PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 164 PRINTER'S NO. 550
No. 167 Session of 1999
INTRODUCED BY DENT, LEMMOND, BELL, COSTA, SCHWARTZ, WAUGH,
STAPLETON, STOUT, SLOCUM, WOZNIAK, KASUNIC, MURPHY, ROBBINS,
RHOADES AND BOSCOLA, JANUARY 19, 1999
SENATOR GREENLEAF, JUDICIARY, AS AMENDED, MARCH 9, 1999
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses) of the Pennsylvania
2 Consolidated Statutes, further providing for terroristic
3 threats and, for harassment and stalking, FOR HARASSMENT BY <--
4 COMMUNICATION OR ADDRESS AND FOR THE DEFINITION OF "COURSE OF
5 CONDUCT."
6 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
7 hereby enacts as follows:
8 Section 1. Sections 2706(a) and 2709(a), 2709(A) AND (F) AND <--
9 5504 of Title 18 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes are
10 amended to read:
11 § 2706. Terroristic threats.
12 (a) Offense defined.--A person is guilty of a misdemeanor of
13 the first degree if he threatens [to commit any crime of
14 violence with intent to terrorize another or to cause evacuation
15 of a building, place of assembly, or facility of public
16 transportation, or otherwise to cause serious public
17 inconvenience, or in reckless disregard of the risk of causing
18 such terror or inconvenience.] in person, by telephone, in
19 writing, electronically, including, but not limited to,
1 electronic mail and communications via the Internet, facsimile
2 transmission, telex or other similar transmission:
3 (1) to commit any crime of violence, WITH INTENT TO <--
4 TERRORIZE, against another person which is directly or
5 indirectly received by the other person and which causes
6 annoyance or alarm to the other person; or
7 (2) to commit any crime of violence which causes
8 evacuation of a building, place of assembly or facility of
9 public transportation, or otherwise to cause serious public
10 inconvenience, OR IN RECKLESS DISREGARD OF THE RISK OF <--
11 CAUSING SUCH TERROR OR INCONVENIENCE.
12 * * *
13 § 2709. Harassment and stalking.
14 (a) Harassment.--A person commits the crime of harassment
15 when, with intent to harass, annoy or alarm another person:
16 (1) he strikes, shoves, kicks or otherwise subjects him
17 to physical contact, or attempts or threatens to do the same;
18 or
19 (2) he follows a person in or about a public place or
20 places; or
21 (3) he engages in a course of conduct or repeatedly
22 commits acts which alarm or seriously annoy such other person
23 and which serve no legitimate purpose[.], including, but not
24 limited to:
25 (i) communicating in person, by telephone, in <--
26 writing or by electronic mail, facsimile transmission,
27 telex or other similar transmission to or about such
28 other person using any lewd, lascivious, threatening or
29 indecent words, language, drawings or caricatures; and
30 (I) COMMUNICATION IN PERSON, BY TELEPHONE, IN <--
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1 WRITING, ELECTRONICALLY, INCLUDING ELECTRONIC MAIL AND
2 COMMUNICATIONS VIA THE INTERNET, FACSIMILE TRANSMISSION,
3 TELEX OR OTHER SIMILAR TRANSMISSION TO OR ABOUT SUCH
4 OTHER PERSON USING ANY LEWD, LASCIVIOUS, THREATENING OR
5 OBSCENE WORDS, LANGUAGE, DRAWINGS OR CARICATURES; AND
6 (ii) communicating anonymously or repeatedly with <--
7 another person, using any of the means identified in this
8 paragraph.
9 * * *
10 (F) DEFINITIONS.--AS USED IN THIS SECTION, THE FOLLOWING <--
11 WORDS AND PHRASES SHALL HAVE THE MEANINGS GIVEN TO THEM IN THIS
12 SUBSECTION:
13 "COURSE OF CONDUCT." A PATTERN OF ACTIONS COMPOSED OF MORE
14 THAN ONE ACT OVER A PERIOD OF TIME, HOWEVER SHORT, EVIDENCING A
15 CONTINUITY OF CONDUCT[.], INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
16 COMMUNICATION IN PERSON, BY TELEPHONE, IN WRITING,
17 ELECTRONICALLY, INCLUDING ELECTRONIC MAIL AND COMMUNICATIONS VIA
18 THE INTERNET, FACSIMILE TRANSMISSION, TELEX OR OTHER SIMILAR
19 TRANSMISSION TO OR ABOUT SUCH OTHER PERSON USING ANY LEWD,
20 LASCIVIOUS, THREATENING OR OBSCENE WORDS, LANGUAGE, DRAWINGS OR
21 CARICATURES.
22 § 5504. HARASSMENT BY COMMUNICATION OR ADDRESS.
23 (A) OFFENSE DEFINED.--A PERSON COMMITS A MISDEMEANOR OF THE
24 THIRD DEGREE IF, WITH INTENT TO HARASS ANOTHER, HE:
25 (1) [MAKES A TELEPHONE CALL] COMMUNICATES BY TELEPHONE,
26 IN WRITING, ELECTRONICALLY, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
27 ELECTRONIC MAIL AND COMMUNICATIONS VIA THE INTERNET,
28 FACSIMILE TRANSMISSION, TELEX OR OTHER SIMILAR TRANSMISSION,
29 WITHOUT INTENT OF LEGITIMATE COMMUNICATION OR ADDRESSES TO OR
30 ABOUT SUCH OTHER PERSON ANY LEWD, LASCIVIOUS OR [INDECENT]
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1 OBSCENE WORDS OR LANGUAGE [OR ANONYMOUSLY TELEPHONES ANOTHER
2 PERSON REPEATEDLY]; OR
3 (2) MAKES REPEATED COMMUNICATIONS ANONYMOUSLY OR AT
4 EXTREMELY INCONVENIENT HOURS, OR IN OFFENSIVELY COARSE
5 LANGUAGE.
6 (B) VENUE.--ANY OFFENSE COMMITTED UNDER PARAGRAPH (A)(1) OF
7 THIS SECTION MAY BE DEEMED TO HAVE BEEN COMMITTED AT EITHER THE
8 PLACE AT WHICH THE [TELEPHONE CALL OR CALLS] COMMUNICATION OR
9 COMMUNICATIONS WERE MADE OR AT THE PLACE WHERE THE [TELEPHONE
10 CALL OR CALLS] COMMUNICATION OR COMMUNICATIONS WERE RECEIVED.
11 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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