Sec. 772.057.  DUTIES OF REGIONAL COUNSEL.  (a) An attorney employed by a border prosecuting attorney as regional counsel shall assist the border prosecuting attorneys and other regional counsel, as needed, in:
(1)  the prosecution of border crime;
(2)  the screening of cases involving border crime;
(3)  the presenting of cases involving border crime to a grand jury; and
(4)  the preparation and trial of cases involving border crime.
(b)  The regional counsel shall serve as a liaison between the unit and other criminal justice entities, including the Department of Public Safety and federal, state, and local prosecutors and law enforcement agencies located in the border region, by:
(1)  working closely with those entities, as needed, to coordinate and assist in the investigation and prosecution of border crime; and
(2)  attending multiagency task force hearings and meetings held by federal, state, and local prosecutors and law enforcement agencies on the investigation and prosecution of border crime.
(c)  The regional counsel shall provide legal and technical assistance to law enforcement agencies investigating border crime, including by:
(1)  providing legal advice and recommendations regarding Fourth Amendment search and seizure issues, relevant statutes, and case law;
(2)  drafting and reviewing affidavits requesting the issuance of search warrants, wiretap orders, pen register and trap and trace orders, mobile tracking device orders, and similar court orders; and
(3)  drafting requests for court orders authorizing:
(A)  the interception of oral, wire, and electronic communications;
(B)  the installation and use of a pen register or trap and trace device;
(C)  the disclosure of subscriber or customer records and information; and
(D)  other similar court orders that are required to be filed by a prosecutor.
(d)  The regional counsel shall coordinate training with the unit for border prosecuting attorneys and law enforcement agencies, including by:
(1)  assisting in identifying training needs in the county or subregion, if any is created, in which the border prosecuting attorney's office or the agency is located;
(2)  assisting in the development of training curricula and guidelines for the investigation and prosecution of border crime; and
(3)  participating in and hosting training presentations and sessions in each subregion, if any is created.
(e)  The regional counsel shall provide legal and technical assistance to border prosecuting attorneys, including by:
(1)  performing legal research relating to investigating and prosecuting border crime, if requested; and
(2)  coordinating with border prosecuting attorneys and law enforcement agencies to identify experts in the investigation and prosecution of complex, long-term cases against organized criminal enterprises.
Added by Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 334 (H.B. 12), Sec. 3, eff. September 1, 2015.