Bill Text: NY A02598 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Creates the new crime of cyber harassment; and increases the penalties for the crimes of harassment in 1st and 2nd degree and stalking in the 3rd and 4th degree when committed by an adult against a child.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 21-5)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-01-04 - referred to codes [A02598 Detail]

Download: New_York-2011-A02598-Introduced.html
                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         2598
                              2011-2012 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                   January 19, 2011
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  RABBITT,  CORWIN,  CROUCH, DUPREY, GIGLIO --
         Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of  A.  BARCLAY,  BURLING,  BUTLER,  CALHOUN,
         CONTE,  FINCH,  GABRYSZAK,  GALEF, HAWLEY, HAYES, JORDAN, KOLB, MAGEE,
         McDONOUGH, McKEVITT, MENG, MOLINARO, RAIA, REILICH,  TOBACCO  --  read
         once and referred to the Committee on Codes
       AN  ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to creating the new crime of
         cyber harassment; and increasing penalties for the crimes  of  harass-
         ment and stalking
         THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section 1.  The penal law is amended by adding a new section 240.33 to
    2  read as follows:
    3  S 240.33 CYBER HARASSMENT.
    4    1. A PERSON IS GUILTY OF CYBER HARASSMENT WHEN,  FOR  THE  PURPOSE  OF
    5  FRIGHTENING  OR DISTURBING ANOTHER PERSON, HE OR SHE TRANSMITS OR CAUSES
    6  THE TRANSMISSION OF AN ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION, OR KNOWINGLY PERMITS AN
    7  ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION TO BE TRANSMITTED TO  ANOTHER  PERSON  FROM  AN
    8  ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION DEVICE UNDER HIS OR HER CONTROL:
    9    (A)  USING  COARSE LANGUAGE OFFENSIVE TO A PERSON OF AVERAGE SENSIBIL-
   10  ITY; OR
   11    (B) ANONYMOUSLY OR REPEATEDLY TRANSMITTING SUCH COMMUNICATION  WHETHER
   12  OR NOT CONVERSATION OCCURS; OR
   13    (C) THREATENING TO COMMIT ANY FELONY.
   14    2.  NO  PERSON  SHALL  MAKE OR CAUSE TO BE MADE AN ELECTRONIC COMMUNI-
   15  CATION, OR PERMIT AN ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION TO BE MADE FROM  AN  ELEC-
   16  TRONIC COMMUNICATION DEVICE UNDER SUCH PERSON'S CONTROL, WITH THE INTENT
   17  TO  FRIGHTEN OR DISTURB ANY OTHER PERSON IN ANY MANNER DESCRIBED IN THIS
   18  SECTION EITHER BY THE DIRECT ACTION OF THE PERSON INITIATING THE  COMMU-
   19  NICATION  OR  THROUGH  THE  ACTIONS  OF  A THIRD PARTY WHOSE ACTIONS ARE
   20  INSTIGATED, INITIATED, PROMPTED,  OR  BROUGHT  ABOUT  BY  SUCH  PERSON'S
   21  COMMUNICATION.
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD03689-01-1
       A. 2598                             2
    1    3. ANY OFFENSE COMMITTED UNDER THIS SECTION MAY BE DEEMED TO HAVE BEEN
    2  COMMITTED  EITHER  AT THE PLACE FROM WHICH THE COMMUNICATION WAS MADE OR
    3  AT THE PLACE WHERE THE COMMUNICATION WAS RECEIVED.
    4    4. FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL MEAN:
    5    (A) "AN ADULT" IS ANY PERSON TWENTY-ONE YEARS OR OLDER;
    6    (B) "A CHILD" IS ANY PERSON UNDER SEVENTEEN YEARS OF AGE;
    7    (C) "ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS" ARE THE ORIGINATION, EMISSION, DISSEM-
    8  INATION, TRANSMISSION, OR RECEPTION OF DATA, IMAGES, SIGNALS, SOUNDS, OR
    9  OTHER INTELLIGENCE OR EQUIVALENCE OF INTELLIGENCE OF ANY NATURE OVER ANY
   10  COMMUNICATIONS  SYSTEM  BY  ANY METHOD, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, A
   11  FIBER OPTIC, ELECTRONIC, MAGNETIC, OPTICAL, DIGITAL, OR  ANALOG  METHOD.
   12  SUCH  ELECTRONIC  COMMUNICATIONS  SHALL  INCLUDE,  BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO
   13  ELECTRONIC MAIL, INTERNET-BASED COMMUNICATIONS, PAGER SERVICE, AND ELEC-
   14  TRONIC TEXT MESSAGING; AND
   15    (D) "AN ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS DEVICE" IS  ANY  INSTRUMENT,  EQUIP-
   16  MENT,  MACHINE,  OR  OTHER  DEVICE  THAT  FACILITATES TELECOMMUNICATION,
   17  INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, A COMPUTER,  COMPUTER  NETWORK,  COMPUTER
   18  CHIP,  COMPUTER  CIRCUIT, SCANNER, TELEPHONE, CELLULAR TELEPHONE, PAGER,
   19  PERSONAL COMMUNICATIONS DEVICE, TRANSPONDER, RECEIVER, RADIO, MODEM,  OR
   20  DEVICE THAT ENABLES THE USE OF A MODEM.
   21    CYBER HARASSMENT IS A CLASS A MISDEMEANOR. CYBER HARASSMENT IS A CLASS
   22  D FELONY WHEN COMMITTED BY AN ADULT AGAINST A CHILD.
   23    S 2. Section 240.25 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 109 of the
   24  laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows:
   25  S 240.25 Harassment in the first degree.
   26    A  person  is  guilty of harassment in the first degree when he or she
   27  intentionally and repeatedly harasses another person by  following  such
   28  person  in  or about a public place or places or by engaging in a course
   29  of conduct or by repeatedly committing acts which places such person  in
   30  reasonable  fear  of  physical injury.   This section shall not apply to
   31  activities regulated by the national labor relations  act,  as  amended,
   32  the  railway  labor  act,  as  amended,  or the federal employment labor
   33  management act, as amended.
