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Public Act 096-0686 |
HB2542 Enrolled |
LRB096 10797 RLC 21009 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 |
Sections 12-7.3, 12-7.4, and 12-7.5 as follows:
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(720 ILCS 5/12-7.3) (from Ch. 38, par. 12-7.3)
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Sec. 12-7.3. Stalking.
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(a) 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: |
(1) fear for his or her safety or the safety of a third |
person; or |
(2) suffer other emotional distress. |
(a-3) A person commits stalking when he or she, knowingly |
and without
lawful justification, on at least 2 separate |
occasions follows
another person
or places the person under |
surveillance or any combination thereof and:
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(1) at any time transmits a threat of immediate or |
future bodily harm, sexual
assault, confinement or |
restraint and the threat is directed towards that
person or |
a family member of that
person; or
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(2) places that person in reasonable apprehension of |
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immediate or future
bodily harm, sexual assault, |
confinement or restraint; or
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(3) places that person in reasonable apprehension that |
a family member
will receive immediate or future bodily |
harm, sexual assault, confinement, or
restraint.
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(a-5) A person commits stalking when he or she has |
previously been
convicted of stalking another person and |
knowingly and without lawful
justification on one occasion:
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(1) follows that same person or places that same person |
under
surveillance; and
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(2) transmits a threat of immediate or future bodily |
harm, sexual
assault, confinement or restraint; and
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(3) the threat is directed towards that person or a |
family member of
that person.
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(b) Sentence.
Stalking is a Class 4 felony. A second or |
subsequent
conviction for stalking is a Class 3 felony.
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(c) Definitions. For purposes of this Section: |
(1) "Course of conduct" means 2 or more acts, including |
but not limited to acts in which a defendant directly, |
indirectly, or through third parties, by any action, |
method, device, or means follows, monitors, observes, |
surveils, threatens, or communicates to or about, a person, |
engages in other non-consensual contact, or interferes |
with or damages a person's property or pet. A course of |
conduct may include contact via electronic communications. |
(2) "Electronic communication" means any transfer of |
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signs, signals, writings, sounds, data, or intelligence of |
any nature transmitted in whole or in part by a wire, |
radio, electromagnetic, photoelectric, or photo-optical |
system. "Electronic communication" includes transmissions |
by a computer through the Internet to another computer. |
(3) "Emotional distress" means significant mental |
suffering, anxiety or alarm. |
(4) "Family member" means a parent,
grandparent, |
brother, sister, or child, whether by whole blood, |
half-blood, or
adoption and includes a step-grandparent, |
step-parent, step-brother,
step-sister or step-child. |
"Family member" also means any other person who
regularly |
resides in the household, or who, within the prior 6 |
months,
regularly resided in the household. |
(5) "Follows another person" means (i) to
move in |
relative proximity to a person as that person moves from |
place to place
or (ii) to remain in relative proximity to a |
person who is stationary or whose
movements are confined to |
a small area.
"Follows another person" does not
include a |
following within the residence of the defendant. |
(6) "Non-consensual contact" means any contact with |
the victim that is initiated or continued without the |
victim's consent, including but not limited to being in the |
physical presence of the victim; appearing within the sight |
of the victim; approaching or confronting the victim in a |
public place or on private property; appearing at the |
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workplace or residence of the victim; entering onto or |
remaining on property owned, leased, or occupied by the |
victim; or placing an object on, or delivering an object |
to, property owned, leased, or occupied by the victim. |
(7) "Places a person under
surveillance" means: (1) |
remaining present outside the person's school, place of
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employment, vehicle, other place occupied by the person, or |
residence other
than the residence of the defendant; or (2) |
placing an electronic tracking device on the person or the |
person's property. |
(8) "Reasonable person" means a person in the victim's |
situation. |
(9) "Transmits a threat" means a verbal
or
written |
threat or a threat implied by a pattern of conduct or a |
combination of
verbal or written statements or conduct. |
(d) Exemptions. |
(1) This Section does not apply to any individual or |
organization (i) monitoring or attentive to compliance |
with public or worker safety laws, wage and hour |
requirements, or other statutory requirements, or (ii) |
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 |
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collective bargaining agreements, and the terms to be |
included in those agreements. |
(2) This Section does not apply to an exercise of the |
right to free speech or assembly that is otherwise lawful. |
(3) Telecommunications carriers, commercial mobile |
service providers, and providers of information services, |
including, but not limited to, Internet service providers |
and hosting service providers, are not liable under this |
Section, except for willful and wanton misconduct, by |
virtue of the transmission, storage, or caching of |
electronic communications or messages of others or by |
virtue of the provision of other related |
telecommunications, commercial mobile services, or |
information services used by others in violation of this |
Section. |
(d-5) (b-5) The incarceration of a person in a penal |
institution who commits the course of conduct or transmits a
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threat is not a bar to prosecution under this Section.
