Bill Text: TX SB1691 | 2021-2022 | 87th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to civil and criminal liability for doxing; creating an offense.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-03-26 - Referred to Criminal Justice [SB1691 Detail]
Download: Texas-2021-SB1691-Introduced.html
By: Miles | S.B. No. 1691 | |
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relating to civil and criminal liability for doxing; creating an | ||
offense. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Chapter 22, Penal Code, is amended by adding | ||
Section 22.13 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 22.13 DOXING. (a) A person commits an offense if: | ||
(1) the person intentionally posts another person's | ||
private personal information without consent of the person whose | ||
information is posted; | ||
(2) the information is posted: | ||
(A) with the intent to promote or assist in the | ||
commission of an offense that would cause the person whose | ||
information is posted to suffer death, bodily injury, or stalking, | ||
under Section 42.072; or, | ||
(B) with the intent that the information would be | ||
used to threaten harm or to harass any person and with reckless | ||
disregard that the posting would be reasonably likely to incite an | ||
attempt to cause the person to suffer death, bodily injury, or | ||
stalking, under Section 42.072; and, | ||
(3) the posting of the information: | ||
(A) is conducted with knowledge that the | ||
information will be used in the commission of an offense that would | ||
cause harm to the person whose information is posted or to a close | ||
relation to that person; | ||
(B) would cause a reasonable person to suffer | ||
significant economic injury or mental anguish or to fear serious | ||
bodily injury or death for oneself or for a close relation to | ||
oneself; or | ||
(C) causes the person whose information is posted | ||
to suffer a substantial life disruption. | ||
(b) An offense under paragraph a(3)(A) or (a)(3)(B) is a | ||
Class A misdemeanor, except that the offense is a State Jail Felony | ||
if an individual suffers death, physical injury, mental anguish or | ||
significant economic injury as a proximate result of conduct | ||
arising out of the posting. | ||
(c) An offense under Subsection a(3)(C) is a Class B | ||
misdemeanor. | ||
(d) If in the trial of an offense under this section, an | ||
affirmative finding is made that the offense was committed because | ||
of bias or prejudice, under Article 42.014, Code of Criminal | ||
Procedure, the punishment for the offense is increased as provided | ||
under Section 12.47. | ||
(e) It is not an offense under this section for a person to | ||
provide another person's private personal information in | ||
connection with: | ||
(1) the reporting of information about criminal | ||
activity to a peace officer or an employee of a law enforcement | ||
agency, and the person making the report reasonably believes the | ||
information to be true; | ||
(2) any lawfully authorized investigative, | ||
protective, or intelligence activity of any law enforcement agency | ||
or of an intelligence agency of the United States; or | ||
(3) lawful and constitutionally protected activity as | ||
it pertains to speech, assembly or petition. | ||
(f) Nothing in this section shall be construed in any manner | ||
to: | ||
(1) conflict with 47 U.S.C. § 230 of the Communication | ||
Decency Act; | ||
(2) conflict with 42 U.S.C. § 1983 of the Civil Rights | ||
Act; or, | ||
(3) prohibit any activity protected under the | ||
Constitution of the United States or the Texas Constitution. | ||
(g) If conduct constituting an offense under this section | ||
also constitutes an offense under another section of this code, the | ||
actor may be prosecuted under either section or both sections. | ||
(h) In this section: | ||
(1) "Close relation" means a member of the person's | ||
family or household or an individual with whom the person has a | ||
dating relationship, or any other individual for whom the release | ||
of the private personal information could reasonably lead to an | ||
offense being committed against that individual, including | ||
coworkers or persons at the residence of the person who is the | ||
subject of the information. | ||
(2) "Dating relationship," "family," "household," and | ||
"member of a household" have the meanings assigned by Chapter 71, | ||
Family Code. | ||
(2) "Electronic communication" has the meaning | ||
assigned by Section 42.07; | ||
(3) "Mental anguish" means emotional distress or | ||
emotional suffering as evidenced by anxiety, fear, torment or | ||
apprehension that may or may not result in a physical manifestation | ||
