Senate Bill sb0190

    Florida Senate - 2002                                   SB 190

    By Senator Miller





    21-221-02

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to neighborhood crime watch

  3         programs; authorizing a county sheriff or

  4         municipal police department to establish

  5         neighborhood crime watch programs; providing

  6         for residents and business owners located

  7         within the county or municipality to

  8         participate in the program; prohibiting the

  9         harassment of a participant of a neighborhood

10         crime watch program; providing a penalty;

11         defining the term "harass"; providing an

12         effective date.

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14  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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16         Section 1.  Establishment of neighborhood crime watch

17  programs.--A county sheriff or municipal police department may

18  establish neighborhood crime watch programs within the county

19  or municipality. The participants of a neighborhood crime

20  watch program shall include, but need not be limited to,

21  residents of the county or municipality and owners of

22  businesses located within the county or municipality.

23         Section 2.  Harassment of participant of neighborhood

24  crime watch program prohibited; penalty; definition.--

25         (1)  It is a misdemeanor of the first degree for a

26  person to willfully harass a person who is a member of a

27  neighborhood crime watch group for the purpose of intimidating

28  or retaliating against that person for his or her

29  participation in a neighborhood crime watch program.

30         (2)  As used in this section, the term "harass" means

31  to engage in a course of conduct directed at a specific person

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2002                                   SB 190
    21-221-02




  1  which causes substantial emotional distress in that person and

  2  serves no legitimate purpose.

  3         Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2002.

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  6                          SENATE SUMMARY

  7    Authorizes the establishment of neighborhood crime watch
      programs within a county or municipality by the sheriff
  8    or municipal police department. Provides that it is a
      first-degree misdemeanor to harass a participant of a
  9    neighborhood crime watch program for the purpose of
      intimidating or retaliating against that person for his
10    or her participation in the neighborhood crime watch
      program.
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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.