Delaware General Assembly


CHAPTER 255

FORMERLY

SENATE BILL NO. 288

AS AMENDED BY SENATE AMENDMENT NO. 1

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO TERRORISTIC THREATENING AND FALSE REPORTS.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE :

Section 1. Amend §621, Title 11, Delaware Code, by striking it in its entirety and replacing it with the following:

Ҥ 621. Terroristic threatening.

(a) A person is guilty of terroristic threatening when he or she commits any of the following:

(1) The person threatens to commit any crime likely to result in death or in serious injury to person or property; or

(2) The person makes a false statement or statements:

a. Knowing that the statement or statements are likely to cause evacuation of a building, place of assembly or facility of public transportation; or

b. Knowing that the statement or statements are likely to cause serious inconvenience; or

c. In reckless disregard of the risk of causing terror or serious inconvenience; or

(3) The person commits an act with intent of causing an individual to believe that the individual has been exposed to a substance that will cause the individual death or serious injury.

(b) Any violation of paragraph (a)(1) of this section shall be a class A misdemeanor except where the victim is a person 62 years of age or older in which case any violation of subdivision (a)(1) of this section shall be a Class G felony. Any violation of paragraph (a)(2) of this section shall be a Class G felony, unless the place at which the risk of evacuation, serious inconvenience or terror is created is a place that has the purpose, in whole or in part, of acting as a daycare facility, nursery or preschool, kindergarten, elementary, secondary or vocational-technical school, or any long term care facility in which elderly persons are housed, in which case it shall be a Class F felony. Any violation of paragraph (a)(3) of this section shall be a Class F felony. Notwithstanding any provision of this subsection to the contrary, a first offense of subsection (a)(2) of this section by a person 17 or younger shall be a Class A misdemeanor.

(c) In addition to the penalties otherwise authorized by law, any person convicted of an offense in violation of subsection (a)(2) of this section shall:

(1) Pay a fine of not less than $1,000 nor more than $2,500, which fine cannot be suspended; and

(2) Be sentenced to perform a minimum of 100 hours of community service.

(d) In addition to the penalties otherwise authorized by law, any person convicted of an offense in violation of subsection (a)(3) of this section shall pay a fine of not less than $2,000, which fine cannot be suspended.”

Section 2. Amend §1245, Title 11, Delaware Code, by striking the final two sentences of said section and replacing them with the following:

“Falsely reporting an incident is a Class A misdemeanor, unless the defendant has violated this Section previously in which case it shall be a Class G felony. In addition to the penalties otherwise authorized by law, any person convicted of an offense in violation of this section shall pay a fine of not less than $500, which fine cannot be suspended, and be sentenced to perform a minimum of 100 hours of community service and shall be required to reimburse the State, or other responding or other investigating governmental agency, for any expenses expended in the investigation and/or response to the incident falsely reported.”

Section 3. Amend §2702, Title 11, Delaware Code by deleting in subsection (8), the phrase"; Class A misdemeanor)", and by substituting in lieu thereof the phrase") only if punishable as a Class A misdemeanor".

Section 4. Amend §2702, Title 11, Delaware Code by deleting from sub section (34), the phrase "; unclassified misdemeanor)", and by substituting in lieu thereof the phrase ") only if punishable as a Class A misdemeanor".

Section 5. Amend §9401 Title 11, Delaware Code by deleting in subsection (1), the phrase "621. Terroristic Threatening; Class A. misdemeanor", and by substituting in lieu thereof the phrase "621. Terroristic Threatening."

Approved May 09, 2002