Strengthening Protections for Domestic Violence and Stalking Survivors Act of 2023

Subjects: Crime and Law Enforcement


<html><body><pre>[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 321 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

&lt;DOC&gt;






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 321

 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 SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            February 9, 2023

Ms. Klobuchar (for herself, Mrs. Feinstein, and Ms. Hirono) introduced 
the following bill; which was read twice and 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.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Strengthening Protections for 
Domestic Violence and Stalking Survivors Act of 2023''.

SEC. 2. ADDRESSING INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE.

    (a) Inclusion of Current and Former Dating Partners in Definition 
of ``Intimate Partner''.--Section 921(a) of title 18, United States 
Code, is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (32)--
                    (A) by striking ``and an individual'' and inserting 
                ``an individual''; and
                    (B) by inserting before the period at the end the 
                following: ``, an individual who is or was in a dating 
                relationship with the person, or any other individual 
                similarly situated to a spouse, including an individual 
                who is protected by the domestic or family violence 
                laws of the State or Tribal jurisdiction in which the 
                abuse occurred or the victim resides'';
            (2) by striking paragraph (37)(A) and inserting the 
        following:
    ``(37)(A) The term `dating relationship' means a relationship 
between individuals who have or have had, or in the case of a 
misdemeanor crime of domestic violence have or have recently had, a 
continuing serious relationship of a romantic or intimate nature.''; 
and
            (3) in paragraph (37)(C), by striking ``dating 
        relationship'' and inserting ``continuing serious 
        relationship''.
    (b) New Prohibitor for Misdemeanor Crimes of Stalking.--Chapter 44 
of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in section 921(a), by adding at the end the following:
    ``(38)(A) Except as provided in subparagraphs (B) and (C), the term 
`misdemeanor crime of stalking' means an offense that--
            ``(i) is a misdemeanor under Federal, State, Tribal, or 
        local law; and
            ``(ii) has, as an element, a course of harassment, 
        intimidation, or surveillance that--
                    ``(I) places a person in reasonable fear of actual 
                harm to the health or safety of--
                            ``(aa) that person;
                            ``(bb) an immediate family member (as 
                        defined in section 115) of that person;
                            ``(cc) an individual who shares or has 
                        shared a residence with that person, without 
                        regard to whether the individual is related to 
                        that person;
                            ``(dd) an intimate partner of that person; 
                        or
                            ``(ee) the pet, service animal, or 
                        emotional support animal (as those terms are 
                        defined in section 2266) of that person; or
                    ``(II) causes, attempts to cause, or would 
                reasonably be expected to cause emotional distress to a 
                person described in item (aa), (bb), (cc), or (dd) of 
                subclause (I).
    ``(B) A person shall not be considered to have been convicted of 
such an offense for purposes of this chapter, unless--
            ``(i) the person was represented by counsel in the case, or 
        knowingly and intelligently waived the right to counsel in the 
        case; and
            ``(ii) in the case of a prosecution for an offense 
        described in this paragraph for which a person was entitled to 
        a jury trial in the jurisdiction in which the case was tried, 
        either--
                    ``(I) the case was tried by a jury; or
                    ``(II) the person knowingly and intelligently 
                waived the right to have the case tried by a jury, by 
                guilty plea or otherwise.
    ``(C) A person shall not be considered to have been convicted of 
such an offense for purposes of this chapter if the conviction has been 
expunged or set aside, or is an offense for which the person has been 
pardoned or has had civil rights restored (if the law of the applicable 
jurisdiction provides for the loss of civil rights under such an 
offense) unless the pardon, expungement, or restoration of civil rights 
expressly provides that the person may not ship, transport, possess, or 
receive firearms.''; and
            (2) in section 922--
                    (A) in subsection (d)--
                            (i) by redesignating paragraphs (10) and 
                        (11) as paragraphs (11) and (12), respectively;
                            (ii) by inserting after paragraph (9) the 
                        following:
            ``(10) has been convicted in any court of a misdemeanor 
        crime of stalking;''; and
                            (iii) in paragraph (12), as so 
                        redesignated, by striking ``(10)'' and 
                        inserting ``(11)''; and
                    (B) in subsection (g)--
                            (i) in paragraph (8), by striking ``or'' at 
                        the end;
                            (ii) in paragraph (9), by striking the 
                        comma at the end and inserting ``; or''; and
                            (iii) by inserting after paragraph (9) the 
                        following:
            ``(10) has been convicted in any court of a misdemeanor 
        crime of stalking,''.
                                 &lt;all&gt;
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