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(c) Exemption. This Section does not apply to picketing |
occurring at
the workplace that is otherwise lawful and arises |
out of a bona fide labor
dispute, or any exercise of the right |
of free speech or assembly that is
otherwise lawful.
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(d) For the purpose of this Section, a defendant "places a |
person under
surveillance" by: (1) remaining present outside |
the person's school, place of
employment, vehicle, other place |
occupied by the person, or residence other
than the residence |
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of the defendant; or (2) placing an electronic tracking device |
on the person or the person's property.
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(e) For the purpose of this Section,
"follows another |
person" means (i) to
move in relative proximity to a person as |
that person moves from place to place
or (ii) to remain in |
relative proximity to a person who is stationary or whose
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movements are confined to a small area.
"Follows another |
person" does not
include a following within the residence of |
the defendant.
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(f) For the purposes of this Section and Section 12-7.4, |
"bona fide labor
dispute" means any controversy concerning |
wages, salaries, hours, working
conditions, or benefits, |
including health and welfare, sick leave, insurance,
and
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pension or retirement provisions, the making or maintaining of |
collective
bargaining agreements, and the terms to be included |
in those agreements.
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(g) For the purposes of this Section, "transmits a threat" |
means a verbal
or
written threat or a threat implied by a |
pattern of conduct or a combination of
verbal or written |
statements or conduct.
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(h) For the purposes of this Section, "family member" means |
a parent,
grandparent, brother, sister, or child, whether by |
whole blood, half-blood, or
adoption and includes a |
step-grandparent, step-parent, step-brother,
step-sister or |
step-child. "Family member" also means any other person who
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regularly resides in the household, or who, within the prior 6 |
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months,
regularly resided in the household.
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(Source: P.A. 95-33, eff. 1-1-08.)
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(720 ILCS 5/12-7.4) (from Ch. 38, par. 12-7.4)
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Sec. 12-7.4. Aggravated stalking.
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(a) A person commits
aggravated stalking when he or she, in |
conjunction with committing the
offense of stalking,
also does |
any of the following:
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(1) causes bodily harm to the victim;
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(2) confines or restrains the victim; or
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(3) violates a temporary
restraining order, an order of |
protection, a stalking no contact order, a civil no contact |
order, or an injunction
prohibiting the behavior described |
in
subsection (b)(1) of Section 214 of the Illinois |
Domestic Violence Act of 1986.
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(b) Sentence. Aggravated stalking is a Class 3 felony. A |
second or
subsequent conviction for aggravated stalking is a |
Class 2
felony.
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(c) Exemptions Exemption . |
(1) This Section does not apply to any individual or |
organization (i) monitoring or attentive to compliance |
with public or worker safety laws, wage and hour |
requirements, or other statutory requirements, or (ii) |
picketing occurring at the
workplace that is otherwise |
lawful and arises out of a bona fide labor
dispute |
including any controversy concerning wages, salaries, |
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hours, working conditions or benefits, including health |
and welfare, sick leave, insurance, and pension or |
retirement provisions, the managing or maintenance of |
collective bargaining agreements, and the terms to be |
included in those agreements. , or any |
(2) This Section does not apply to an exercise of the |
right of free speech or assembly that is
otherwise lawful.
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(3) Telecommunications carriers, commercial mobile |
service providers, and providers of information services, |
including, but not limited to, Internet service providers |
and hosting service providers, are not liable under this |
Section, except for willful and wanton misconduct, by |
virtue of the transmission, storage, or caching of |
electronic communications or messages of others or by |
virtue of the provision of other related |
telecommunications, commercial mobile services, or |
information services used by others in violation of this |
Section. |
(d) For purposes of this Section, "bona fide labor dispute" |
has the
meaning ascribed to it in Section 12-7.3.
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(Source: P.A. 88-402; 88-677, eff. 12-15-94; 89-377, eff. |
8-18-95.)
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(720 ILCS 5/12-7.5)
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Sec. 12-7.5. Cyberstalking.
