Source: http://victimsofcrime.org/our-programs/stalking-resource-center/help-for-victims/state-information/district-of-columbia
Timestamp: 2018-02-23 20:36:57
Document Index: 2293859

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 22', '§ 22', '§ 22', '§ 22', '§ 22', '§ 22', '§ 22', '§ 22', '§ 22', '§ 22', '§ 22', '§ 22', '§ 22']

Click here for more information on criminal stalking laws in the District of Columbia.
D.C. Code § 22-3131. Legislative Intent. (was § 22-501) (2009)
(b) The Council enacts this stalking statute to permit the criminal justice system to hold stalkers accountable for a wide range of acts, communications, and conduct. The Council recognizes that stalking includes, but is not limited to, a pattern of following or monitoring the victim, or committing violent or intimidating acts against the victim, regardless of the means.
D.C. Code § 22-3132. Definitions. (was § 22-502) (2009)
(1) "Any device" means electronic, mechanical, digital or any other equipment, including: a camera, spycam, computer, spyware, microphone, audio or video recorder, global positioning system, electronic monitoring system, listening device, night-vision goggles, binoculars, telescope, or spyglass.
(2) "Any means" includes the use of a telephone, mail, delivery service, e-mail, website, or other method of communication or any device.
(3) "Communicating" means using oral or written language, photographs, pictures, signs, symbols, gestures, or other acts or objects that are intended to convey a message.
(4) "Emotional distress" means significant mental suffering or distress that may, but does not necessarily, require medical or other professional treatment or counseling.
(5) "Financial injury" means the monetary costs, debts, or obligations incurred as a result of the stalking by the specific individual, member of the specific individual's household, a person whose safety is threatened by the stalking, or a person who is financially responsible for the specific individual and includes:
(A) The costs of replacing or repairing any property that was taken or damaged;
(B) The costs of clearing the specific individual's name or his or her credit, criminal, or any other official record;
(C) Medical bills;
(D) Relocation expenses;
(E) Lost employment or wages; and
(F) Attorney's fees.
(6) "Personal identifying information" shall have the same meaning as provided in § 22-3227.01 (3).
(7) "Specific individual" or "individual" means the victim or alleged victim of stalking.
(8) "To engage in a course of conduct" means directly or indirectly, or through one or more third persons, in person or by any means, on 2 or more occasions, to:
(A) Follow, monitor, place under surveillance, threaten, or communicate to or about another individual;
(B) Interfere with, damage, take, or unlawfully enter an individual's real or personal property or threaten or attempt to do so; or
(C) Use another individual's personal identifying information.
D.C. Code § 22-3133. Stalking. (was § 22-503) (2009)
(3) That the person should have known would cause a reasonable person in the individual's circumstances to:
(b) This section does not apply to constitutionally protected activity.
(c) Where a single act is of a continuing nature, each 24-hour period constitutes a separate occasion.
(d) The conduct on each of the occasions need not be the same as it is on the others.
D.C. Code § 22-3132. Penalties. (was § 22-504) (2009)
(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, a person who violates § 22-3133 shall be fined not more than $1,000, imprisoned for not more than 12 months, or both.
(b) A person who violates § 22-3133 shall be fined not more than $10,000, imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both, if the person:
(1) At the time, was subject to a court, parole, or supervised release order prohibiting contact with the specific individual;
(2) Has one prior conviction in any jurisdiction of stalking any person within the previous 10 years;
(3) At the time, was at least 4 years older than the specific individual and the specific individual was less than 18 years of age; or
(4) Caused more than $ 2,500 in financial injury
(c) A person who violates § 22-3133 shall be fined not more than $25,000, imprisoned for not more than 10 years, or both, if the person has 2 or more prior convictions in any jurisdiction for stalking any person, at lease one of which was for a jury demandable offense.
(d) A person shall not be sentenced consecutively for stalking and identify theft based on the same act or course of conduct.
D.C.Code § 22-3135. Jurisdiction. (was 22-50) (2009)
(a) An offense shall be deemed to be committed in the District of Columbia if the conduct on at least one occasion was initiated in the District of Columbia or had an effect on the specific individual in the District of Columbia.
(b) A communication shall be deemed to be committed in the District of Columbia if it is made or received in the District of Columbia or, if the specific individual lives in the District of Columbia, it can be electronically accessed in the District of Columbia.