PRINTER'S NO. 741
No. 669 Session of 1995
INTRODUCED BY HERMAN, CLARK, FEESE, HORSEY, SCHULER, BIRMELIN,
WAUGH, RUDY, GEIST, HALUSKA, SAYLOR, EGOLF, TRELLO,
J. TAYLOR, SATHER, MERRY AND BARD, FEBRUARY 13, 1995
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, FEBRUARY 13, 1995
AN ACT
1 Amending Titles 18 (Crimes and Offenses) and 42 (Judiciary and
2 Judicial Procedure) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
3 Statutes, further providing for aggravated assault and for
4 use of tear or noxious gas in labor disputes; and providing
5 for sentences for offenses committed with firearms.
6 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
7 hereby enacts as follows:
8 Section 1. Sections 2702 and 2708 of Title 18 of the
9 Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes are amended to read:
10 § 2702. Aggravated assault.
11 (a) Offense defined.--A person is guilty of aggravated
12 assault if he:
13 (1) attempts to cause serious bodily injury to another,
14 or causes such injury intentionally, knowingly or recklessly
15 under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the
16 value of human life;
17 (2) attempts to cause or intentionally, knowingly or
18 recklessly causes serious bodily injury to a police officer,
19 firefighter, county adult probation or parole officer, county
1 juvenile probation or parole officer or an agent of the
2 Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole in the performance
3 of duty or to an employee of an agency, company or other
4 entity engaged in public transportation, while in the
5 performance of duty;
6 (3) attempts to cause or intentionally or knowingly
7 causes bodily injury to a police officer, firefighter or
8 county adult probation or parole officer, county juvenile
9 probation or parole officer or an agent of the Pennsylvania
10 Board of Probation and Parole in the performance of duty;
11 (4) attempts to cause or intentionally or knowingly
12 causes bodily injury to another with a deadly weapon; [or]
13 (5) attempts to cause or intentionally or knowingly
14 causes bodily injury to a teaching staff member, school board
15 member, other employee or student of any elementary or
16 secondary [publicly-funded] publicly funded educational
17 institution, any elementary or secondary private school
18 licensed by the Department of Education or any elementary or
19 secondary parochial school while acting in the scope of his
20 or her employment or because of his or her employment
21 relationship to the school[.]; or
22 (6) uses tear or noxious gas as defined in section
23 2708(b) (relating to use of tear or noxious gas in labor
24 disputes) in an offensive manner against any of the
25 following:
26 (i) police officer;
27 (ii) firefighter;
28 (iii) medical personnel;
29 (iv) prison guard;
30 (v) sheriff;
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1 (vi) deputy sheriff;
2 (vii) correction officer;
3 (viii) fire police;
4 (ix) auxiliary police;
5 (x) county adult probation or parole officer;
6 (xi) county juvenile probation or parole officer;
7 (xii) an agent of the Pennsylvania Board of
8 Probation and Parole in the performance of duty;
9 (xiii) a teaching staff member, school board member,
10 other employee or student of any elementary or secondary
11 publicly funded educational institution, any elementary
12 or secondary private school licensed by the Department of
13 Education or any elementary or secondary parochial school
14 while acting in the scope of his employment or because of
15 his employment relationship to the school;
16 (xiv) constable;
17 (xv) private detective; or
18 (xvi) an enforcement officer of the Pennsylvania
19 Fish and Boat Commission, the Pennsylvania Game
20 Commission or the Public Utility Commission.
21 (b) Grading.--Aggravated assault under subsection (a)(1) and
22 (2) is a felony of the first degree. Aggravated assault under
23 subsection (a)(3), (4) [and], (5) and (6) is a felony of the
24 second degree.
25 § 2708. Use of tear or noxious gas in labor disputes.
26 (a) Offense defined.--A person other than a duly constituted
27 officer of the law is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first
28 degree if he uses or directs the use of tear or noxious gas
29 against any person involved in a labor dispute.
30 (b) Definition.--As used in this section, the term "tear or
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1 noxious gas" means any liquid or gaseous substance that, when
2 dispersed in the atmosphere, blinds the eyes with tears or
3 irritates or injures other organs and tissues of the human body
4 or causes nausea, including, but not limited to, red pepper
5 spray.
6 Section 2. The heading of section 9712 of Title 42 is
7 amended and the section is amended by adding a subsection to
8 read:
9 § 9712. Sentences for offenses committed with firearms and tear
10 or noxious gas.
11 * * *
12 (a.1) Mandatory sentence for use of tear or noxious gas.--
13 Any person who is convicted in any court of this Commonwealth of
14 murder of the third degree, voluntary manslaughter, rape,
15 involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, robbery, simple assault,
16 aggravated assault as defined in 18 Pa.C.S. § 2702(a)(6)
17 (relating to aggravated assault) or kidnapping, or who is
18 convicted of attempt to commit any of these crimes, shall, if
19 the person visibly possessed or used tear or noxious gas as
20 defined in 18 Pa.C.S. § 2708(b) (relating to use of tear or
21 noxious gas in labor disputes) during the commission of the
22 offense, be sentenced to a minimum sentence of at least two
23 years of total confinement notwithstanding any other provision
24 of this title or other statute to the contrary.
25 * * *
26 Section 3. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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