BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 606|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 606
Author: De León (D)
Amended: 5/7/13
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE : 7-0, 4/30/13
AYES: Hancock, Anderson, Block, De León, Knight, Liu, Steinberg
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Harassment: child or ward
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill provides that it is a crime punishable by
imprisonment for any person who intentionally harasses a child
or ward of any other person because of that person's employment,
as specified.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Provides that a person who has "suffered harassment" may seek
a temporary restraining order and an injunction to prevent
such harassment. "Harassment" is defined thus: "[U]nlawful
violence, a credible threat of violence, or a knowing and
willful course of conduct directed at a specific person that
seriously alarms, annoys, or harasses the person, and that
serves no legitimate purpose. The course of conduct must be
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such as would cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial
emotional distress, and must actually cause substantial
emotional distress to the plaintiff."
2. Provides that an employer may seek a temporary restraining
order and injunction on behalf of an employee who has been
harassed at work through unlawful violence or a credible
threat of violence. In the discretion of the court, the
order and injunction can be applied to additional employees
and workplaces of the employer.
3. Provides that it is a misdemeanor for any person to
intentionally harass a child because of the employment status
of the child's parent or parents. The offense is punishable
by a six month jail term, a $1000 fine, or both. A defendant
must serve a jail term of at least five days for a second
conviction, and at least 30 days for a third or subsequent
conviction.
4. Includes the following definitions:
A. "Harasses" means "knowing and willful conduct
directed at a specific child that seriously alarms,
annoys, torments, or terrorizes the person, and which
serves no legitimate purpose. The conduct must be such
as would cause a reasonable child to suffer substantial
emotional distress, and actually cause the victim to
suffer that distress."
B. A child, for purposes of this crime, is a person
under the age of 16 years.
This bill:
1. Provides any person who intentionally harasses a child or
ward of any other person because of that person's employment
shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail for not
less than 10 days but not exceeding one year.
2. Provides that a second conviction is a fine not exceeding
$10,000 and by imprisonment in a county jail for not less
than 30 days but not exceeding one year.
3. Provides that a third or subsequent conviction is a fine not
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exceeding $10,000 and imprisonment in a county jail for a
period of not less than 60 days.
4. Specifies that harassment may include any actual or attempted
recording of the child's image or voice without the written
consent of the child's parent or legal guardian, by following
the child's activities or lying in wait.
5. Includes the following definitions:
A. "Child" and "ward" for purposes of this crime, means
a person under 16 years of age.
B. "Harasses" means knowing and willful conduct directed
at a specific child that seriously alarms, annoys,
torments, or terrorizes the child, and that serves no
legitimate purpose, including, but not limited to, any
actual or attempted recording of the child's image or
voice, or both, without the written consent of the
child's parent or legal guardian, by following the
child's activities or lying in wait. The conduct must
be such as it would cause a reasonable child to suffer
substantial emotional distress, and actually cause the
victim to suffer substantial emotional distress.
C. "Employment" means the job, vocation, occupation, or
profession of the parent or legal guardian of the child
or ward.
6. Creates a civil cause of action under which the parent or
guardian of a child who was harassed because of the
employment of the parent or guardian may seek actual damages,
disgorgement of profits, punitive damages and attorney's fees
and costs.
Background
AB 3592 (Umberg, 1994) was adopted to protect children who would
be susceptible to retaliatory attacks because of their parents'
employment. The bill made the intentional harassment of a child
because of their parents' employment a misdemeanor. AB 3592 was
meant to specifically address the increased harassment faced by
the children of health care facility employees where abortion
procedures were performed.
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The beneficiaries of the law, however, were not solely
healthcare workers. Clearly, there are many other categories of
workers whose children are subject to retaliatory attacks
because of the nature of their work. For example, the children
of public figures are susceptible to fanatical attention and
harassment because of their parents' occupation.
Indeed, those charged with enforcing our criminal laws-police,
sheriffs, prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges and jail/prison
guards-confront individuals who harbor vendettas against them on
a daily basis. The most tragic, recent example of the lengths
to which some will go is the February killing spree of former
Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officer Christopher Dorner.
In his "manifesto," Dorner identified over 50 potential targets
and their families, including that of LAPD Captain Phil
Tingirides, who served on the board of rights that recommended
Dorner's termination from the Department. Once that threat
surfaced, Tingirides' six foster children (the youngest of whom
was only 10 years old) were guarded by round-the-clock
protection details during the ensuing manhunt. This horrific
case highlights the vulnerability of the children of our law
enforcers and the need to provide a strong impediment against
such terrorism.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/20/13)
California National Organization for Women
California Police Chiefs Association
California State Sheriffs Association
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
State Coalition of Probation Organizations
OPPOSITION : (Verified 5/20/13)
Motion Picture Association of America
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : On behalf of the California State
Sheriffs' Association, "we are pleased to support SB 606, which
would make it a crime for any person who intentionally harasses
the child or ward of any other person because of that person's
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employment, or attempts to record a child's image or voice, or
both, without the written consent of the child's parent or legal
guardian, by following the child's activities or lying in wait.
Unfortunately, children of law enforcement officers have been
targeted for harassment and threats of violence due to the
employment of their parents. We are pleased to support this
measure that increases the protection of those children."
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : The Motion Picture Association of
America states, " the bill, as currently drafted, implicates the
First Amendment's protection of free speech since it reaches
activity which may occur on public property or public spaces,
such as streets, sidewalks, parks, beaches, as well as
restaurants, shopping malls, etc. In addition, a parent may
assert there is "no legitimate interest" in a photo of his or
her child, and will have a private right of action to attempt to
vindicate that position.
Cameras are ubiquitous; almost anyone with a cellphone is a
photographer. A person taking pictures of his or her child at a
sports event, or musical performance could run afoul of the
bill's provisions by capturing other children in a photo. And a
tourist who snaps a picture of a celebrity with his or her child
could also be prosecuted or sued under this bill."
JG:d 5/22/13 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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