PRINTER'S NO.  427

  

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

  

SENATE BILL

 

No.

442

Session of

2011

  

  

INTRODUCED BY LEACH AND KITCHEN, FEBRUARY 7, 2011

  

  

REFERRED TO JUDICIARY, FEBRUARY 7, 2011  

  

  

  

AN ACT

  

1

Amending Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses) of the Pennsylvania

2

Consolidated Statutes, further providing for official

3

oppression.

4

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

5

hereby enacts as follows:

6

Section 1.  Section 5301 of Title 18 of the Pennsylvania

7

Consolidated Statutes is amended to read:

8

§ 5301.  Official oppression.

9

(a)  General rule.--A person acting or purporting to act in

10

an official capacity or taking advantage of such actual or

11

purported capacity commits a misdemeanor of the second degree

12

if, knowing that his conduct is illegal, he:

13

(1)  subjects another to arrest, detention, search,

14

seizure, mistreatment, dispossession, assessment, lien or

15

other infringement of personal or property rights; or

16

(2)  denies or impedes another in the exercise or

17

enjoyment of any right, privilege, power or immunity.

18

(b)  Prohibited conduct.--In addition to other conduct that

19

is prohibited within the meaning of subsection (a), it shall

 


1

specifically be deemed a violation of subsection (a) to take any

2

action listed in subsection (a):

3

(1)  for the purpose of detecting, investigating or

4

apprehending a person whose only violation of the law is that

5

the person is of foreign citizenship and present in the

6

United States in violation of Federal immigration laws; or

7

(2)  based on race, national origin, ethnicity or

8

perceived ethnicity, except when seeking to apprehend a

9

specific suspect whose race, national origin or ethnicity is

10

part of the description of the suspect.

11

(c)  Information sharing.--This section shall not prevent a

12

law enforcement officer from exchanging with the United States

13

Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the United States

14

Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services or the United

15

States Bureau of Customs and Border Protection any relevant

16

immigration information the officer obtained collateral to an

17

arrest or investigation that was not conducted in violation of

18

subsection (b) of any criminal offense if the information

19

sharing is authorized by the laws of this Commonwealth.

20

Section 2.  This act shall take effect in 60 days.

- 2 -