Regular Session 2019-2020 House Bill 1402 P.N. 1722

PRINTER'S NO. 1722

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.

1402

Session of

2019

INTRODUCED BY NESBIT, McCLINTON, KAUFFMAN, HOWARD, SCHLOSSBERG,

DONATUCCI, CALTAGIRONE, READSHAW, BERNSTINE, BOBACK,

WILLIAMS, ISAACSON, KINSEY, FRANKEL, HILL-EVANS, IRVIN,

TOPPER, MILLARD, WARREN, MARSHALL, DeLUCA, TOOHIL, MULLINS,

MURT, STEPHENS, DELOZIER, GILLEN AND DAWKINS, MAY 6, 2019

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, MAY 6, 2019

AN ACT

Amending Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses) of the Pennsylvania

Consolidated Statutes, in sexual offenses, providing for the

offense of sexual extortion.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. Title 18 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated

Statutes is amended by adding a section to read:

§ 3132. Sexual extortion.

(a) Offense defined.--A person commits the offense of sexual

extortion if the person knowingly or intentionally coerces or

causes a complainant, through any means set forth in subsection

(b), to:

(1) engage in sexual conduct, the simulation of sexual

conduct or a state of nudity; or

(2) make, produce, disseminate, transmit or distribute

any image, video, recording or other material depicting the

complainant in a state of nudity or engaging in sexual

conduct or in the simulation of sexual conduct.

(b) Means of subjecting complainant to sexual extortion.--A

person subjects a complainant to sexual extortion through any of

the following means:

(1) Harming or threatening to harm the complainant or

the property of the complainant, the reputation of the

complainant or any other thing of value of the complainant.

(2) Making, producing, disseminating, transmitting or

distributing or threatening to make, produce, disseminate,

transmit or distribute any image, video, recording or other

material depicting the complainant in a state of nudity or

engaged in sexual conduct or in the simulation of sexual

conduct.

(3) Exposing or threatening to expose any fact or piece

of information that, if revealed, would tend to subject the

complainant to criminal proceedings, a civil action, hatred,

contempt, embarrassment or ridicule.

(4) Holding out, withholding or threatening to withhold

a service, employment, position or other thing of value.

(5) Threatening to cause or causing a loss, disadvantage

or injury, including a loss, disadvantage or injury to a

family or household member, as defined in section 2709.1

(relating to stalking).

sexual extortion if the person knowingly or intentionally

solicits or demands the payment of money, property or services

or any other thing of value in exchange for removing from public

view or preventing the disclosure of any image, video, recording

or other material depicting the complainant in a state of nudity

or engaging in sexual conduct or the simulation of sexual

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conduct.

(d) Grading.--

(1) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (2), a

violation of this section shall constitute a misdemeanor of

the first degree.

(2) A violation of this section shall constitute a

felony of the third degree if:

(i) the complainant is under 18 years of age;

(ii) the complainant has an intellectual disability;

(iii) the actor holds a position of trust or

supervisory or disciplinary power over the complainant by

virtue of the actor's legal, professional or occupational

status;

(iv) the violation is part of a course of conduct of

sexual extortion by the actor; or

(v) the actor was previously convicted of a

violation of this section or of a similar offense in

another jurisdiction.

(e) Sentencing.--The Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing,

in accordance with 42 Pa.C.S. § 2154 (relating to adoption of

guidelines for sentencing), shall provide for a sentence

enhancement within its guidelines for an offense under this

section when at the time of the offense the complainant is under

18 years of age or has an intellectual disability or the actor

holds a position of trust or supervisory or disciplinary power

over the complainant by virtue of the actor's legal,

professional or occupational status.

(f) Venue.--

(1) An offense committed under this section may be

deemed to have been committed at either the place at which

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the communication was made or at the place where the

communication was received.

(2) Acts indicating a course of conduct which occur in

more than one jurisdiction may be used by any other

jurisdiction in which an act occurred as evidence of a

continuing pattern of conduct or a course of conduct.

(g) Territorial applicability.--A person may be convicted

under the provisions of this section if the complainant or the

offender is located within this Commonwealth.

(h) Concurrent jurisdiction to prosecute.--In addition to

the authority conferred upon the Attorney General by the act of

October 15, 1980 (P.L.950, No.164), known as the Commonwealth

Attorneys Act, the Attorney General shall have the authority to

investigate and to institute criminal proceedings for any

violation of this section or any series of violations involving

more than one county of this Commonwealth or another state. No

person charged with a violation of this section by the Attorney

General shall have standing to challenge the authority of the

Attorney General to investigate or prosecute the case, and, if a

challenge is made, the challenge shall be dismissed, and no

relief shall be made available in the courts of this

Commonwealth to the person making the challenge.

(i) Definitions.--As used in this section, the following

words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this

subsection unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Course of conduct." A pattern of actions composed of more

than one act over a period of time, however short, evidencing a

continuity of conduct.

"Disseminate." To cause or make an electronic or actual

communication from one place or electronic communication device

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to two or more other persons, places or electronic communication

devices.

"Distribute." To sell, lend, rent, lease, give, advertise,

publish or exhibit in a physical or electronic medium.

"Intellectual disability." Regardless of the age of the

individual, significantly subaverage general intellectual

functioning that is accompanied by significant limitations in

adaptive functioning in at least two of the following skill

areas: communication; self-care; home living; social and

interpersonal skills; use of community resources' self-

direction; functional academic skills; work; health; and safety.

"Nudity." As defined in section 5903(e) (relating to obscene

and other sexual materials and performances).

"Sexual conduct." Any of the following:

(1) Intentional touching by the complainant or actor,

either directly or through clothing, of the complainant's or

actor's intimate parts. Sexual contact of the actor with

himself must be in view of the complainant whom the actor

knows to be present.

(2) Sexual intercourse as defined in section 3101

(relating to definitions), masturbation, sadism, masochism,

bestiality, fellatio, cunnilingus or lewd exhibition of the

genitals.

"Simulation." Conduct engaged in that is depicted in a

manner that would cause a reasonable viewer to believe was

sexual conduct, even if sexual conduct did not occur.

"Transmit." To cause or make an electronic or actual

communication from one place or electronic communication device

to another person, place or electronic communication device.

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

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