100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2017 and 2018
HB4506

 

Introduced , by Rep. Peter Breen

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
740 ILCS 21/10
720 ILCS 5/12-7.3  from Ch. 38, par. 12-7.3
720 ILCS 5/12-7.5

    Amends the Stalking No Contact Order Act. Provides that stalking does not include an exercise of the right to free speech or assembly that is otherwise lawful or picketing that is otherwise lawful (rather than, "an exercise of the right to free speech or assembly that is otherwise lawful or picketing occurring at the workplace that is otherwise lawful and arises out of a bona fide labor dispute, including any controversy concerning wages, salaries, hours, working conditions or benefits, including health and welfare, sick leave, insurance, and pension or retirement provisions, the making or maintaining of collective bargaining agreements, and the terms to be included in those agreements"). Amends the Criminal Code of 2012. Provides that a person commits stalking when he or she knowingly engages in a course of conduct directed at a specific person, and he or she knows or should know that this course of conduct would cause a reasonable person to fear for his or her safety or the safety of a third person (rather than, in addition, to suffer other emotional distress). Provides that a person commits cyberstalking when he or she engages in a course of conduct using electronic communication directed at a specific person, and he or she knows or should know that would cause a reasonable person to fear for his or her safety (rather than, in addition, to suffer other emotional distress). Effective immediately.


LRB100 18625 SLF 33850 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB4506LRB100 18625 SLF 33850 b

1    AN ACT concerning stalking.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Stalking No Contact Order Act is amended by
5changing Section 10 as follows:
 
6    (740 ILCS 21/10)
7    Sec. 10. Definitions. For the purposes of this Act:
8    "Course of conduct" means 2 or more acts, including but not
9limited to acts in which a respondent directly, indirectly, or
10through third parties, by any action, method, device, or means
11follows, monitors, observes, surveils, threatens, or
12communicates to or about, a person, engages in other contact,
13or interferes with or damages a person's property or pet. A
14course of conduct may include contact via electronic
15communications. The incarceration of a person in a penal
16institution who commits the course of conduct is not a bar to
17prosecution under this Section.
18    "Emotional distress" means significant mental suffering,
19anxiety or alarm.
20    "Contact" includes any contact with the victim, that is
21initiated or continued without the victim's consent, or that is
22in disregard of the victim's expressed desire that the contact
23be avoided or discontinued, including but not limited to being

 

 

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1in the physical presence of the victim; appearing within the
2sight of the victim; approaching or confronting the victim in a
3public place or on private property; appearing at the workplace
4or residence of the victim; entering onto or remaining on
5property owned, leased, or occupied by the victim; or placing
6an object on, or delivering an object to, property owned,
7leased, or occupied by the victim.
8    "Petitioner" means any named petitioner for the stalking no
9contact order or any named victim of stalking on whose behalf
10the petition is brought.
11    "Reasonable person" means a person in the petitioner's
12circumstances with the petitioner's knowledge of the
13respondent and the respondent's prior acts.
14    "Stalking" means engaging in a course of conduct directed
15at a specific person, and he or she knows or should know that
16this course of conduct would cause a reasonable person to fear
17for his or her safety or the safety of a third person or suffer
18emotional distress. Stalking does not include an exercise of
19the right to free speech or assembly that is otherwise lawful
20or picketing occurring at the workplace that is otherwise
21lawful and arises out of a bona fide labor dispute, including
22any controversy concerning wages, salaries, hours, working
23conditions or benefits, including health and welfare, sick
24leave, insurance, and pension or retirement provisions, the
25making or maintaining of collective bargaining agreements, and
26the terms to be included in those agreements.

 

 

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1    "Stalking No Contact Order" means an emergency order or
2plenary order granted under this Act, which includes a remedy
3authorized by Section 80 of this Act.
4(Source: P.A. 96-246, eff. 1-1-10.)
 
