EXPLANATION-Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in this bill is not enacted
and is intended to be omitted in the law.
FIRST REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 259
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR WASHINGTON.
0862S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To repeal sections 565.002 and 565.240, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof two new sections
relating to offenses against employees of election authorities, with penalty provisions.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Sections 565.002 and 565.240, RSMo, are 1
repealed and two new sections enacted in lieu thereof, to b e 2
known as sections 565.002 and 565.240, to read as follows:3
565.002. As used in this chapter, unless a different 1
meaning is otherwise plainly required the following terms 2
mean: 3
(1) "Adequate cause", cause that would reasonably 4
produce a degree of passion in a person of ordinary 5
temperament sufficient to substantially impair an ordinary 6
person's capacity for self -control; 7
(2) "Child", a person under seventeen years of age; 8
(3) "Conduct", includes any act or omission; 9
(4) "Course of conduct", a pattern of conduct composed 10
of two or more acts, which may include communication by any 11
means, over a period of time, however short, evidencing a 12
continuity of purpose. Constitutionally protected activity 13
is not included within the meaning of course of conduct. 14
Such constitutionally protected activity includes picketing 15
or other organized protests; 16
(5) "Deliberation", cool reflection for any length of 17
time no matter how brief; 18 SB 259 2
(6) "Domestic victim", a household or family member as 19
the term "family" or "household member" is defined in 20
section 455.010, including any child who is a member of the 21
household or family; 22
(7) "Emotional distress", something markedly greater 23
than the level of uneasiness, nervousnes s, unhappiness, or 24
the like which are commonly experienced in day -to-day living; 25
(8) "Full or partial nudity", the showing of all or 26
any part of the human genitals, pubic area, buttock, or any 27
part of the nipple of the breast of any female person, with 28
less than a fully opaque covering; 29
(9) "Legal custody", the right to the care, custody 30
and control of a child; 31
(10) "Parent", either a biological parent or a parent 32
by adoption; 33
(11) "Person having a right of custody", a parent o r 34
legal guardian of the child; 35
(12) "Photographs" or "films", the making of any 36
photograph, motion picture film, videotape, or any other 37
recording or transmission of the image of a person; 38
(13) "Place where a person would have a reasonable 39
expectation of privacy", any place where a reasonable person 40
would believe that a person could disrobe in privacy, 41
without being concerned that the person's undressing was 42
being viewed, photographed or filmed by another; 43
(14) "Special victim", any of the following: 44
(a) A law enforcement officer assaulted in the 45
performance of his or her official duties or as a direct 46
result of such official duties; 47
(b) Emergency personnel, any paid or volunteer 48
firefighter, emergency room, hospital, or trauma center 49
personnel, or emergency medical technician, assaulted in the 50 SB 259 3
performance of his or her official duties or as a direct 51
result of such official duties; 52
(c) A probation and parole officer assaulted in the 53
performance of his or her o fficial duties or as a direct 54
result of such official duties; 55
(d) An elderly person; 56
(e) A person with a disability; 57
(f) A vulnerable person; 58
(g) Any jailer or corrections officer of the state or 59
one of its political subdivisions assaulted in the 60
performance of his or her official duties or as a direct 61
result of such official duties; 62
(h) A highway worker in a construction or work zone as 63
the terms "highway worker", "construction zone", and "work 64
zone" are defined under se ction 304.580; 65
(i) Any utility worker, meaning any employee of a 66
utility that provides gas, heat, electricity, water, steam, 67
telecommunications services, or sewer services, whether 68
privately, municipally, or cooperatively owned, while in the 69
performance of his or her job duties, including any person 70
employed under a contract; 71
(j) Any cable worker, meaning any employee of a cable 72
operator, as such term is defined in section 67.2677, 73
including any person employed under contract, while in th e 74
performance of his or her job duties; [and] 75
(k) Any employee of a mass transit system, including 76
any employee of public bus or light rail companies, while in 77
the performance of his or her job duties; and 78
(l) Any employee of an election aut hority as defined 79
in section 115.015; 80
(15) "Sudden passion", passion directly caused by and 81
arising out of provocation by the victim or another acting 82 SB 259 4
with the victim which passion arises at the time of the 83
offense and is not solely the result of former provocation; 84
(16) "Trier", the judge or jurors to whom issues of 85
fact, guilt or innocence, or the assessment and declaration 86
of punishment are submitted for decision; 87
(17) "Views", the looking upon of another person, with 88
the unaided eye or with any device designed or intended to 89
improve visual acuity, for the purpose of arousing or 90
gratifying the sexual desire of any person. 91
565.240. 1. A person commits the offense of unlawful 1
posting of certain information ov er the internet if he or 2
she knowingly posts the name, home address, Social Security 3
number, telephone number, or any other personally 4
identifiable information of any person on the internet 5
intending to cause great bodily harm or death, or 6
threatening to cause great bodily harm or death to such 7
person. 8
2. The offense of unlawful posting of certain 9
information over the internet is a class C misdemeanor, 10
unless the person knowingly posts on the internet the name, 11
home address, Social Security n umber, telephone number, or 12
any other personally identifiable information of any law 13
enforcement officer, corrections officer, parole officer, 14
judge, commissioner, [or] prosecuting attorney, or any 15
employee of an election authority as defined in sectio n 16
115.015, or of any immediate family member of such law 17
enforcement officer, corrections officer, parole officer, 18
judge, commissioner, [or] prosecuting attorney, or any 19
employee of an election authority as defined in section 20
115.015, intending to cause great bodily harm or death, or 21
threatening to cause great bodily harm or death, in which 22
case it is a class E felony, and if such intention or threat 23 SB 259 5
results in bodily harm or death to such person or immediate 24
family member, the offense of unlawful posting of certain 25
information over the internet is a class D felony. 26