H.B. 79

1

STALKING AMENDMENTS - CRIMINAL
2 1999 GENERAL SESSION
3 STATE OF UTAH
4 Sponsor: Lawanna Shurtliff
5 David L. Gladwell

6 AN ACT RELATING TO THE CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE; EXPANDING THE
7 DEFINITION OF THE CRIME OF STALKING; ESTABLISHING PENALTIES; AND MAKING
8 TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS.
9 This act affects sections of Utah Code Annotated 1953 as follows:
10 AMENDS:
11 76-5-106.5, as last amended by Chapter 10, Laws of Utah 1997
12 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
13 Section 1. Section 76-5-106.5 is amended to read:
14 76-5-106.5. Definitions -- Crime of stalking.
15 (1) As used in this section:
16 (a) "Course of conduct" means repeatedly maintaining a visual or physical proximity to
17 a person or repeatedly conveying verbal or written threats or threats implied by conduct or a
18 combination thereof directed at or toward a person.
19 (b) "Immediate family" means a spouse, parent, child, sibling, or any other person who
20 regularly resides in the household or who regularly resided in the household within the prior six
21 months.
22 (c) "Repeatedly" means on two or more occasions.
23 (2) A person is guilty of stalking who:
24 (a) intentionally or knowingly engages in a course of conduct directed at a specific person
25 that would cause a reasonable person:
26 (i) to fear bodily injury to himself or a member of his immediate family; or
27 (ii) to suffer emotional distress to himself or a member of his immediate family;

28 (b) has knowledge or should have knowledge that the specific person:
29 (i) will be placed in reasonable fear of bodily injury to himself or a member of his
30 immediate family; or
31 (ii) will suffer emotional distress or a member of his immediate family will suffer
32 emotional distress; and
33 (c) whose conduct:
34 (i) induces fear in the specific person of bodily injury to himself or a member of his
35 immediate family; or
36 (ii) causes emotional distress in the specific person or a member of his immediate family.
37 (3) A person is also guilty of stalking who intentionally or knowingly violates a stalking
38 injunction issued pursuant to Title 77, Chapter 3a, Stalking Injunctions, or intentionally or
39 knowingly violates a permanent criminal stalking injunction issued pursuant to this section.
40 [(3)] (4) Stalking is a class [B] A misdemeanor[.]:
41 (a) upon the offender's first violation of Subsection (2); or
42 (b) if the offender violated a stalking injunction issued pursuant to Title 77, Chapter 3a,
43 Stalking Injunction.
44 [(4)] (5) Stalking is a [class A misdemeanor] third degree felony if the offender:
45 (a) has been previously convicted of an offense of stalking;
46 (b) has been convicted in another jurisdiction of an offense that is substantially similar to
47 the offense of stalking; [or]
48 (c) has been previously convicted of any felony offense in Utah or of any crime in another
49 jurisdiction which if committed in Utah would be a felony, in which the victim of the stalking or
50 a member of the victim's immediate family was also a victim of the previous felony offense; or
51 (d) violated a stalking injunction issued pursuant to Title 77, Chapter 3a, Stalking
52 Injunctions.
53 [(5)] (6) Stalking is a felony of the third degree if the offender:
54 (a) used a dangerous weapon as defined in Section 76-1-601 under circumstances not
55 amounting to a violation of Subsection 76-5-103 (1)(a), or used other means or force likely to
56 produce death or serious bodily injury, in the commission of the crime of stalking;
57 (b) has been previously convicted two or more times of the offense of stalking;
58 (c) has been convicted two or more times in another jurisdiction or jurisdictions of

59 offenses that are substantially similar to the offense of stalking;
60 (d) has been convicted two or more times, in any combination, of offenses under
61 Subsections [(5)] (6) (b) and (c); [or]
62 (e) has been previously convicted two or more times of felony offenses in Utah or of
63 crimes in another jurisdiction or jurisdictions which, if committed in Utah, would be felonies, in
64 which the victim of the stalking was also a victim of the previous felony offenses; or
65 (f) violated a permanent criminal stalking injunction issued pursuant to Subsection (6).
66 (7) A conviction for stalking or a plea accepted by the court and held in abeyance for a
67 period of time shall operate as an application for a permanent criminal stalking injunction limiting
68 the contact of the defendant and the victim.
69 (a) A permanent criminal stalking injunction shall be issued without a hearing unless the
70 defendant requests a hearing.
71 (i) If the defendant requests a hearing, it shall be held at the time of the verdict unless the
72 victim requests otherwise.
73 (ii) If the verdict was entered in a justice court, a certified copy of the judgment and
74 conviction or a certified copy of the court's order holding the plea in abeyance must be filed by the
75 victim in the district court as an application and request for hearing for a permanent stalking
76 injunction.
77 (b) A permanent criminal stalking injunction may grant the following relief:
78 (i) an order restraining the defendant from entering the residence, property, school, or place
79 of employment of the victim and requiring the defendant to stay away from the victim and
80 members of the victim's immediate family or household and to stay away from any specified place
81 that is named in the order and is frequented regularly by the victim; and
82 (ii) an order restraining the defendant from making contact with the victim, including an
83 order forbidding the defendant from personally or through an agent initiating any communication
84 likely to cause annoyance or alarm, including personal, written, or telephone contact with the
85 victim, the victim's employers, employees, fellow workers, or others with whom communication
86 would be likely to cause annoyance or alarm to the victim.
87 (c) A permanent criminal stalking injunction may be dissolved upon application of the
88 victim to the court which granted the order.
89 (d) Notice of permanent criminal stalking injunctions issued pursuant to this section shall

90 be sent by the court to the statewide warrants network or similar system.
91 (e) A permanent criminal stalking injunction issued pursuant to this section shall be
92 effective statewide.
93 (f) Violation of an injunction issued pursuant to this section shall constitute an offense of
94 stalking. Violations may be enforced in a civil action initiated by the stalking victim, a criminal
95 action initiated by a prosecuting attorney, or both.
96 (g) Nothing in this section shall preclude the filing of a criminal information for stalking
97 based on the same act which is the basis for the violation of the permanent stalking injunction.




Legislative Review Note
as of 1-19-99 8:53 AM

A limited legal review of this legislation raises no obvious constitutional or statutory concerns.

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel