Bill Text: IL HB3732 | 2021-2022 | 102nd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Criminal Code of 2012. Provides that a person commits a false personation if he or she knowingly and falsely creates and uses with intent to deceive, a social networking account or email service account using the official title of a public officer or government agency. Provides penalties for a violation.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-05-09 - Rule 19(b) / Motion Referred to Rules Committee [HB3732 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2021-HB3732-Introduced.html

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102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2021 and 2022 HB3732 Introduced , by Rep. Jaime M. Andrade, Jr. SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
720 ILCS 5/17-2 from Ch. 38, par. 17-2
Amends the Criminal Code of 2012. Provides that a person commits a false personation if he or she knowingly and falsely creates and uses with intent to deceive, a social networking account or email service account using the official title of a public officer or government agency. Provides penalties for a violation.
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A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning criminal law.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Criminal Code of 2012 is amended by
changing Section 17-2 as follows:
(720 ILCS 5/17-2) (from Ch. 38, par. 17-2)
Sec. 17-2. False personation; solicitation.
(a) False personation; solicitation.
(1) A person commits a false personation when he or
she knowingly and falsely represents himself or herself to
be a member or representative of any veterans' or public
safety personnel organization or a representative of any
charitable organization, or when he or she knowingly
exhibits or uses in any manner any decal, badge or
insignia of any charitable, public safety personnel, or
veterans' organization when not authorized to do so by the
charitable, public safety personnel, or veterans'
organization. "Public safety personnel organization" has
the meaning ascribed to that term in Section 1 of the
Solicitation for Charity Act.
(2) A person commits a false personation when he or
she knowingly and falsely represents himself or herself to
be a veteran in seeking employment or public office. In

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this paragraph, "veteran" means a person who has served in
the Armed Services or Reserve Forces of the United States.
(2.1) A person commits a false personation when he or
she knowingly and falsely represents himself or herself to
be:
(A) an active-duty member of the Armed Services or
Reserve Forces of the United States or the National
Guard or a veteran of the Armed Services or Reserve
Forces of the United States or the National Guard; and
(B) obtains money, property, or another tangible
benefit through that false representation.
In this paragraph, "member of the Armed Services or
Reserve Forces of the United States" means a member of the
United States Navy, Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, or
Coast Guard; and "veteran" means a person who has served
in the Armed Services or Reserve Forces of the United
States or the National Guard.
(2.5) A person commits a false personation when he or
she knowingly and falsely represents himself or herself to
be:
(A) another actual person and does an act in such
assumed character with intent to intimidate, threaten,
injure, defraud, or to obtain a benefit from another;
or
(B) a representative of an actual person or
organization and does an act in such false capacity

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with intent to obtain a benefit or to injure or defraud
another.
(3) No person shall knowingly use the words "Police",
"Police Department", "Patrolman", "Sergeant",
"Lieutenant", "Peace Officer", "Sheriff's Police",
"Sheriff", "Officer", "Law Enforcement", "Trooper",
"Deputy", "Deputy Sheriff", "State Police", or any other
words to the same effect (i) in the title of any
organization, magazine, or other publication without the
express approval of the named public safety personnel
organization's governing board or (ii) in combination with
the name of any state, state agency, public university, or
unit of local government without the express written
authorization of that state, state agency, public
university, or unit of local government.
(4) No person may knowingly claim or represent that he
or she is acting on behalf of any public safety personnel
organization when soliciting financial contributions or
selling or delivering or offering to sell or deliver any
merchandise, goods, services, memberships, or
advertisements unless the chief of the police department,
fire department, and the corporate or municipal authority
thereof, or the sheriff has first entered into a written
agreement with the person or with an organization with
which the person is affiliated and the agreement permits
the activity and specifies and states clearly and fully

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the purpose for which the proceeds of the solicitation,
contribution, or sale will be used.
(5) No person, when soliciting financial contributions
or selling or delivering or offering to sell or deliver
any merchandise, goods, services, memberships, or
advertisements may claim or represent that he or she is
representing or acting on behalf of any nongovernmental
organization by any name which includes "officer", "peace
officer", "police", "law enforcement", "trooper",
"sheriff", "deputy", "deputy sheriff", "State police", or
any other word or words which would reasonably be
understood to imply that the organization is composed of
law enforcement personnel unless:
(A) the person is actually representing or acting
on behalf of the nongovernmental organization;
(B) the nongovernmental organization is controlled
by and governed by a membership of and represents a
group or association of active duty peace officers,
retired peace officers, or injured peace officers; and
(C) before commencing the solicitation or the sale
or the offers to sell any merchandise, goods,
services, memberships, or advertisements, a written
contract between the soliciting or selling person and
the nongovernmental organization, which specifies and
states clearly and fully the purposes for which the
proceeds of the solicitation, contribution, or sale

