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Public Act 096-0246
Public Act 0246 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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Public Act 096-0246 |
HB0693 Enrolled |
LRB096 06021 RLC 16102 b |
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| AN ACT in relation to stalking.
| Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | represented in the General Assembly:
| Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | Stalking No Contact Order Act. | Section 5. Purpose. Stalking generally refers to a course | of conduct, not a single act. Stalking behavior includes | following a person, conducting surveillance of the person, | appearing at the person's home, work or school, making unwanted | phone calls, sending unwanted emails or text messages, leaving | objects for the person, vandalizing the person's property, or | injuring a pet. Stalking is a serious crime. Victims experience | fear for their safety, fear for the safety of others and suffer | emotional distress. Many victims alter their daily routines to | avoid the persons who are stalking them. Some victims are in | such fear that they relocate to another city, town or state. | While estimates suggest that 70% of victims know the | individuals stalking them, only 30% of victims have dated or | been in intimate relationships with their stalkers. All | stalking victims should be able to seek a civil remedy | requiring the offenders stay away from the victims and third | parties. |
| Section 10. Definitions. For the purposes of this Act: | "Course of conduct" means 2 or more acts, including but not | limited to acts in which a respondent directly, indirectly, or | through third parties, by any action, method, device, or means | follows, monitors, observes, surveils, threatens, or | communicates to or about, a person, engages in other contact, | or interferes with or damages a person's property or pet. A | course of conduct may include contact via electronic | communications. The incarceration of a person in a penal | institution who commits the course of conduct is not a bar to | prosecution under this Section. | "Emotional distress" means significant mental suffering, | anxiety or alarm. | "Contact" includes any contact with the victim, that is | initiated or continued without the victim's consent, or that is | in disregard of the victim's expressed desire that the contact | be avoided or discontinued, including but not limited to being | in the physical presence of the victim; appearing within the | sight of the victim; approaching or confronting the victim in a | public place or on private property; appearing at the workplace | or residence of the victim; entering onto or remaining on | property owned, leased, or occupied by the victim; or placing | an object on, or delivering an object to, property owned, | leased, or occupied by the victim. | "Petitioner" means any named petitioner for the stalking no | contact order or any named victim of stalking on whose behalf |
| the petition is brought. | "Reasonable person" means a person in the petitioner's | circumstances with the petitioner's knowledge of the | respondent and the respondent's prior acts. | "Stalking" means engaging in a course of conduct directed | at a specific person, and he or she knows or should know that | this course of conduct would cause a reasonable person to fear | for his or her safety or the safety of a third person or suffer | emotional distress. Stalking does not include an exercise of | the right to free speech or assembly that is otherwise lawful | or picketing occurring at the workplace that is otherwise | lawful and arises out of a bona fide labor dispute, including | any controversy concerning wages, salaries, hours, working | conditions or benefits, including health and welfare, sick | leave, insurance, and pension or retirement provisions, the | making or maintaining of collective bargaining agreements, and | the terms to be included in those agreements. | "Stalking No Contact Order" means an emergency order or | plenary order granted under this Act, which includes a remedy | authorized by Section 80 of this Act. | Section 15. Persons protected by this Act. A petition for a | stalking no contact order may be filed when relief is not | available to the petitioner under the Illinois Domestic | Violence Act of 1986: | (1) by any person who is a victim of stalking; or |
| (2) by a person on behalf of a minor child or an adult | who is a victim of stalking but, because of age, | disability, health, or inaccessibility, cannot file the | petition. | Section 20. Commencement of action; filing fees. | (a) An action for a stalking no contact order is commenced: | (1) independently, by filing a petition for a stalking | no contact order in any civil court, unless specific courts | are designated by local rule or order; or | (2) in conjunction with a delinquency petition or a | criminal prosecution, by filing a petition for a stalking | no contact order under the same case number as the | delinquency petition or criminal prosecution, to be | granted during pre-trial release of a defendant, with any | dispositional order issued under Section 5-710 of the | Juvenile Court Act of 1987 or as a condition of release, | supervision, conditional discharge, probation, periodic | imprisonment, parole, or mandatory supervised release, or | in conjunction with imprisonment or a bond forfeiture | warrant, provided that (i) the violation is alleged in an | information, complaint, indictment, or delinquency | petition on file and the alleged victim is a person | protected by this Act, and (ii) the petition, which is | filed by the State's Attorney, names a victim of the | alleged crime as a petitioner. |