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(a) A person commits cyberstalking when he or she engages |
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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: |
(1) fear for his or her safety or the safety of a third |
person; or |
(2) suffer other emotional distress. |
(a-3) A person commits cyberstalking when he or she , |
knowingly and without
lawful justification, on at least 2 |
separate occasions, harasses another person
through the use of |
electronic communication and:
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(1) at any time transmits a threat of immediate or |
future bodily harm,
sexual assault, confinement, or |
restraint and the threat is directed towards
that person or |
a family member of that person, or
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(2) places that person or a family member of that |
person in reasonable
apprehension of immediate or future |
bodily harm, sexual assault, confinement,
or restraint; or
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(3) at any time knowingly solicits the commission of an |
act by any person which would be a violation of this Code |
directed towards that person or a family member of that |
person. |
(a-5) A person commits cyberstalking when he or she, |
knowingly and without lawful justification, creates and |
maintains an Internet website or webpage which is accessible to |
one or more third parties for a period of at least 24 hours, |
and which contains statements harassing another person and: |
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(1) which communicates a threat of immediate or future |
bodily harm, sexual assault, confinement, or restraint, |
where the threat is directed towards that person or a |
family member of that person, or |
(2) which places that person or a family member of that |
person in reasonable apprehension of immediate or future |
bodily harm, sexual assault, confinement, or restraint, or |
(3) which knowingly solicits the commission of an act |
by any person which would be a violation of this Code |
directed towards that person or a family member of that |
person. |
(b) As used in this Section:
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"Harass"
means to engage in a knowing and willful course of |
conduct directed at a
specific person
that alarms, torments, or |
terrorizes that person.
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"Third party" means any person other than the person |
violating these provisions and the person or persons towards |
whom the violator's actions are directed. |
"Electronic communication" means any
transfer of signs, |
signals, writings, sounds, data, or intelligence of any
nature |
transmitted in whole or in part by a wire, radio, |
electronmagnetic,
photoelectric, or photo-optical system. |
"Electronic communication" includes
transmissions by a
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computer through the Internet to another computer.
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(b) (c) Sentence. Cyberstalking is a Class 4 felony. A |
second or subsequent
conviction for cyberstalking is a Class 3 |
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felony.
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(c) For purposes of this Section: |
(1) "Course of conduct" means 2 or more acts, including |
but not limited to acts in which a defendant directly, |
indirectly, or through third parties, by any action, |
method, device, or means follows, monitors, observes, |
surveils, threatens, or communicates to or about, a person, |
engages in other non-consensual contact, or interferes |
with or damages a person's property or pet. The |
incarceration in a penal institution of a person who |
commits the course of conduct is not a bar to prosecution |
under this Section. |
(2) "Electronic communication" means any transfer of |
signs, signals, writings, sounds, data, or intelligence of |
any nature transmitted in whole or in part by a wire, |
radio, electromagnetic, photoelectric, or photo-optical |
system. "Electronic communication" includes transmissions |
by a computer through the Internet to another computer. |
(3) "Emotional distress" means significant mental |
suffering, anxiety or alarm. |
(4) "Harass"
means to engage in a knowing and willful |
course of conduct directed at a
specific person
that |
alarms, torments, or terrorizes that person. |
(5) "Non-consensual contact" means any contact with |
the victim that is initiated or continued without the |
victim's consent, including but not limited to being in the |
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physical presence of the victim; appearing within the sight |
of the victim; approaching or confronting the victim in a |
public place or on private property; appearing at the |
workplace or residence of the victim; entering onto or |
remaining on property owned, leased, or occupied by the |
victim; or placing an object on, or delivering an object |
to, property owned, leased, or occupied by the victim. |
(6) "Reasonable person" means a person in the victim's |
circumstances, with the victim's knowledge of the |
defendant and the defendant's prior acts. |
(7) "Third party" means any person other than the |
person violating these provisions and the person or persons |
towards whom the violator's actions are directed. |
(d) Telecommunications carriers, commercial mobile service |
providers, and providers of information services, including, |
but not limited to, Internet service providers and hosting |
service providers, are not liable under this Section, except |
for willful and wanton misconduct, by virtue of the |
transmission, storage, or caching of electronic communications |
or messages of others or by virtue of the provision of other |
related telecommunications, commercial mobile services, or |
information services used by others in violation of this |
Section. |
(Source: P.A. 95-849, eff. 1-1-09; revised 9-10-08.)
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Section 97. Severability. The provisions of this Act are |