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will be used, has been entered into.
(6) No person, when soliciting financial contributions
or selling or delivering or offering to sell or deliver
any merchandise, goods, services, memberships, or
advertisements, may knowingly claim or represent that he
or she is representing or acting on behalf of any
nongovernmental organization by any name which includes
the term "fireman", "fire fighter", "paramedic", or any
other word or words which would reasonably be understood
to imply that the organization is composed of fire fighter
or paramedic personnel unless:
(A) the person is actually representing or acting
on behalf of the nongovernmental organization;
(B) the nongovernmental organization is controlled
by and governed by a membership of and represents a
group or association of active duty, retired, or
injured fire fighters (for the purposes of this
Section, "fire fighter" has the meaning ascribed to
that term in Section 2 of the Illinois Fire Protection
Training Act) or active duty, retired, or injured
emergency medical technicians - ambulance, emergency
medical technicians - intermediate, emergency medical
technicians - paramedic, ambulance drivers, or other
medical assistance or first aid personnel; and
(C) before commencing the solicitation or the sale
or delivery or the offers to sell or deliver any

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merchandise, goods, services, memberships, or
advertisements, the soliciting or selling person and
the nongovernmental organization have entered into a
written contract that specifies and states clearly and
fully the purposes for which the proceeds of the
solicitation, contribution, or sale will be used.
(7) No person may knowingly claim or represent that he
or she is an airman, airline employee, airport employee,
or contractor at an airport in order to obtain the
uniform, identification card, license, or other
identification paraphernalia of an airman, airline
employee, airport employee, or contractor at an airport.
(8) No person, firm, copartnership, or corporation
(except corporations organized and doing business under
the Pawners Societies Act) shall knowingly use a name that
contains in it the words "Pawners' Society".
(b) False personation; public officials and employees. A
person commits a false personation if he or she knowingly and
falsely represents himself or herself to be any of the
following:
(1) An attorney authorized to practice law for
purposes of compensation or consideration. This paragraph
(b)(1) does not apply to a person who unintentionally
fails to pay attorney registration fees established by
Supreme Court Rule.
(2) A public officer or a public employee or an

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official or employee of the federal government.
(2.3) A public officer, a public employee, or an
official or employee of the federal government, and the
false representation is made in furtherance of the
commission of felony.
(2.7) A public officer or a public employee, and the
false representation is for the purpose of effectuating
identity theft as defined in Section 16-30 of this Code.
(3) A peace officer.
(4) A peace officer while carrying a deadly weapon.
(5) A peace officer in attempting or committing a
felony.
(6) A peace officer in attempting or committing a
forcible felony.
(7) The parent, legal guardian, or other relation of a
minor child to any public official, public employee, or
elementary or secondary school employee or administrator.
(7.5) The legal guardian, including any representative
of a State or public guardian, of a person with a
disability appointed under Article XIa of the Probate Act
of 1975.
(8) A fire fighter.
(9) A fire fighter while carrying a deadly weapon.
(10) A fire fighter in attempting or committing a
felony.
(11) An emergency management worker of any

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jurisdiction in this State.
(12) An emergency management worker of any
jurisdiction in this State in attempting or committing a
felony. For the purposes of this subsection (b),
"emergency management worker" has the meaning provided
under Section 2-6.6 of this Code.
(b-3) A person commits a false personation if he or she
knowingly and falsely creates and uses with intent to deceive,
a social networking account or email service account using the
official title of a public officer or government agency.
(b-5) The trier of fact may infer that a person falsely
represents himself or herself to be a public officer or a
public employee or an official or employee of the federal
government if the person:
(1) wears or displays without authority any uniform,
badge, insignia, or facsimile thereof by which a public
officer or public employee or official or employee of the
federal government is lawfully distinguished; or
(2) falsely expresses by word or action that he or she
is a public officer or public employee or official or
employee of the federal government and is acting with
approval or authority of a public agency or department.
(c) Fraudulent advertisement of a corporate name.
(1) A company, association, or individual commits
fraudulent advertisement of a corporate name if he, she,
or it, not being incorporated, puts forth a sign or