| (b) Withdrawal or dismissal of any petition for a stalking | no contact order prior to adjudication where the petitioner is | represented by the State shall operate as a dismissal without | prejudice. No action for a stalking no contact order shall be | dismissed because the respondent is being prosecuted for a | crime against the petitioner. For any action commenced under | item (2) of subsection (a) of this Section, dismissal of the | conjoined case (or a finding of not guilty) shall not require | dismissal of the action for a stalking no contact order; | instead, it may be treated as an independent action and, if | necessary and appropriate, transferred to a different court or | division. | (c) No fee shall be charged by the clerk of the court for | filing petitions or modifying or certifying orders. No fee | shall be charged by the sheriff for service by the sheriff of a | petition, rule, motion, or order in an action commenced under | this Section. | (d) The court shall provide, through the office of the | clerk of the court, simplified forms for filing of a petition | under this Section by any person not represented by counsel. | Section 25. Pleading; non-disclosure of address. | (a) A petition for a stalking no contact order shall be in | writing and verified or accompanied by affidavit and shall | allege that the petitioner has been the victim of stalking by | the respondent. |
| (b) If the petition states that disclosure of the | petitioner's address would risk abuse of the petitioner or any | member of the petitioner's family or household, that address | may be omitted from all documents filed with the court. If the | petitioner has not disclosed an address under this subsection, | the petitioner shall designate an alternative address at which | the respondent may serve notice of any motions. | Section 30. Application of rules of civil procedure; victim | advocates. | (a) Any proceeding to obtain, modify, reopen or appeal a | stalking no contact order shall be governed by the rules of | civil procedure of this State. The standard of proof in such a | proceeding is proof by a preponderance of the evidence. The | Code of Civil Procedure and Supreme Court and local court rules | applicable to civil proceedings shall apply, except as | otherwise provided by this Act. | (b) In circuit courts, victim advocates shall be allowed to | accompany the petitioner and confer with the petitioner, unless | otherwise directed by the court. Court administrators shall | allow victim advocates to assist victims of stalking in the | preparation of petitions for stalking no contact orders. Victim | advocates are not engaged in the unauthorized practice of law | when providing assistance of the types specified in this | subsection (b). |
| Section 35. Appointment of counsel. The court may appoint | counsel to represent the petitioner if the respondent is | represented by counsel. | Section 40. Trial by jury. There shall be no right to trial | by jury in any proceeding to obtain, modify, vacate or extend | any stalking no contact order under this Act. However, nothing | in this Section shall deny any existing right to trial by jury | in a criminal proceeding. | Section 45. Subject matter jurisdiction. Each of the | circuit courts has the power to issue stalking no contact | orders. | Section 50. Jurisdiction over persons. The courts of this | State have jurisdiction to bind (1) State residents and (2) | non-residents having minimum contacts with this State, to the | extent permitted by the long-arm statute, Section 2-209 of the | Code of Civil Procedure. | Section 55. Venue. A petition for a stalking no contact | order may be filed in any county where (1) the petitioner | resides, (2) the respondent resides, or (3) one or more acts of | the alleged stalking occurred. | Section 60. Process. |
| (a) Any action for a stalking no contact order requires | that a separate summons be issued and served. The summons shall | be in the form prescribed by Supreme Court Rule 101(d), except | that it shall require the respondent to answer or appear within | 7 days. Attachments to the summons or notice shall include the | petition for stalking no contact order and supporting | affidavits, if any, and any emergency stalking no contact order | that has been issued. | (b) The summons shall be served by the sheriff or other law | enforcement officer at the earliest time and shall take | precedence over other summonses except those of a similar | emergency nature. Special process servers may be appointed at | any time, and their designation shall not affect the | responsibilities and authority of the sheriff or other official | process servers. | (c) Service of process on a member of the respondent's | household or by publication shall be adequate if: (1) the | petitioner has made all reasonable efforts to accomplish actual | service of process personally upon the respondent, but the | respondent cannot be found to effect such service; and (2) the | petitioner files an affidavit or presents sworn testimony as to | those efforts. | (d) A plenary stalking no contact order may be entered by | default for the remedy sought in the petition, if the | respondent has been served or given notice in accordance with | subsection (a) and if the respondent then fails to appear as |
