I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 905 

To amend title 18, United States Code, to define intimate partner to include 

someone with whom there is or was a dating relationship, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 9, 2023 

Mrs. DINGELL (for herself, Ms. JACKSON LEE, and Mr. FITZPATRICK) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To amend title 18, United States Code, to define intimate 

partner to include someone with whom there is or was 

a dating relationship, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Strengthening Protec5 tions for Domestic Violence and Stalking Survivors Act 

6 of 2023’’. 

7 SEC. 2. ADDRESSING INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE. 

8 (a) INCLUSION OF CURRENT AND FORMER DATING

9 PARTNERS IN DEFINITION OF ‘‘INTIMATE PARTNER’’.— 


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1 Section 921(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amend2 ed— 

3 (1) in paragraph (32)— 

4 (A) by striking ‘‘and an individual’’ and in5 serting ‘‘an individual’’; and 

6 (B) by inserting before the period at the 

7 end the following: ‘‘, an individual who is or 

8 was in a dating relationship with the person, or 

9 any other individual similarly situated to a 

10 spouse, including a person who is protected by 

11 the domestic or family violence laws of the 

12 State or Tribal jurisdiction in which the abuse 

13 occurred or the victim resides’’; 

14 (2) by striking paragraph (37)(A) and inserting 

15 the following: 

16 ‘‘(37)(A) The term ‘dating relationship’ means 

17 a relationship between individuals who have or have 

18 had, or in the case of a misdemeanor crime of do19 mestic violence have or have recently had, a con20 tinuing serious relationship of a romantic or inti21 mate nature.’’; and 

22 (3) in paragraph (37)(C), by striking ‘‘dating’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘continuing serious’’. 


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1 (b) NEW PROHIBITOR FOR MISDEMEANOR CRIMES

2 OF STALKING.—Chapter 44 of title 18, United States 

3 Code, is amended— 

4 (1) in section 921(a), by adding at the end the 

5 following: 

6 ‘‘(38)(A) Except as provided in subparagraphs (B) 

7 and (C), the term ‘misdemeanor crime of stalking’ means 

8 an offense that— 

9 ‘‘(i) is a misdemeanor under Federal, State, 

10 Tribal, or local law; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) has as an element a course of harassment, 

12 intimidation, or surveillance that— 

13 ‘‘(I) places a person in reasonable fear of 

14 actual harm to the health or safety of— 

15 ‘‘(aa) that person; 

16 ‘‘(bb) an immediate family member 

17 (as defined in section 115) of that person; 

18 ‘‘(cc) an individual who shares or has 

19 shared a residence with that person, with20 out regard to whether the individual is re21 lated to that person; 

22 ‘‘(dd) an intimate partner of that per23 son; or 


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1 ‘‘(ee) the pet, service animal, or emo2 tional support animal (as those terms are 

3 defined in section 2266) of that person; or 

4 ‘‘(II) causes, attempts to cause, or would 

5 reasonably be expected to cause emotional dis6 tress to a person described in item (aa), (bb), 

7 (cc), or (dd) of subclause (I). 

8 ‘‘(B) A person shall not be considered to have been 

9 convicted of such an offense for purposes of this chapter, 

10 unless— 

11 ‘‘(i) the person was represented by counsel in 

12 the case, or knowingly and intelligently waived the 

13 right to counsel in the case; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a prosecution for an offense 

15 described in this paragraph for which a person was 

16 entitled to a jury trial in the jurisdiction in which 

17 the case was tried, either— 

18 ‘‘(I) the case was tried by a jury; or 

19 ‘‘(II) the person knowingly and intel20 ligently waived the right to have the case tried 

21 by a jury, by guilty plea or otherwise. 

22 ‘‘(C) A person shall not be considered to have been 

23 convicted of such an offense for purposes of this chapter 

24 if the conviction has been expunged or set aside, or is an 

25 offense for which the person has been pardoned or has 


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1 had civil rights restored (if the law of the applicable juris2 diction provides for the loss of civil rights under such an 

3 offense) unless the pardon, expungement, or restoration 

4 of civil rights expressly provides that the person may not 

5 ship, transport, possess, or receive firearms.’’; and 

6 (2) in section 922— 

7 (A) in subsection (d)— 

8 (i) by redesignating paragraphs (10) 

9 and (11) as paragraphs (11) and (12), re10 spectively; 

11 (ii) by inserting after paragraph (9) 

12 the following: 

13 ‘‘(10) has been convicted in any court of a mis14 demeanor crime of stalking;’’; and 

15 (iii) in paragraph (12), as so redesig16 nated, by striking ‘‘(10)’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘(11)’’; and 

18 (B) in subsection (g)— 

19 (i) in paragraph (8), by striking ‘‘or’’ 

20 at the end; 

21 (ii) in paragraph (9), by striking the 

22 comma at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; 

23 and 

24 (iii) by inserting after paragraph (9) 

25 the following: 


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1 ‘‘(10) has been convicted in any court of a mis2 demeanor crime of stalking,’’. 

Æ 


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