PRINTER'S NO. 1664
No. 1378 Session of 1983
INTRODUCED BY SWEET, PICCOLA, DAWIDA, HAGARTY, HOEFFEL, FREIND,
KUKOVICH, NOYE, VAN HORNE, PRATT, MRKONIC, SAURMAN,
CALTAGIRONE, GREENWOOD, POTT, BOYES, KOWALYSHYN, SCHEETZ,
FISCHER, BELFANTI, KOSINSKI, WACHOB, MADIGAN, BATTISTO,
FARGO, CLYMER, GANNON, PUNT, SEMMEL, FLICK AND BALDWIN,
JULY 21, 1983
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, JULY 21, 1983
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses) of the Pennsylvania
2 Consolidated Statutes, defining the offense of theft of
3 telecommunication service.
4 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
5 hereby enacts as follows:
6 Section 1. Title 18 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
7 Statutes is amended by adding a section to read:
8 § 3933. Theft of telecommunication service.
9 (a) General rule.--A person commits an offense if, with
10 intent to defraud or to aid and abet another to defraud any
11 person of the lawful charge, in whole or in part, for any
12 telecommunication service, he obtains or attempts to obtain, or
13 aids and abets another to obtain or to attempt to obtain, any
14 telecommunication service by any of the following methods:
15 (1) Charging the service to an existing telephone number
16 or credit card number without the authority of the subscriber
1 or legitimate holder of the telephone or credit card.
2 (2) Charging the service to a nonexistent, false,
3 fictitious or counterfeit telephone number or credit card
4 number or to a suspended, terminated, expired, cancelled or
5 revoked telephone number or credit card number.
6 (3) Using a code, prearranged scheme or other similar
7 stratagem or device whereby the person, in effect, sends or
8 receives information.
9 (4) Installing, rearranging or tampering with any
10 facilities or equipment, whether physically, inductively,
11 acoustically or electronically.
12 (5) Publishing the number or code of an existing,
13 cancelled, revoked or nonexistent telephone number, credit
14 card number or other credit device or method of numbering or
15 coding which is employed in the issuance of telephone
16 numbers, credit card numbers or other credit devices which
17 may be used to avoid the payment of any lawful telephone toll
18 charge.
19 (6) Publishing plans, diagrams or methods for the
20 construction, assembly or usage of any device, instrument or
21 gadget which may be used to avoid the payment of any lawful
22 telephone toll charge.
23 (b) Grading.--
24 (1) An offense under this section constitutes a summary
25 offense when the value of the services obtained or diverted
26 is less than $50.
27 (2) When the value of the services obtained or diverted
28 is $50 or more, the grading of the offense shall be as
29 established in section 3903 (relating to grading of theft
30 offenses).
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1 (3) Amounts involved in theft of services committed
2 pursuant to one scheme or course of conduct, whether from the
3 same person or several persons, may be aggregated in
4 determining the grade of the offense.
5 (c) Definition.--As used in this section the term "publish"
6 means the communication or dissemination of information to any
7 one or more persons, either orally, in person, by telephone,
8 radio or television or in writing of any kind, including,
9 without limitation, a letter, memorandum, circular, handbill,
10 newspaper, magazine article or book.
11 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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