Public Act 094-0755
 
HB4121 Enrolled LRB094 14139 RLC 49038 b

    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 1961 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; use of title; solicitation;
certain entities.
    (a) A person commits a false personation when he or she
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 any person 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.
    (a-5) A person commits a false personation when he or she
falsely represents himself or herself to be a veteran in
seeking employment or public office. In this subsection,
"veteran" means a person who has served in the Armed Services
or Reserved Forces of the United States.
    (a-6) A person commits a false personation when he or she
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.
    It is a defense to a prosecution under this subsection
(a-6) that the medal is used, or is intended to be used,
exclusively:
        (1) for a dramatic presentation, such as a theatrical,
    film, or television production, or a historical
    re-enactment; or
        (2) for a costume worn, or intended to be worn, by a
    person under 18 years of age.
    (b) No person shall use the words "Chicago Police,"
"Chicago Police Department," "Chicago Patrolman," "Chicago
Sergeant," "Chicago Lieutenant," "Chicago Peace Officer" or
any other words to the same effect in the title of any
organization, magazine, or other publication without the
express approval of the Chicago Police Board.
    (b-5) No person shall use the words "Cook County Sheriff's
Police" or "Cook County Sheriff" or any other words to the same
effect in the title of any organization, magazine, or other
publication without the express approval of the office of the
Cook County Sheriff's Merit Board. The references to names and
titles in this Section may not be construed as authorizing use
of the names and titles of other organizations or public safety
personnel organizations otherwise prohibited by this Section
or the Solicitation for Charity Act.
    (c) (Blank).
    (c-1) No person may claim or represent that he or she is
acting on behalf of any police department, chief of a police
department, fire department, chief of a fire department,
sheriff's department, or sheriff 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.
    (c-2) 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 the person is
actually representing or acting on behalf of the
nongovernmental organization, and 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
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 has been
entered into.
    (c-3) No person may solicit financial contributions or sell
or deliver or offer to sell or deliver any merchandise, goods,
services, memberships, or advertisements on behalf of a police,
sheriff, or other law enforcement department unless that person
is actually representing or acting on behalf of the department
or governmental organization and has entered into a written
contract with the police chief, or head of the law enforcement
department, and the corporate or municipal authority thereof,
or the sheriff, which specifies and states clearly and fully
the purposes for which the proceeds of the solicitation,
contribution, or sale will be used.
    (c-4) 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 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 the person is actually representing
or acting on behalf of the nongovernmental organization, and
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 before commencing the solicitation or
the sale or delivery or the offers to sell or deliver any
merchandise, goods, services, memberships, or advertisements,
a written contract between the soliciting or selling person and
the nongovernmental organization has been entered into.
    (c-5) No person may solicit financial contributions or sell
or deliver or offer to sell or deliver any merchandise, goods,
services, memberships, or advertisements on behalf of a
department or departments of fire fighters unless that person
is actually representing or acting on behalf of the department
or departments and has entered into a written contract with the
department chief and corporate or municipal authority thereof
which specifies and states clearly and fully the purposes for
which the proceeds of the solicitation, contribution, or sale
will be used.
    (c-6) No person may 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.
    (d) Sentence. False personation, unapproved use of a name
or title, or solicitation in violation of subsection (a), (b),
or (b-5) of this Section is a Class C misdemeanor. False
personation in violation of subsections (a-5) and (c-6) is a
Class A misdemeanor. False personation in violation of
subsection (a-6) of this Section is a petty offense for which
the offender shall be fined at least $100 and not exceeding
$200. Engaging in any activity in violation of subsection
(c-1), (c-2), (c-3), (c-4), or (c-5) of this Section is a Class
4 felony.
(Source: P.A. 94-548, eff. 8-11-05.)