5    Section 10. The Criminal Code of 2012 is amended by
6changing Sections 12-7.3 and 12-7.5 as follows:
 
7    (720 ILCS 5/12-7.3)  (from Ch. 38, par. 12-7.3)
8    Sec. 12-7.3. Stalking.
9    (a) A person commits stalking when he or she knowingly
10engages in a course of conduct directed at a specific person,
11and he or she knows or should know that this course of conduct
12would cause a reasonable person to: (1) fear for his or her
13safety or the safety of a third person; or (2) suffer other
14emotional distress.
15    (a-3) A person commits stalking when he or she, knowingly
16and without lawful justification, on at least 2 separate
17occasions follows another person or places the person under
18surveillance or any combination thereof and:
19        (1) at any time transmits a threat of immediate or
20    future bodily harm, sexual assault, confinement or
21    restraint and the threat is directed towards that person or
22    a family member of that person; or
23        (2) places that person in reasonable apprehension of
24    immediate or future bodily harm, sexual assault,

 

 

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1    confinement or restraint to or of that person or a family
2    member of that person.
3    (a-5) A person commits stalking when he or she has
4previously been convicted of stalking another person and
5knowingly and without lawful justification on one occasion:
6        (1) follows that same person or places that same person
7    under surveillance; and
8        (2) transmits a threat of immediate or future bodily
9    harm, sexual assault, confinement or restraint to that
10    person or a family member of that person.
11    (b) Sentence. Stalking is a Class 4 felony; a second or
12subsequent conviction is a Class 3 felony.
13    (c) Definitions. For purposes of this Section:
14        (1) "Course of conduct" means 2 or more acts, including
15    but not limited to acts in which a defendant directly,
16    indirectly, or through third parties, by any action,
17    method, device, or means follows, monitors, observes,
18    surveils, threatens, or communicates to or about, a person,
19    engages in other non-consensual contact, or interferes
20    with or damages a person's property or pet. A course of
21    conduct may include contact via electronic communications.
22        (2) "Electronic communication" means any transfer of
23    signs, signals, writings, sounds, data, or intelligence of
24    any nature transmitted in whole or in part by a wire,
25    radio, electromagnetic, photoelectric, or photo-optical
26    system. "Electronic communication" includes transmissions

 

 

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1    by a computer through the Internet to another computer.
2        (3) (Blank). "Emotional distress" means significant
3    mental suffering, anxiety or alarm.
4        (4) "Family member" means a parent, grandparent,
5    brother, sister, or child, whether by whole blood,
6    half-blood, or adoption and includes a step-grandparent,
7    step-parent, step-brother, step-sister or step-child.
8    "Family member" also means any other person who regularly
9    resides in the household, or who, within the prior 6
10    months, regularly resided in the household.
11        (5) "Follows another person" means (i) to move in
12    relative proximity to a person as that person moves from
13    place to place or (ii) to remain in relative proximity to a
14    person who is stationary or whose movements are confined to
15    a small area. "Follows another person" does not include a
16    following within the residence of the defendant.
17        (6) "Non-consensual contact" means any contact with
18    the victim that is initiated or continued without the
19    victim's consent, including but not limited to being in the
20    physical presence of the victim; appearing within the sight
21    of the victim; approaching or confronting the victim in a
22    public place or on private property; appearing at the
23    workplace or residence of the victim; entering onto or
24    remaining on property owned, leased, or occupied by the
25    victim; or placing an object on, or delivering an object
26    to, property owned, leased, or occupied by the victim.

 

 

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1        (7) "Places a person under surveillance" means: (1)
2    remaining present outside the person's school, place of
3    employment, vehicle, other place occupied by the person, or
4    residence other than the residence of the defendant; or (2)
5    placing an electronic tracking device on the person or the
6    person's property.
7        (8) "Reasonable person" means a person in the victim's
8    situation.
9        (9) "Transmits a threat" means a verbal or written
10    threat or a threat implied by a pattern of conduct or a
11    combination of verbal or written statements or conduct.
12    (d) Exemptions.
13        (1) This Section does not apply to any individual or
14    organization (i) monitoring or attentive to compliance
15    with public or worker safety laws, wage and hour
16    requirements, or other statutory requirements, or (ii)
17    picketing occurring at the workplace that is otherwise
18    lawful and arises out of a bona fide labor dispute,
19    including any controversy concerning wages, salaries,
20    hours, working conditions or benefits, including health
21    and welfare, sick leave, insurance, and pension or
22    retirement provisions, the making or maintaining of
23    collective bargaining agreements, and the terms to be
24    included in those agreements.
25        (2) This Section does not apply to an exercise of the
26    right to free speech or assembly that is otherwise lawful.

