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Public Act 103-0183 | ||||
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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 2012 is amended by | ||||
changing Section 12-7.5 as follows:
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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 | ||||
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-4) A person commits cyberstalking when he or she | ||
knowingly, surreptitiously, and without lawful justification, | ||
installs or otherwise places electronic monitoring software or | ||
spyware on an electronic communication device as a means to | ||
harass another person and: | ||
(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; | ||
(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 | ||
(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. | ||
For purposes of this Section, an installation or placement | ||
is not surreptitious if: | ||
(1) with respect to electronic software, hardware, or | ||
computer applications, clear notice regarding the use of |
the specific type of tracking software or spyware is | ||
provided by the installer in advance to the owners and | ||
primary users of the electronic software, hardware, or | ||
computer application; or | ||
(2) written or electronic consent of all owners and | ||
primary users of the electronic software, hardware, or | ||
computer application on which the tracking software or | ||
spyware will be installed has been sought and obtained | ||
through a mechanism that does not seek to obtain any other | ||
approvals or acknowledgement from the owners and primary | ||
users. | ||
(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: | ||
(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.
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(b) Sentence. Cyberstalking is a Class 4 felony; a second | ||
or subsequent
conviction is a Class 3 felony.
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(c) For purposes of this Section: | ||
(0.5) "Anxiety" means excessive worry and apprehensive | ||
expectations, occurring more days than not for at least 6 | ||
months, about a number of events or activities, such as | ||
work or school performance and is associated with 3 or | ||
more of the following 6 symptoms with at least some | ||
symptoms present for more days than not for the past 6 | ||
months: | ||
(1)
restlessness or feeling keyed up or on edge; | ||
(2)
easily fatigued; | ||
(3)
difficulty concentrating or mind going blank; | ||
(4)
irritability; | ||
(5)
muscle tension; and | ||
(6)
sleep disturbance such as difficulty falling | ||
or staying asleep, or restless and unsatisfying sleep. | ||
The anxiety, worry, or physical symptoms cause | ||
clinically significant distress or impairment in social, | ||
occupational, or other important areas of functioning. | ||
(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 | ||
through an electronic device including, but not limited | ||
to, a telephone, cellular phone, computer, or pager, which | ||
communication includes, but is not limited to, e-mail, | ||
instant message, text message, or voice mail. | ||
(2.1) "Electronic communication device" means an | ||
electronic device, including, but not limited to, a | ||
wireless telephone, personal digital assistant, or a | ||
portable or mobile computer. | ||
(2.2) "Electronic monitoring software or spyware" | ||
means software or an application that surreptitiously | ||
tracks computer activity on a device and records and | ||
transmits the information to third parties with the intent | ||
to cause injury or harm. For the purposes of this | ||
paragraph (2.2), "intent to cause injury or harm" does not | ||
include activities carried out in furtherance of the |
prevention of fraud or crime or of protecting the security | ||
of networks, online services, applications, software, | ||
other computer programs, users, or electronic | ||
communication devices or similar devices. | ||
(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 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. | ||
(e) A defendant who directed the actions of a third party | ||
to violate this Section, under the principles of | ||
accountability set forth in Article 5 of this Code, is guilty | ||
of violating this Section as if the same had been personally | ||
done by the defendant, without regard to the mental state of | ||
the third party acting at the direction of the defendant. | ||
(f) It is not a violation of this Section to: | ||
(1) provide, protect, maintain, update, or upgrade | ||
networks, online services, applications, software, other | ||
computer programs, electronic communication devices, or | ||
similar devices under the terms of use applicable to those | ||
networks, services, applications, software, programs, or | ||
devices; | ||
(2) interfere with or prohibit terms or conditions in | ||
a contract or license related to networks, online | ||
services, applications, software, other computer programs, | ||
electronic communication devices, or similar devices; or |
(3) create any liability by reason of terms or | ||
conditions adopted, or technical measures implemented, to | ||
prevent the transmission of unsolicited electronic mail or | ||
communications. | ||
(Source: P.A. 100-166, eff. 1-1-18 .)
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