| directed or fails to appear on any subsequent appearance or | hearing date agreed to by the parties or set by the court. | Section 65. Service of notice of hearings. Except as | provided in Section 60, notice of hearings on petitions or | motions shall be served in accordance with Supreme Court Rules | 11 and 12, unless notice is excused by Section 100 of this Act | or by the Code of Civil Procedure, Supreme Court Rules, or | local rules. | Section 70. Hearings. A petition for a stalking no contact | order shall be treated as an expedited proceeding, and no court | may transfer or otherwise decline to decide all or part of such | petition. Nothing in this Section shall prevent the court from | reserving issues if jurisdiction or notice requirements are not | met. | Section 75. Continuances. | (a) Petitions for emergency remedies shall be granted or | denied in accordance with the standards of Section 100, | regardless of the respondent's appearance or presence in court. | (b) Any action for a stalking no contact order is an | expedited proceeding. Continuances shall be granted only for | good cause shown and kept to the minimum reasonable duration, | taking into account the reasons for the continuance. |
| Section 80. Stalking no contact orders; remedies. | (a) If the court finds that the petitioner has been a | victim of stalking, a stalking no contact order shall issue; | provided that the petitioner must also satisfy the requirements | of Section 95 on emergency orders or Section 100 on plenary | orders. The petitioner shall not be denied a stalking no | contact order because the petitioner or the respondent is a | minor. The court, when determining whether or not to issue a | stalking no contact order, may not require physical injury on | the person of the petitioner. Modification and extension of | prior stalking no contact orders shall be in accordance with | this Act. | (b) A stalking no contact order shall order one or more of | the following: | (1) prohibit the respondent from threatening to commit | or committing stalking; | (2) order the respondent not to have any contact with | the petitioner or a third person specifically named by the | court; | (3) prohibit the respondent from knowingly coming | within, or knowingly remaining within a specified distance | of the petitioner or the petitioner's residence, school, | daycare, or place of employment, or any specified place | frequented by the petitioner; however, the court may order | the respondent to stay away from the respondent's own | residence, school, or place of employment only if the |
| respondent has been provided actual notice of the | opportunity to appear and be heard on the petition; | (4) prohibit the respondent from possessing a Firearm | Owners Identification Card, or possessing or buying | firearms; and | (5) order other injunctive relief the court determines | to be necessary to protect the petitioner or third party | specifically named by the court. | (c) The court may award the petitioner costs and attorneys | fees if a stalking no contact order is granted. | (d) Monetary damages are not recoverable as a remedy.
| Section 85. Mutual stalking no contact orders are | prohibited. Correlative separate orders undermine the purposes | of this Act. If separate orders are sought, both must comply | with all provisions of this Act. | Section 90. Accountability for actions of others. For the | purposes of issuing a stalking no contact order, deciding what | remedies should be included and enforcing the order, Article 5 | of the Criminal Code of 1961 shall govern whether respondent is | legally accountable for the conduct of another person. | Section 95. Emergency stalking no contact order. | (a) An emergency stalking no contact order shall issue if | the petitioner satisfies the requirements of this subsection |
| (a). The petitioner shall establish that: | (1) the court has jurisdiction under Section 50; | (2) the requirements of Section 80 are satisfied; and | (3) there is good cause to grant the remedy, regardless | of prior service of process or of notice upon the | respondent, because the harm which that remedy is intended | to prevent would be likely to occur if the respondent were | given any prior notice, or greater notice than was actually | given, of the petitioner's efforts to obtain judicial | relief. | An emergency stalking no contact order shall be issued by | the court if it appears from the contents of the petition and | the examination of the petitioner that the averments are | sufficient to indicate stalking by the respondent and to | support the granting of relief under the issuance of the | stalking no contact order. | An emergency stalking no contact order shall be issued if | the court finds that items (1), (2), and (3) of this subsection | (a) are met. | (b) If the respondent appears in court for this hearing for | an emergency order, he or she may elect to file a general | appearance and testify. Any resulting order may be an emergency | order, governed by this Section. Notwithstanding the | requirements of this Section, if all requirements of Section | 100 have been met, the court may issue a plenary order. | (c) Emergency orders; court holidays and evenings. |