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advertisement and assumes, for the purpose of soliciting
business, a corporate name.
(2) Nothing contained in this subsection (c) prohibits
a corporation, company, association, or person from using
a divisional designation or trade name in conjunction with
its corporate name or assumed name under Section 4.05 of
the Business Corporation Act of 1983 or, if it is a member
of a partnership or joint venture, from doing partnership
or joint venture business under the partnership or joint
venture name. The name under which the joint venture or
partnership does business may differ from the names of the
members. Business may not be conducted or transacted under
that joint venture or partnership name, however, unless
all provisions of the Assumed Business Name Act have been
complied with. Nothing in this subsection (c) permits a
foreign corporation to do business in this State without
complying with all Illinois laws regulating the doing of
business by foreign corporations. No foreign corporation
may conduct or transact business in this State as a member
of a partnership or joint venture that violates any
Illinois law regulating or pertaining to the doing of
business by foreign corporations in Illinois.
(3) The provisions of this subsection (c) do not apply
to limited partnerships formed under the Revised Uniform
Limited Partnership Act or under the Uniform Limited
Partnership Act (2001).

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(d) False law enforcement badges.
(1) A person commits false law enforcement badges if
he or she knowingly produces, sells, or distributes a law
enforcement badge without the express written consent of
the law enforcement agency represented on the badge or, in
case of a reorganized or defunct law enforcement agency,
its successor law enforcement agency.
(2) It is a defense to false law enforcement badges
that the law enforcement badge is used or is intended to be
used exclusively: (i) as a memento or in a collection or
exhibit; (ii) for decorative purposes; or (iii) for a
dramatic presentation, such as a theatrical, film, or
television production.
(e) False medals.
(1) A person commits a false personation if he or she
knowingly and falsely represents himself or herself to be
a recipient of, or wears on his or her person, any of the
following medals if that medal was not awarded to that
person by the United States Government, irrespective of
branch of service: The Congressional Medal of Honor, The
Distinguished Service Cross, The Navy Cross, The Air Force
Cross, The Silver Star, The Bronze Star, or the Purple
Heart.
(2) It is a defense to a prosecution under paragraph
(e)(1) that the medal is used, or is intended to be used,
exclusively:

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(A) for a dramatic presentation, such as a
theatrical, film, or television production, or a
historical re-enactment; or
(B) for a costume worn, or intended to be worn, by
a person under 18 years of age.
(f) Sentence.
(1) A violation of paragraph (a)(8) is a petty offense
subject to a fine of not less than $5 nor more than $100,
and the person, firm, copartnership, or corporation
commits an additional petty offense for each day he, she,
or it continues to commit the violation. A violation of
paragraph (c)(1) is a petty offense, and the company,
association, or person commits an additional petty offense
for each day he, she, or it continues to commit the
violation. A violation of paragraph (a)(2.1) or subsection
(e) is a petty offense for which the offender shall be
fined at least $100 and not more than $200.
(2) A violation of paragraph (a)(1), (a)(3), or
(b)(7.5) is a Class C misdemeanor.
(3) A violation of paragraph (a)(2), (a)(2.5), (a)(7),
(b)(2), or (b)(7), or subsection (b-3) or subsection (d)
is a Class A misdemeanor. A second or subsequent violation
of subsection (d) is a Class 3 felony.
(4) A violation of paragraph (a)(4), (a)(5), (a)(6),
(b)(1), (b)(2.3), (b)(2.7), (b)(3), (b)(8), or (b)(11) is
a Class 4 felony.

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(5) A violation of paragraph (b)(4), (b)(9), or
(b)(12) is a Class 3 felony.
(6) A violation of paragraph (b)(5) or (b)(10) is a
Class 2 felony.
(7) A violation of paragraph (b)(6) is a Class 1
felony.
(g) A violation of subsection (a)(1) through (a)(7) or
subsection (e) of this Section may be accomplished in person
or by any means of communication, including but not limited to
the use of an Internet website or any form of electronic
communication.
(h) In addition to any other penalty which may be provided
by law, a violation of subsection (b-3) shall include the
immediate suspension of the violator's activities and
termination of the account giving rise to the false
personation.
(Source: P.A. 99-143, eff. 7-27-15; 99-561, eff. 7-15-16;
100-201, eff. 8-18-17.)