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Public Act 095-0798
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| HB4506 Enrolled |
LRB095 18288 RLC 44372 b |
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AN ACT concerning criminal law.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The Criminal Code of 1961 is amended by changing |
Section 16-1.3 as follows:
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(720 ILCS 5/16-1.3) (from Ch. 38, par. 16-1.3)
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Sec. 16-1.3. Financial exploitation of an elderly person or |
a
person with a disability.
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(a) A person commits the offense of financial exploitation |
of an elderly
person or a person with a disability when he or |
she stands in a
position of trust
or confidence with the
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elderly person or a person with a disability
and he
or she |
knowingly and by
deception or
intimidation obtains control over |
the property of an elderly person or
a person
with a disability
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or illegally uses the assets or resources of an elderly person |
or a
person with a disability. The illegal use of the assets or |
resources of an
elderly person or a person with a disability |
includes, but is not limited
to, the misappropriation of those |
assets or resources by undue influence,
breach of a fiduciary |
relationship, fraud, deception, extortion, or
use of the assets |
or resources contrary to law.
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Financial exploitation of an elderly person or a person
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with a
disability is a Class 4
felony if the value of the |
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property is $300 or less, a Class 3 felony if
the value of the |
property is more than $300 but less than $5,000, a Class 2
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felony if the value of the property is $5,000 or more but less |
than
$100,000 and a Class 1 felony if the value of the property |
is $100,000 or more
or if the elderly person is over 70 years |
of age and the value of the
property is $15,000 or more or if |
the elderly person is 80 years of age or
older and the value of |
the property is $5,000 or more.
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(b) For purposes of this Section:
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(1) "Elderly person" means a person 60
years of age or |
older.
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(2) "Person with a disability" means a person who
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suffers from a permanent physical or mental impairment |
resulting from
disease, injury, functional disorder or |
congenital condition that impairs the
individual's mental |
or physical ability to independently manage his or her
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property or financial resources, or both.
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(3) "Intimidation" means the communication to an |
elderly person or a
person with a disability that he or she |
shall be deprived of food and
nutrition,
shelter, |
prescribed
medication or medical care and treatment.
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(4) "Deception" means, in addition to its meaning as |
defined in Section
15-4 of this Code,
a misrepresentation |
or concealment of material fact
relating to the terms of a |
contract or agreement entered into with the
elderly person |
or person with a disability or to the
existing or
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pre-existing condition of
any of the property involved in |
such contract or agreement; or the use or
employment of any |
misrepresentation, false pretense or false promise in
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order to induce, encourage or solicit the elderly person or
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person with
a disability to
enter into a contract or |
agreement.
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(c) For purposes of this Section, a person stands in a |
position of
trust and confidence with an elderly person or |
person with a
disability when he (1) is a
parent, spouse, adult |
child or other relative by blood or marriage of the
elderly |
person or person with a disability, (2) is a joint
tenant or
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tenant in common with
the elderly person or person with a |
disability, (3) has
a legal or
fiduciary relationship
with the |
elderly person or person with a disability, or (4) is a |
financial
planning or investment professional.
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(d) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to limit the |
remedies
available to the victim under the Illinois Domestic |
Violence Act of 1986.
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(e) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to impose |
criminal
liability on a person who has made a good faith effort |
to assist the
elderly person or person with a disability in the
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management of his or her
property, but through
no fault of his |
or her own has been unable to provide such assistance.
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(f) It shall not be a defense to financial exploitation of |
an elderly
person or person with a disability that the accused |
reasonably believed
that the victim was
not an elderly person |
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or person with a disability.
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(g) Civil Liability. A person who is charged by information |
or
indictment with the offense of financial exploitation of an |
elderly person
or person with a disability and who fails or |
refuses to return
the victim's property
within 60 days |
following a written demand from the victim or the victim's
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legal representative shall be liable to the victim or to the |
estate of the
victim in damages of treble the amount of the |
value of the property
obtained, plus reasonable attorney fees |
and court costs. The burden of
proof that the defendant |
unlawfully obtained the victim's property shall be
by a |
preponderance of the evidence. This subsection shall be |
operative
whether or not the defendant has been convicted of |
the offense.
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(Source: P.A. 92-808, eff. 8-21-02; 93-301, eff. 1-1-04.)
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