement agency 

that requests a medical examination of a 

victim of an alleged sexual assault for use 

in the investigation or prosecution of the 

offense shall pay all costs of the examination. 

Sec. 2. This act does not require a law 

enforcement agency to pay any costs of 

treatment for injuries. 

you first ask about the proper construction of the 

phrase "all costs of the examination.B' In your letter 

requesting an opinion you state: 

It is my opinion that 'all costs of the 

examination' is interpreted to include 

emergency room fee, physician or nurse 

examiner fee, evidence collection kit cost, 

x-rays, diagnostic test (pregnancy, toxicology if survivor was involuntarily drugged, 

VDRL, chlamydia for children under 12 years 

of age). This would not include testing for 

HIV or any treatment or admission costs. 

Article 4447m, V.T.C.S., has never been construed by 

any court or attorney general opinion. The statute was 

p. 5402 
Honorable Robert T. Jarvis - Page 2 (JM-1041) 

first enacted in 1973, Acts 1973, 63d Leg., ch. 299, at 704 

[hereinafter H.B. 8571, and amended in 1983. Acts 1983, 

68th Leg., ch. 977, § 11, at 5321 [hereinafter H.B. 20081. 

The bill analysis for H.B. 857 prepared for the House 

Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence contains the following 

"Background Information": 

Presently many rape victims are required 

to pay for medical examinations made in 

connection with investigation or prosecution 

of the offense. It is felt that this cost 

should be born [sic] by the law enforcement 

agency involved. 

Bill Analysis, Tex. H.B. 857, 63d Leg. (1973). 

The bill analysis sets forth the purpose of the bill: 

To require law enforcement agencies to pay 

the costs of any medical examination made in 

connection with the investigation or prosecution of an alleged rape. 

The Wection by Section Analysis" of the bill analysis 

sets forth the following: 

Section 1. Provides that a law enforcement agency which requests a medical examination of a victim of an alleged rape for use 

in investigation or prosecution of the 

offense shall pay for the examination. 

Section 2. Provides that the law enforcement agency is not required to pay for the 

treatment of injuries. 

Id. 

The 1983 amendment to article 4447m, V.T.C.S., was part 

of an omnibus bill designed to classify thr offenses of rape 

and sexual abuse of adults and children as "sexual assault" 

and to remove such offenses from the Penal Code chapter on 

Sexual Offenses. Tex. H.B. 2008. The %ection by Section 

Analysis" of the bill analysis indicates that the amendment 

to article 4447m was designed to "make conforming changes"; 

P. 5403 
Honorable Robert T. Jarvis - Page 3 (JM-1041) 

thus, the amendment replaced the word 1°rape18 with the phrase 

"sexual assault.t' Id. 

There is then no indication in the legislative histories of article 4447m, V.T.C.S., and its amendment that 

the legislature intended with its use of the phrase "medical 

examination" that any specific 

included or excluded. 

medical procedures be 

In construing civil statutes, we are 

required to attempt to ascertain legislative intent and 

consider the old law, the evil to be addressed, and the 

proposed remedy. Gov't Code 5 312.005. Because the facts 

involved in any alleged episode of sexual assault will 

from instance to instance, we construe 

vary 

"medical examination" 

to include any recognized medical procedure whose performance reasonably would be expected to produce evidence that 

would tend to support or refute allegations of sexual 

assault in any specific episode. A determination regarding 

the suitability or necessity of any particular medical 

examination procedure in any instance of alleged sexual 

assault is a matter of fact, the initial determination of 

which must lie with the law enforcement agency making the 

request for a medical examination. 

We understand you to ask next whether the investigating 

law enforcement agency is responsible for all costs of the 

examination, even in an instance in which no agency peace 

officer requests the initial medical examination. We answer 

your question in the affirmative. The act neither requires 

nor presupposes that a peace officer requests the medical 

examination: the act by its very terms requires only that 

any law enforcement agency that requests a medical examination of a victim of an alleged sexual assault that is to be 

used in the investigation or prosecution of the offense 

all costs of the examination. 

pay 

The act by its terms does not 

permit or require that the investigating law enforcement 

agency pay the cost of any medical examination that it 

itself does not request. 

Finally, you ask about the proper construction of the 

phrase "investigating law enforcement agency." We understand you to ask whether the phrase includes only a city 

police department or a county sheriff's office in whose 

jurisdiction the alleged incident occurred or whether it 

p. 5404 
Honorable Robert T. Jarvis - Page 4 (JM-1041) 

includes the local district or criminal district attorney's 

office whose responsibility it is to prosecute the case.1 

The statute itself does not define "investigating law 

enforcement agency," nor does Texas law contain a definition 

of "investigating law enforcement agency" that generally 

would be applicable. Courts have construed the phrase "law 

enforcement agency" to include various state and local 

officers and employees, depending upon the intention of the 

legislature at the time. 