of mental anguish or a mental health diagnosis. The mental anguish | ||
must be protracted and not merely trivial or transitory; | ||
(4) "Private personal information" means: | ||
(A) "Personal identifying information" as that | ||
term is defined in Section 521.002(a)(1), Business and Commerce | ||
Code; | ||
(B) "Sensitive personal information" as that | ||
term is defined in Section 521.002(a)(2), Business and Commerce | ||
Code; | ||
(C) information that alone or in conjunction with | ||
other information identifies an individual and reveals the | ||
individual's race, color, disability, religion, sex, national | ||
origin, or age, or includes any sexually intimate visual depiction | ||
of the individual; and, | ||
(D) usernames, passwords, or any other | ||
information that provides access to a person's communications by | ||
means of teleconferencing, video-teleconferencing, or any other | ||
form of digital meeting room. | ||
(5) "Post" means to circulate, deliver, distribute, | ||
disseminate, transmit or otherwise make available to two or more | ||
persons through electronic communication; | ||
(6) "Substantial life disruption" means that a person | ||
significantly modifies that person's actions or routines in an | ||
attempt to avoid the actor or because of the actor's course of | ||
conduct, such as changing a phone number, changing an electronic | ||
mail address, deleting personal electronic accounts or | ||
significantly decreasing use of the internet, moving from an | ||
established residence, changing daily routines, changing routes to | ||
and from work, changing employment or work schedule or losing time | ||
from work or a job. | ||
SECTION 2. Chapter 13, Code of Criminal Procedure, is | ||
amended by adding Article 13.39 to read as follows: | ||
Art. 13.39. DOXING. The offense of doxing may be prosecuted | ||
in any county in which an element of the offense occurred, or in | ||
which a person resides who is the subject of the private personal | ||
information posted as an element of the offense. | ||
SECTION 3. Title 5, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, is | ||
amended by adding Chapter 98C to read as follows: | ||
CHAPTER 98C. LIABILITY FOR DOXING | ||
Sec 98C.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter, "private personal | ||
information" has the meaning assigned by Section 22.13(h), Penal | ||
Code. | ||
Sec. 98C.002. LIABILITY. (a) A defendant who engages in | ||
doxing, as that offense is defined under Section 22.13, Penal Code, | ||
is liable, as provided by this chapter, for damages arising from the | ||
posting of private personal information by the defendant, as | ||
described by that section, to the person whose information was | ||
posted. | ||
Sec. 98C.003. DAMAGES. (a) A claimant who prevails in a | ||
suit under this chapter shall be awarded: | ||
(1) actual damages, including damages for mental | ||
anguish even if an injury other than mental anguish is not shown; | ||
(2) court costs; and | ||
(3) reasonable attorney's fees. | ||
(b) In addition to an award under Subsection (a), a claimant | ||
who prevails in a suit under this chapter may recover exemplary | ||
damages. | ||
Sec. 98C.003. INJUNCTIVE RELIEF. A court in which a suit is | ||
brought under this chapter, on the motion of a party, may issue a | ||
temporary restraining order or a temporary or permanent injunction | ||
to restrain and prevent the disclosure or continued disclosure of a | ||
party's private personal information. | ||
Sec. 98C.004. CAUSE OF ACTION CUMULATIVE. The cause of | ||
action created by this chapter is cumulative of any other remedy | ||
provided by common law or statute. | ||
Sec. 98C.005. JURISDICTION. A court has personal | ||
jurisdiction over a defendant in a suit brought under this chapter | ||
if: | ||
(1) the defendant resides in this state; | ||
(2) the person whose private personal information was | ||
posted resides in this state; | ||
(3) the private personal information is stored on a | ||
server that is located in this state; or | ||
(4) the private personal information is available for | ||
view in this state. | ||
Sec. 98C.006. JOINT AND SEVERAL LIABILITY. A person who is | ||
found liable under this chapter is jointly and severally liable | ||
with any other defendant for the entire amount of damages resulting | ||
in whole or in part from the posting of private personal information | ||
by the defendant. | ||
Sec. 98C.007. LIBERAL CONSTRUCTION AND APPLICATION; CERTAIN | ||
CONDUCT EXCEPTED. This chapter shall be liberally construed and | ||
applied to promote its underlying purpose to protect persons from, | ||
and provide adequate remedies to victims of, doxing. | ||
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021. |