| (1) When the court is unavailable at the close of | business, the petitioner may file a petition for a 21-day | emergency order before any available circuit judge or | associate judge who may grant relief under this Act. If the | judge finds that there is an immediate and present danger | of abuse against the petitioner and that the petitioner has | satisfied the prerequisites set forth in subsection (a), | that judge may issue an emergency stalking no contact | order. | (2) The chief judge of the circuit court may designate | for each county in the circuit at least one judge to be | reasonably available to issue orally, by telephone, by | facsimile, or otherwise, an emergency stalking no contact | order at all times, whether or not the court is in session. | (3) Any order issued under this Section and any | documentation in support of the order shall be certified on | the next court day to the appropriate court. The clerk of | that court shall immediately assign a case number, file the | petition, order, and other documents with the court, and | enter the order of record and file it with the sheriff for | service, in accordance with Section 60. Filing the petition | shall commence proceedings for further relief under | Section 20. Failure to comply with the requirements of this | paragraph (3) does not affect the validity of the order. | Section 100. Plenary stalking no contact order. A plenary |
| stalking no contact order shall issue if the petitioner has | served notice of the hearing for that order on the respondent, | in accordance with Section 65, and satisfies the requirements | of this Section. The petitioner must establish that: | (1) the court has jurisdiction under Section 50; | (2) the requirements of Section 80 are satisfied; | (3) a general appearance was made or filed by or for | the respondent or process was served on the respondent in | the manner required by Section 60; and | (4) the respondent has answered or is in default. | Section 105. Duration and extension of orders. | (a) Unless re-opened or extended or voided by entry of an | order of greater duration, an emergency order shall be | effective for not less than 14 nor more than 21 days. | (b) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, a plenary | stalking no contact order shall be effective for a fixed period | of time, not to exceed 2 years. A plenary stalking no contact | order entered in conjunction with a criminal prosecution shall | remain in effect as follows: | (1) if entered during pre-trial release, until | disposition, withdrawal, or dismissal of the underlying | charge; if however, the case is continued as an independent | cause of action, the order's duration may be for a fixed | period of time not to exceed 2 years; | (2) if in effect in conjunction with a bond forfeiture |
| warrant, until final disposition or an additional period of | time not exceeding 2 years; no stalking no contact order, | however, shall be terminated by a dismissal that is | accompanied by the issuance of a bond forfeiture warrant; | (3) permanent if a judgment of conviction for stalking | is entered. | (c) Any emergency or plenary order may be extended one or | more times, as required, provided that the requirements of | Section 95 or 100, as appropriate, are satisfied. If the motion | for extension is uncontested and the petitioner seeks no | modification of the order, the order may be extended on the | basis of the petitioner's motion or affidavit stating that | there has been no material change in relevant circumstances | since entry of the order and stating the reason for the | requested extension. Extensions may be granted only in open | court and not under the provisions of subsection (c) of Section | 95, which applies only when the court is unavailable at the | close of business or on a court holiday. | (d) Any stalking no contact order which would expire on a | court holiday shall instead expire at the close of the next | court business day. | (e) The practice of dismissing or suspending a criminal | prosecution in exchange for the issuance of a stalking no | contact order undermines the purposes of this Act. This Section | shall not be construed as encouraging that practice. |
| Section 110. Contents of orders. | (a) Any stalking no contact order shall describe each | remedy granted by the court, in reasonable detail and not by | reference to any other document, so that the respondent may | clearly understand what he or she must do or refrain from | doing. | (b) A stalking no contact order shall further state the | following: | (1) The name of each petitioner that the court finds | was the victim of stalking by the respondent. | (2) The date and time the stalking no contact order was | issued, whether it is an emergency or plenary order, and | the duration of the order. | (3) The date, time, and place for any scheduled hearing | for extension of that stalking no contact order or for | another order of greater duration or scope. | (4) For each remedy in an emergency stalking no contact | order, the reason for entering that remedy without prior | notice to the respondent or greater notice than was | actually given. | (5) For emergency stalking no contact orders, that the | respondent may petition the court, in accordance with | Section 120, to reopen the order if he or she did not | receive actual prior notice of the hearing as required | under Section 65 of this Act and if the respondent alleges | that he or she had a meritorious defense to the order or |