For example, a penitentiary, a county department of 

corrections, a state agency denominated the Division of 

Alcoholic Beverage Control that oversaw the state's regulation of alcoholic beverages, a coroner's office, as well as 

police, prosecutors and even the courts and a grand jury, 

have been declared *'law enforcement agencies" for certain 

purposes. See, e.ac, puffin v. Carlson, 636 F.2d 709 (D.C. 

Cir. 1980); P ovle v. Scott, 

(prison: 

583 P.2d 939 (Cola. Ct. APP. 

1978) or penitentiaries as law enforcement 

agencies); Heltzel Th ma 516 N.E.2d 103 (Ind. Ct. 

1988) (coronor~s ofTice is YAW enforcement agency) 

APP. 

: Criminal 

Injuries Comoensation Bd. v. Gould 331 A.2d 55 (Md. Ct. 

APP- 1975) (police, prosecutors, ckrt, and grand jury are 

law enforcement agencies for certain purposes): Matter of C. 

Schmidt & Sons, Inc., 399 A.2d 637 (N.J. 1979) (Division of 

Alcoholic Beverage Control, a state agency, as a law enforcement agency). 

On the other hand, a federal agency denominated the 

Department of Income Maintenance that oversaw federal 

administration of state investigations of medicaid fraud, a 

state racing commission, and even a city police department, 

have been held & to be law enforcement agencies for 

1. We note that in your letter requesting an opinion 

you suggest that article 4447m, V.T.C.S., has been construed 

to require, in some instances, the victim of alleged sexual 

assault to pay the costs of any relevant medical examination. No reasonable reading of article 4447m, V.T.C.S., 

admits of such a construction; the act is clear that any 

investigating law enforcement agency that requests a medical 

examination of a victim of alleged sexual assault in connection with the investigation or prosecution of such assault 

must pay the costs of such a medical examination. 

p. 5405 
Honorable Robert T. Jarvis - Page 5 (JM-1041) 

specific purposes under the particular statutes involved. 

Mah r v. Freedom of Information Comm'n 

198:) 

472 A.2d 321 (Conn. 

(Department of Income MainteAance is not a law 

enforcement agency): Maietta V. w Jersev Racina Comm'n, 

459 A.2d 295 C.N.J. 1983). 

We may not construe statutes in such a way as to 

ascribe to the legislature an intention to do an unjust or 

unreasonable thing if it is reasonably susceptible of a 

construction that will not accomplish such a result, 

Anderson v. Penix, 161 S.W.2d 455 (Tex. 1942), or that shows 

the legislature's intention to have been otherwise. State 

Hiahwav DeD't v. Gorham, 162 S.W.2d 934 (Tex. 1942). We 

conclude that the construction of the phrase "investigating 

law enforcement agency" that best comports with the evident 

legislative intent is one that would require the 

investigating agency that requests such an examination, 

whether that be a city police department, a county sheriff's 

department, or a local prosecutor's office in any particular 

instance to pay for any necessary medical examination. 

SUMMARY 

Article 4447m, V.T.C.S., requires 

investigating law enforcement agency thzi 

requests a medical examination that is 

necessary for the investigation or prosecution of an alleged episode of sexual assault 

to pay for the costs of such an examination. 

The phrase "medical examination" includes any 

recognized medical procedure whose performance reasonably would be expected to produce 

evidence that would tend to support or refute 

allegations of sexual assault in any specific 

episode. A determination of the suitability 

or necessity of a particular medical examination procedure in any instance of alleged 

sexual assault is a matter of fact, the 

initial determination of which must lie with 

the investigating law enforcement agency 

making the request for a medical examination. 

The act does not require that a peace officer 

request a medical examination: the act only 

requires the investigating law enforcement 

agency to pay for the cost of such a medical 

examination when that agency requests that 

such an examination be conducted. The phrase 

"law enforcement agency" includes a city 

P. 5406 
Honorable Robert T. Jarvis - Page 6 (JM-1041) 

police department, a county sheriff's office, 

or a local prosecutor's office. 

Attorney General of Texas 

MARYKELLRR 

First Assistant Attorney General 

Lou MCCREARY 

Executive Assistant Attorney General 

JUDGE ZOLLIE STEAKLKY 

Special Assistant Attorney General 

RICK GILPIN 

Chairman, Opinion Committee 

Prepared by Jim Moellinger 

Assistant Attorney General 

P- 5407