 

 

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1        (3) Telecommunications carriers, commercial mobile
2    service providers, and providers of information services,
3    including, but not limited to, Internet service providers
4    and hosting service providers, are not liable under this
5    Section, except for willful and wanton misconduct, by
6    virtue of the transmission, storage, or caching of
7    electronic communications or messages of others or by
8    virtue of the provision of other related
9    telecommunications, commercial mobile services, or
10    information services used by others in violation of this
11    Section.
12    (d-5) The incarceration of a person in a penal institution
13who commits the course of conduct or transmits a threat is not
14a bar to prosecution under this Section.
15    (d-10) A defendant who directed the actions of a third
16party to violate this Section, under the principles of
17accountability set forth in Article 5 of this Code, is guilty
18of violating this Section as if the same had been personally
19done by the defendant, without regard to the mental state of
20the third party acting at the direction of the defendant.
21(Source: P.A. 96-686, eff. 1-1-10; 96-1551, eff. 7-1-11;
2297-311, eff. 8-11-11; 97-1109, eff. 1-1-13.)
 
23    (720 ILCS 5/12-7.5)
24    Sec. 12-7.5. Cyberstalking.
25    (a) A person commits cyberstalking when he or she engages

 

 

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1in a course of conduct using electronic communication directed
2at a specific person, and he or she knows or should know that
3would cause a reasonable person to: (1) fear for his or her
4safety or the safety of a third person; or (2) suffer other
5emotional distress.
6    (a-3) A person commits cyberstalking when he or she,
7knowingly and without lawful justification, on at least 2
8separate occasions, harasses another person through the use of
9electronic communication and:
10        (1) at any time transmits a threat of immediate or
11    future bodily harm, sexual assault, confinement, or
12    restraint and the threat is directed towards that person or
13    a family member of that person; or
14        (2) places that person or a family member of that
15    person in reasonable apprehension of immediate or future
16    bodily harm, sexual assault, confinement, or restraint; or
17        (3) at any time knowingly solicits the commission of an
18    act by any person which would be a violation of this Code
19    directed towards that person or a family member of that
20    person.
21    (a-4) A person commits cyberstalking when he or she
22knowingly, surreptitiously, and without lawful justification,
23installs or otherwise places electronic monitoring software or
24spyware on an electronic communication device as a means to
25harass another person and:
26        (1) at any time transmits a threat of immediate or

 

 

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1    future bodily harm, sexual assault, confinement, or
2    restraint and the threat is directed towards that person or
3    a family member of that person;
4        (2) places that person or a family member of that
5    person in reasonable apprehension of immediate or future
6    bodily harm, sexual assault, confinement, or restraint; or
7        (3) at any time knowingly solicits the commission of an
8    act by any person which would be a violation of this Code
9    directed towards that person or a family member of that
10    person.
11    For purposes of this Section, an installation or placement
12is not surreptitious if:
13        (1) with respect to electronic software, hardware, or
14    computer applications, clear notice regarding the use of
15    the specific type of tracking software or spyware is
16    provided by the installer in advance to the owners and
17    primary users of the electronic software, hardware, or
18    computer application; or
19        (2) written or electronic consent of all owners and
20    primary users of the electronic software, hardware, or
21    computer application on which the tracking software or
22    spyware will be installed has been sought and obtained
23    through a mechanism that does not seek to obtain any other
24    approvals or acknowledgement from the owners and primary
25    users.
26    (a-5) A person commits cyberstalking when he or she,

 

 

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1knowingly and without lawful justification, creates and
2maintains an Internet website or webpage which is accessible to
3one or more third parties for a period of at least 24 hours,
4and which contains statements harassing another person and:
5        (1) which communicates a threat of immediate or future
6    bodily harm, sexual assault, confinement, or restraint,
7    where the threat is directed towards that person or a
8    family member of that person, or
9        (2) which places that person or a family member of that
10    person in reasonable apprehension of immediate or future
11    bodily harm, sexual assault, confinement, or restraint, or
12        (3) which knowingly solicits the commission of an act
13    by any person which would be a violation of this Code
14    directed towards that person or a family member of that
15    person.
16    (b) Sentence. Cyberstalking is a Class 4 felony; a second
17or subsequent conviction is a Class 3 felony.
18    (c) For purposes of this Section:
19        (1) "Course of conduct" means 2 or more acts, including
20    but not limited to acts in which a defendant directly,
21    indirectly, or through third parties, by any action,
22    method, device, or means follows, monitors, observes,
23    surveils, threatens, or communicates to or about, a person,
24    engages in other non-consensual contact, or interferes
25    with or damages a person's property or pet. The
26    incarceration in a penal institution of a person who