| that the order or its remedy is not authorized by this Act. | (c) A stalking no contact order shall include the following | notice, printed in conspicuous type: "An initial knowing | violation of a stalking no contact order is a Class A | misdemeanor. Any second or subsequent knowing violation is a | Class 4 felony." | Section 115. Notice of orders. | (a) Upon issuance of any stalking no contact order, the | clerk shall immediately, or on the next court day if an | emergency order is issued in accordance with subsection (c) of | Section 95: | (1) enter the order on the record and file it in | accordance with the circuit court procedures; and | (2) provide a file stamped copy of the order to the | respondent, if present, and to the petitioner. | (b) The clerk of the issuing judge shall, or the petitioner | may, on the same day that a stalking no contact order is | issued, file a certified copy of that order with the sheriff or | other law enforcement officials charged with maintaining | Department of State Police records or charged with serving the | order upon the respondent. If the order was issued in | accordance with subsection (c) of Section 95, the clerk shall, | on the next court day, file a certified copy of the order with | the sheriff or other law enforcement officials charged with | maintaining Department of State Police records. |
| (c) Unless the respondent was present in court when the | order was issued, the sheriff, other law enforcement official, | or special process server shall promptly serve that order upon | the respondent and file proof of such service in the manner | provided for service of process in civil proceedings. If | process has not yet been served upon the respondent, it shall | be served with the order or short form notification. | (d) If the person against whom the stalking no contact | order is issued is arrested and the written order is issued in | accordance with subsection (c) of Section 95 and received by | the custodial law enforcement agency before the respondent or | arrestee is released from custody, the custodial law | enforcement agent shall promptly serve the order upon the | respondent or arrestee before the respondent or arrestee is | released from custody. In no event shall detention of the | respondent or arrestee be extended for hearing on the petition | for stalking no contact order or receipt of the order issued | under Section 95 of this Act. | (e) Any order extending, modifying, or revoking any | stalking no contact order shall be promptly recorded, issued, | and served as provided in this Section. | (f) Upon the request of the petitioner, within 24 hours of | the issuance of a stalking no contact order, the clerk of the | issuing judge shall send written notice of the order along with | a certified copy of the order to any school, daycare, college, | or university at which the petitioner is enrolled. |
| Section 120. Modification; reopening of orders. | (a) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, upon | motion by the petitioner, the court may modify an emergency or | plenary stalking no contact order by altering the remedy, | subject to Section 80. | (b) After 30 days following entry of a plenary stalking no | contact order, a court may modify that order only when a change | in the applicable law or facts since that plenary order was | entered warrants a modification of its terms. | (c) Upon 2 days' notice to the petitioner, or such shorter | notice as the court may prescribe, a respondent subject to an | emergency stalking no contact order issued under this Act may | appear and petition the court to rehear the original or amended | petition. Any petition to rehear shall be verified and shall | allege the following: | (1) that the respondent did not receive prior notice of | the initial hearing in which the emergency order was | entered under Sections 65 and 95; and | (2) that the respondent had a meritorious defense to | the order or any of its remedies or that the order or any | of its remedies was not authorized by this Act. | Section 125. Violation. An initial knowing violation of a | stalking no contact order is a Class A misdemeanor. A second or | subsequent knowing violation is a Class 4 felony. |
| Section 130. Arrest without warrant. | (a) Any law enforcement officer may make an arrest without | warrant if the officer has probable cause to believe that the | person has committed or is committing a violation of a stalking | no contact order. | (b) The law enforcement officer may verify the existence of | a stalking no contact order by telephone or radio communication | with his or her law enforcement agency or by referring to the | copy of the order provided by the petitioner or the respondent. | Section 135. Data maintenance by law enforcement agencies. | (a) All sheriffs shall furnish to the Department of State | Police, on the same day as received, in the form and detail the | Department requires, copies of any recorded emergency or | plenary stalking no contact orders issued by the court and | transmitted to the sheriff by the clerk of the court in | accordance with subsection (b) of Section 115 of this Act. Each | stalking no contact order shall be entered in the Law | Enforcement Agencies Data System on the same day it is issued | by the court. If an emergency stalking no contact order was | issued in accordance with subsection (c) of Section 100, the | order shall be entered in the Law Enforcement Agencies Data | System as soon as possible after receipt from the clerk of the | court. | (b) The Department of State Police shall maintain a |
| complete and systematic record and index of all valid and | recorded stalking no contact orders issued under this Act. The | data shall be used to inform all dispatchers and law | enforcement officers at the scene of an alleged incident of | stalking or violation of a stalking no contact order of any | recorded prior incident of stalking involving the petitioner | and the effective dates and terms of any recorded stalking no | contact order.
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Effective Date: 1/1/2010
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