   34    Harassment in the first degree is a class B misdemeanor.    HARASSMENT
   35  IN  THE  FIRST  DEGREE  IS  A  CLASS D FELONY WHEN COMMITTED BY AN ADULT
   36  AGAINST A CHILD.
   37    S 3. Section 240.26 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 109 of the
   38  laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows:
   39  S 240.26 Harassment in the second degree.
   40    A person is guilty of harassment  in  the  second  degree  when,  with
   41  intent to harass, annoy or alarm another person:
   42    1.  He  or she strikes, shoves, kicks or otherwise subjects such other
   43  person to physical contact, or attempts or threatens to do the same; or
   44    2. He or she follows a person in or about a public place or places; or
   45    3. He or she engages in a course of conduct or repeatedly commits acts
   46  which alarm or seriously annoy such other  person  and  which  serve  no
   47  legitimate purpose.
   48    Subdivisions  two  and three of this section shall not apply to activ-
   49  ities regulated by the national labor relations  act,  as  amended,  the
   50  railway  labor  act, as amended, or the federal employment labor manage-
   51  ment act, as amended.
   52    Harassment in the second degree is a violation.    HARASSMENT  IN  THE
   53  SECOND  DEGREE  IS A CLASS E FELONY WHEN COMMITTED BY AN ADULT AGAINST A
   54  CHILD.
   55    S 4. Section 120.50 of the penal law, as added by chapter 635  of  the
   56  laws of 1999, is amended to read as follows:
       A. 2598                             3
    1  S 120.50 Stalking in the third degree.
    2    A person is guilty of stalking in the third degree when he or she:
    3    1.  Commits the crime of stalking in the fourth degree in violation of
    4  section 120.45 of this article against three or more persons,  in  three
    5  or  more  separate transactions, for which the actor has not been previ-
    6  ously convicted; or
    7    2. Commits the crime of stalking in the fourth degree in violation  of
    8  section  120.45  of  this article against any person, and has previously
    9  been convicted, within the preceding ten years of a specified  predicate
   10  crime, as defined in subdivision five of section 120.40 of this article,
   11  and  the  victim  of such specified predicate crime is the victim, or an
   12  immediate family member of the victim, of the present offense; or
   13    3. With intent to harass, annoy or alarm  a  specific  person,  inten-
   14  tionally engages in a course of conduct directed at such person which is
   15  likely  to cause such person to reasonably fear physical injury or seri-
   16  ous physical injury, the commission of a sex  offense  against,  or  the
   17  kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment or death of such person or a member of
   18  such person's immediate family; or
   19    4.  Commits  the crime of stalking in the fourth degree and has previ-
   20  ously been convicted within the preceding ten years of stalking  in  the
   21  fourth degree.
   22    Stalking  in  the  third degree is a class A misdemeanor.  STALKING IN
   23  THE THIRD DEGREE IS A CLASS D FELONY WHEN COMMITTED BY AN ADULT  AGAINST
   24  A CHILD.
   25    S  5.  Section 120.45 of the penal law, as added by chapter 635 of the
   26  laws of 1999, is amended to read as follows:
   27  S 120.45 Stalking in the fourth degree.
   28    A person is guilty of stalking in the fourth degree  when  he  or  she
   29  intentionally,  and  for  no  legitimate purpose, engages in a course of
   30  conduct directed at a specific person, and knows  or  reasonably  should
   31  know that such conduct:
   32    1. is likely to cause reasonable fear of material harm to the physical
   33  health,  safety  or  property  of such person, a member of such person's
   34  immediate family or a third party with whom such person  is  acquainted;
   35  or
   36    2.  causes  material  harm  to  the mental or emotional health of such
   37  person, where such conduct consists of following, telephoning or  initi-
   38  ating  communication  or  contact  with  such  person,  a member of such
   39  person's immediate family or a third party  with  whom  such  person  is
   40  acquainted,  and the actor was previously clearly informed to cease that
   41  conduct; or
   42    3. is likely to cause such person to reasonably fear that his  or  her
   43  employment,  business  or  career  is  threatened,  where  such  conduct
   44  consists  of  appearing,  telephoning  or  initiating  communication  or
   45  contact  at such person's place of employment or business, and the actor
   46  was previously clearly informed to cease that conduct.
   47    Stalking in the fourth degree is a class B misdemeanor.   STALKING  IN
   48  THE FOURTH DEGREE IS A CLASS E FELONY WHEN COMMITTED BY AN ADULT AGAINST
   49  A CHILD.
   50    S 6. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
   51  ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
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