 

 

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1    commits the course of conduct is not a bar to prosecution
2    under this Section.
3        (2) "Electronic communication" means any transfer of
4    signs, signals, writings, sounds, data, or intelligence of
5    any nature transmitted in whole or in part by a wire,
6    radio, electromagnetic, photoelectric, or photo-optical
7    system. "Electronic communication" includes transmissions
8    through an electronic device including, but not limited to,
9    a telephone, cellular phone, computer, or pager, which
10    communication includes, but is not limited to, e-mail,
11    instant message, text message, or voice mail.
12        (2.1) "Electronic communication device" means an
13    electronic device, including, but not limited to, a
14    wireless telephone, personal digital assistant, or a
15    portable or mobile computer.
16        (2.2) "Electronic monitoring software or spyware"
17    means software or an application that surreptitiously
18    tracks computer activity on a device and records and
19    transmits the information to third parties with the intent
20    to cause injury or harm. For the purposes of this paragraph
21    (2.2), "intent to cause injury or harm" does not include
22    activities carried out in furtherance of the prevention of
23    fraud or crime or of protecting the security of networks,
24    online services, applications, software, other computer
25    programs, users, or electronic communication devices or
26    similar devices.

 

 

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1        (3) (Blank). "Emotional distress" means significant
2    mental suffering, anxiety or alarm.
3        (4) "Harass" means to engage in a knowing and willful
4    course of conduct directed at a specific person that
5    alarms, torments, or terrorizes that person.
6        (5) "Non-consensual contact" means any contact with
7    the victim that is initiated or continued without the
8    victim's consent, including but not limited to being in the
9    physical presence of the victim; appearing within the sight
10    of the victim; approaching or confronting the victim in a
11    public place or on private property; appearing at the
12    workplace or residence of the victim; entering onto or
13    remaining on property owned, leased, or occupied by the
14    victim; or placing an object on, or delivering an object
15    to, property owned, leased, or occupied by the victim.
16        (6) "Reasonable person" means a person in the victim's
17    circumstances, with the victim's knowledge of the
18    defendant and the defendant's prior acts.
19        (7) "Third party" means any person other than the
20    person violating these provisions and the person or persons
21    towards whom the violator's actions are directed.
22    (d) Telecommunications carriers, commercial mobile service
23providers, and providers of information services, including,
24but not limited to, Internet service providers and hosting
25service providers, are not liable under this Section, except
26for willful and wanton misconduct, by virtue of the

 

 

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1transmission, storage, or caching of electronic communications
2or messages of others or by virtue of the provision of other
3related telecommunications, commercial mobile services, or
4information services used by others in violation of this
5Section.
6    (e) A defendant who directed the actions of a third party
7to violate this Section, under the principles of accountability
8set forth in Article 5 of this Code, is guilty of violating
9this Section as if the same had been personally done by the
10defendant, without regard to the mental state of the third
11party acting at the direction of the defendant.
12    (f) It is not a violation of this Section to:
13        (1) provide, protect, maintain, update, or upgrade
14    networks, online services, applications, software, other
15    computer programs, electronic communication devices, or
16    similar devices under the terms of use applicable to those
17    networks, services, applications, software, programs, or
18    devices;
19        (2) interfere with or prohibit terms or conditions in a
20    contract or license related to networks, online services,
21    applications, software, other computer programs,
22    electronic communication devices, or similar devices; or
23        (3) create any liability by reason of terms or
24    conditions adopted, or technical measures implemented, to
25    prevent the transmission of unsolicited electronic mail or
26    communications.

 

 

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1(Source: P.A. 100-166, eff. 1-1-18.)
 
2    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
3becoming law.