2017 -- S 0765

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LC002475

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2017

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A N   A C T

     RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSE - ELECTRONIC IMAGING DEVICES

     Introduced By: Senator Erin P. Lynch Prata

     Date Introduced: April 12, 2017

     Referred To: Senate Judiciary

     (Governor)

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 11-64-1 of the General Laws in Chapter 11-64 entitled "Electronic

Imaging Devices" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     11-64-1. Definitions.

     (1) For the purposes of this section the following definitions apply:

     (a) "Disseminate" means to make available by any means to any person.

     (b) "Imaging Device" means any electronic instrument capable of capturing, recording,

storing or transmitting visual images.

     (c) "Intimate areas" means the naked or undergarment clad genitals, pubic area, buttocks,

or any portion of the female breast below the top of the areola of a person which the person

intended to be protected from public view.

     (d) "Legal entity" means any partnership, firm, association, corporation or any agent or

servant thereof.

     (e) "Publish" means to:

     (i) Disseminate with the intent that such image or images be made available by any

means to any person or other legal entity;

     (ii) Disseminate with the intent such images be sold by another person or legal entity;

     (iii) Post, present, display, exhibit, circulate, advertise or allow access by any means, so

as to make an image or images available to the public; or

     (iv) Disseminate with the intent that an image or images be posted, presented, displayed,

exhibited, circulated, advertised or made accessible by any means, and to make such images

available to the public.

     (f) "Sell" means to disseminate to another person, or to publish, in exchange for

something of value.

     (g) "Sexually explicit conduct" means actual:

     (i) Graphic sexual intercourse, including genital-genital; oral-genital, anal-genital, or

oral-anal, or lascivious sex where the genitals, or pubic area of any person is exhibited;

     (ii) Bestiality;

     (iii) Masturbation; or

     (iv) Sadistic or masochistic abuse in a sexual context.

     (h) "Visual image" means any photographic, picture, film, videotape, digital recording, or

other depiction, portrayal or representation of an object, including the human body.

     SECTION 2. Chapter 11-64 of the General Laws entitled "Electronic Imaging Devices"

is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section:

     11-64-3. Unauthorized dissemination of indecent material.

     (a) A person is guilty of unauthorized dissemination of indecent material when the

person:

     (1) Purposely, and with the intent to harass, intimidate, threaten, or coerce the depicted

person, disseminates, publishes or sells a visual image of such person who is:

     (i) Eighteen (18) years of age or older and is identifiable from the image itself or the

information displayed or depicted in connection with the image; and

     (ii) Engaged in a sexual act or whose intimate parts are exposed, in whole or in part; and

     (2) Obtains the image under circumstances in which a reasonable person would know or

should have known that the person in the image intended that the image was to remain private;

and

     (3) Knows or should have known that the person in the image did not consent to the

dissemination.

     (b) For purposes of this section, "intimate areas" means the naked genitals, pubic area,

anus or any portion of the female breast below the top of the areola which the person intended to

be protected from public view.

     (c) A first violation of this section shall be a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, subject

to imprisonment of not more than one year, a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000),

or both. A second or subsequent violation of this section shall be a felony and, upon conviction,

subject to imprisonment for not more than three (3) years, a fine of not more than three thousand

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dollars ($3,000), or both.

     (d) Any person who intentionally threatens to disclose any visual image described in

subsection (a) of this section, and makes the threat to obtain a benefit in return for not making the

disclosure or in connection with the threatened disclosure shall be guilty of a felony and, upon

conviction, be subject to imprisonment for up to five (5) years, a fine of up to five thousand

dollars ($5,000), or both.

     (e) Any person who demands payment of money, property, services or anything else of

value from a person in exchange for removing any visual image described in subsection (a) of this

section from public view shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, be subject to

imprisonment for up to five (5) years, a fine of up to five thousand dollars ($5,000), or both.

     (f) Those in violation of this section shall not be subject to sex offender registration

requirements set forth in chapter 31.1 of title 11 (Sexual Offender Registration and Community

Notification Act.)

     (g) The following activities are exempt from the provisions of this section:

     (1) The unauthorized dissemination of material when the dissemination serves a lawful

purpose;

     (2) The unauthorized dissemination of indecent material when the dissemination is made

in the course of a lawful public proceeding;

     (3) The unauthorized dissemination of indecent material when the dissemination involves

voluntary nudity or sexual conduct in a public or commercial setting, or in a place where a person

does not have a reasonable expectation of privacy;

     (4) The unauthorized dissemination of indecent material when the dissemination is made

in the public interest, including the reporting of unlawful conduct, or lawful and common practice

of law enforcement, criminal reporting, corrections, legal proceedings, medical activities,

scientific activities, or educational activities;

     (5) The unauthorized dissemination of indecent material when the dissemination

constitutes a matter of public concern;

     (h) A violation of this section shall be deemed committed in this state if any conduct that

is an element of the offense, or any harm to the depicted person resulting from the offense, occurs

in this state.

     (i) Nothing in this section shall be construed to impose liability on any interactive

computer service, as defined in 47 U.S.C. §230(f)(2), an information service, as defined in 47

U.S.C. §153, or a telecommunications service, as defined in §44-18-7.1, for content provided by

another person.

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     SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

     RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSE - ELECTRONIC IMAGING DEVICES

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     This act would define sexually explicit conduct and visual image and would prohibit any

person from disseminating any indecent image of another person without authorization for the

purpose of harassing, intimidating, threatening another person if that person is eighteen (18) years

of age or older and is identifiable from the image. Exceptions would include dissemination for

lawful purposes, legal proceedings, medical or educational activities. Violation of this section

would be a misdemeanor for a first offense and a felony for subsequent offenses. It would also

make demanding payment for not disclosing or refusing to remove the image from public view a

felony.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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