[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2991 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2991

  To amend title 18, United States Code, to expand the prohibition on 
                   stalking, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 27, 2000

  Mr. Abraham 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 expand the prohibition on 
                   stalking, 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 ``Just Punishment for Cyberstalkers 
Act of 2000''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON USE OF INSTRUMENTALITIES OF INTERSTATE OF 
              FOREIGN COMMERCE FOR CYBERSTALKING.

    (a) Interstate Stalking.--Section 2261A of title 18, United States 
Code, is amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 2261A. Interstate stalking
    ``Whoever--
            ``(1) travels across a State line or within the special 
        maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States with 
        the intent to injure or harass another person, and in the 
        course of, or as a result of, such travel places that person in 
        reasonable fear of the death of, or serious bodily injury (as 
        defined in section 2119(2)) to, that person or a member of the 
        immediate family (as defined in section 115) of that person; or
            ``(2) with the intent to kill or injure a person in another 
        State or to place a person in another State in reasonable fear 
        of death or serious bodily injury (as defined in section 
        2119(2)), uses or causes another to use the mail or any 
        facility of interstate or foreign commerce to engage in a 
        course of conduct that places that person in reasonable fear of 
        the death of, or serious bodily injury to--
                    ``(A) that person;
                    ``(B) a member of the immediate family (as defined 
                in section 115) of that person; or
                    ``(C) a spouse or intimate partner of that person;
shall be punished as provided in section 2261(b).''.
    (b) Definition.--Section 2266 of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended, in the fourth undesignated paragraph, by striking 
subparagraphs (A) and (B) and inserting the following:
            ``(A)(i) for purposes of sections other than 2261A, a 
        spouse, a former spouse, a person who shares a child in common 
        with the abuser, and a person who cohabits or has cohabited 
        with the abuser as a spouse; and
            ``(ii) for purposes of section 2261A, a spouse or a former 
        spouse of the target of the stalking, a person who shares a 
        child in common with the target of the stalking, and a person 
        who cohabits or has cohabited with the target of the stalking; 
        and
            ``(B) any person similarly situated to a spouse who is 
        protected by the domestic or family violence laws of the State 
        in which the injury occurred or where the victim resides.''.
    (c) Amendment of Federal Sentencing Guidelines.--
            (1) In general.--Pursuant to its authority under section 
        994 of title 28, United States Code, the United States 
        Sentencing Commission shall amend the Federal Sentencing 
        Guidelines to reflect the amendments made by this section.
            (2) Factors for consideration.--In carrying out paragraph 
        (1), the Commission shall consider--
                    (A) whether the Federal Sentencing Guidelines 
                relating to stalking offenses should be modified to 
                ensure that, if a stalking offense involves conduct 
                that would be covered by another Federal Sentencing 
                Guideline (relating to Offenses Against the Person) if 
                the conduct occurred within the special maritime and 
                territorial jurisdiction of the United States, and the 
                application of such other Guideline to the conduct 
                would result in a greater offense level, such other 
                Guideline is applied to the conduct, regardless of 
                whether the conduct occurred within the special 
                maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United 
                States;
                    (B) whether the single 2-level enhancement for a 
                pattern of stalking, combined with the suggestion in 
                the commentary of an upward departure for egregious 
                cases, adequately captures gradations of intensity and 
                seriousness of stalking, or whether the Federal 
                Sentencing Guidelines should be modified to contain a 
                more precise directive keyed to the number, frequency, 
                severity, or acceleration in intensity or severity of 
                incidents of stalking; and
                    (C) whether the Federal Sentencing Guidelines 
                should be modified to provide that a stalker who both 
                threatens and attacks a victim is punished for both 
                actions.
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