H 8058

2026 -- H 8058
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 LC005714
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  STATE  OF        RHODE  ISLAND
  IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
  JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026
  ____________
  AN ACT
  RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSES -- COMPUTER CRIME
  Introduced By: Representatives Caldwell, McEntee, Casimiro, Speakman, Donovan,
  Kislak, Spears, and Dawson
  Date Introduced: February 27, 2026
  Referred To: House Judiciary
 It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
1SECTION 1. Section 11-52-4.2 of the General Laws in Chapter 11-52 entitled "Computer
2 Crime" is hereby amended to read as follows:
311-52-4.2. Cyberstalking and cyberharassment prohibited.
4(a) Whoever transmits any communication by computer or other electronic device to any
5 person or causes any person to be contacted for the sole purpose of harassing that person or his or
6 her family is guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished by a fine of not more than five hundred
7 dollars ($500), by imprisonment for not more than one year, or both. For the purpose of this section,
8 “harassing” means any knowing and willful course of conduct directed at a specific person which
9 seriously alarms, annoys, or bothers the person, and which serves no legitimate purpose. The course
10 of conduct must be of a kind that would cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional
11 distress, or be in fear of bodily injury. “Course of conduct” means a pattern of conduct composed
12 of a series of acts over a period of time, evidencing a continuity of purpose. Constitutionally
13 protected activity is not included within the meaning of “course of conduct.”
14(b) A second or subsequent conviction under subsection (a) of this section shall be deemed
15 a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than two (2) years, by a fine of not more than
16 six thousand dollars ($6,000), or both.
1      SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
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  EXPLANATION
  BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
  OF
  AN ACT
  RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSES -- COMPUTER CRIME
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1This act would make it unnecessary to prove that a person's transmission of electronic
2 communications be for the sole purpose of harassment before being found guilty of cyberstalking
3 or cyberharassment.
4This act would take effect upon passage.
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