Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1877 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R10272 JRR-D
2	2	By: Springer H.B. No. 1877
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to civil and criminal liability for the disclosure of
8	8	certain visual material on the Internet; creating a criminal
9	9	offense.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Title 4, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, is
12	12	amended by adding Chapter 98B to read as follows:
13	13	CHAPTER 98B. LIABILITY FOR DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN VISUAL MATERIAL ON
14	14	INTERNET
15	15	Sec. 98B.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
16	16	(1) "Intimate parts" means the naked genitals, pubic
17	17	area, anus, buttocks, or female nipple of a person.
18	18	(2) "Intimate visual material" means visual material
19	19	that depicts a person:
20	20	(A) with the person's intimate parts exposed; or
21	21	(B) engaged in sexual conduct.
22	22	(3) "Sexual conduct" has the meaning assigned by
23	23	Section 43.25, Penal Code.
24	24	(4) "Visual material" has the meaning assigned by
25	25	Section 43.26, Penal Code.
26	26	Sec. 98B.002. LIABILITY FOR DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN INTIMATE
27	27	VISUAL MATERIAL ON INTERNET. A defendant is liable, as provided by
28	28	this chapter, to a person depicted in intimate visual material for
29	29	damages arising from the placement of the material on the Internet
30	30	if the defendant intentionally engaged in conduct that violates
31	31	Section 21.16, Penal Code, with respect to the material.
32	32	Sec. 98B.003. DAMAGES. A claimant who prevails in a suit
33	33	under this chapter is entitled to recover:
34	34	(1) actual damages;
35	35	(2) court costs; and
36	36	(3) reasonable attorney's fees.
37	37	Sec. 98B.004. INJUNCTIVE RELIEF. A court in which a suit is
38	38	brought under this chapter, on the motion of a party, may issue a
39	39	temporary restraining order or a temporary or permanent injunction
40	40	to restrain and prevent the placement of intimate visual material
41	41	on the Internet with respect to the person depicted in the material.
42	42	Sec. 98B.005. CAUSE OF ACTION CUMULATIVE. The cause of
43	43	action created by this chapter is cumulative of any other remedy
44	44	provided by common law or statute.
45	45	Sec. 98B.006. LIBERAL CONSTRUCTION AND APPLICATION;
46	46	CERTAIN CONDUCT EXCEPTED. (a) This chapter shall be liberally
47	47	construed and applied to promote its underlying purpose to protect
48	48	persons from, and provide adequate remedies to victims of, unlawful
49	49	placement of intimate visual material on the Internet.
50	50	(b) This chapter does not apply to a claim brought against
51	51	an interactive computer service, as defined by 47 U.S.C. Section
52	52	230, for conduct that consists only of a disclosure of intimate
53	53	visual material provided by another person.
54	54	SECTION 2. Chapter 21, Penal Code, is amended by adding
55	55	Section 21.16 to read as follows:
56	56	Sec. 21.16. UNLAWFUL DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN VISUAL MATERIAL
57	57	ON INTERNET. (a) In this section:
58	58	(1) "Intimate parts" means the naked genitals, pubic
59	59	area, anus, buttocks, or female nipple of a person.
60	60	(2) "Sexual conduct" has the meaning assigned by
61	61	Section 43.25.
62	62	(3) "Visual material" has the meaning assigned by
63	63	Section 43.26.
64	64	(b) A person commits an offense if:
65	65	(1) the person intentionally causes emotional
66	66	distress to another person by intentionally placing on the Internet
67	67	visual material depicting the other person:
68	68	(A) with the other person's intimate parts
69	69	exposed; or
70	70	(B) engaged in sexual conduct;
71	71	(2) the person knows that the depicted person did not
72	72	consent to the placement of the visual material on the Internet;
73	73	(3) the visual material was obtained by the person or
74	74	created under circumstances in which the depicted person had a
75	75	reasonable expectation that the visual material would remain
76	76	private; and
77	77	(4) the placement of the visual material on the
78	78	Internet, including any accompanying or subsequent information or
79	79	material related to the visual material, reveals the identity of
80	80	the depicted person in any manner, including by:
81	81	(A) the content of the visual material;
82	82	(B) information or material accompanying the
83	83	visual material; or
84	84	(C) information or material provided by a third
85	85	party in response to the person's placement of the visual material
86	86	on the Internet.
87	87	(c) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that:
88	88	(1) the visual material placed on the Internet depicts
89	89	only a voluntary exposure of intimate parts or sexual conduct in a
90	90	public or commercial setting; or
91	91	(2) the actor is an interactive computer service, as
92	92	defined by 47 U.S.C. Section 230, and the conduct consisted only of
93	93	a disclosure of visual material provided by another person.
94	94	(d) An offense under this section is a felony of the third
95	95	degree.
96	96	SECTION 3. (a) Chapter 98B, Civil Practice and Remedies
97	97	Code, as added by this Act, applies only to a cause of action that
98	98	accrues on or after the effective date of this Act. A cause of
99	99	action that accrues before the effective date of this Act is
100	100	governed by the law in effect immediately before that date, and that
101	101	law is continued in effect for that purpose.
102	102	(b) Section 21.16, Penal Code, as added by this Act, applies
103	103	to visual material placed on the Internet on or after the effective
104	104	date of this Act, regardless of whether the visual material was
105	105	obtained by the actor or created before, on, or after that date.
106	106	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.