Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman ANNETTE QUIJANO

District 20 (Union)

Assemblyman CHARLES MAINOR

District 31 (Hudson)

Assemblyman TIMOTHY J. EUSTACE

District 38 (Bergen and Passaic)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblywomen N.Munoz and Angelini

SYNOPSIS

Creates crime of cyber-harassment.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel

An Act creating the crime of cyber-harassment and supplementing Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. a. A person commits the crime of cyber-harassment if, while making a communication in an online capacity via any electronic device or through a social networking site and with the purpose to harass another, the person:

(1) threatens to inflict injury or physical harm to any person or the property of any person;

(2) sends, posts, comments, requests, suggests, or proposes any lewd, indecent, or obscene material to or about a person; or

(3) threatens to commit any crime against the person or the person's property.

b. Cyber-harassment is a crime of the fourth degree, unless the person is 21 years of age or older at the time of the offense and impersonates a minor for the purpose of cyber-harassing a minor, in which case it is a crime of the third degree.

c. If a minor under the age of 16 is adjudicated delinquent for cyber-harassment, the court may order as a condition of the sentence that the minor, accompanied by a parent or guardian, complete, in a satisfactory manner, one or both of the following:

(1) a class or training program intended to reduce the tendency toward cyber-harassment behavior; or

(2) a class or training program intended to bring awareness to the dangers associated with cyber-harassment.

d. A parent or guardian who fails to comply with a condition imposed by the court pursuant to subsection c. of this section is a disorderly person and shall be fined not more than $25 for a first offense and not more than $100 for each subsequent offense.

2. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill creates the crime of cyber-harassment. The bill provides that a person commits the crime of cyber-harassment if, while online using any electronic device or using a social networking site and with the purpose to harass another, that person: 1) threatens to injure or harm a person or that person's property; 2) sends or posts any lewd, indecent or obscene material to or about a person; or 3) threatens to commit a crime against a person or his or her property.

The bill provides that cyber-harassment is a crime of the fourth degree, which is punishable by up to 18 months imprisonment, a fine of up to $10,000, or both. However, if the offender is over age 21 at the time of the offense and impersonates a minor for the purpose of cyber-harassing a minor, cyber-harassment is a crime of the third degree. A crime of the third degree is punishable by three to five years imprisonment, a fine of up to $15,000, or both.

If a minor under age 16 is adjudicated delinquent for cyber-harassment, the court may order as a condition of the sentence that the minor, accompanied by his or her parent or guardian, complete, in a satisfactory manner, one or both of the following: 1) a class or training program intended to reduce the tendency toward cyber-harassment behavior; or 2) a class or training program intended to bring awareness to the dangers associated with cyber-harassment.

If a parent or guardian fails to accompany his or her child to the class or training program, the parent or guardian would be guilty of a disorderly persons offense and fined up to $25 for a first offense and up to $100 for each subsequent offense.