HOUSE BILL No. 5547


     April 11, 2000, Introduced by Reps. Middaugh, Mans, Cassis, Kowall, Tabor, Ruth Johnson, Toy, Julian, Rocca, Spade,
Pappageorge, Shackleton, Birkholz, Scranton and Kuipers and referred to the Committee on Criminal Law and Corrections.


        A bill to amend 1931 PA 328, entitled

   "The Michigan penal code,"

   by amending section 540e (MCL 750.540e), as amended by 1988 PA

   395.

               THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

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           Sec. 540e.  (1)  Any  A person is guilty of a misdemeanor

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      who maliciously uses any service provided by a communications

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      common carrier with intent to terrorize, frighten, intimidate,

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      threaten, harass, molest, or annoy  any other  ANOTHER person, or

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      to disturb the peace and quiet of  any other  ANOTHER person by

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      any of the following:

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           (a) Threatening physical harm or damage to any person or

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      property in the course of a telephone conversation OR MESSAGE.

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           (b) Falsely and deliberately reporting by telephone or

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      telegraph message that  any  A person has been injured, has


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      suddenly taken ill, has suffered death, or has been the victim of

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      a crime  ,  or  of  an accident.

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           (c) Deliberately refusing or failing to disengage a connec-

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      tion between a telephone and another telephone or between a tele-

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      phone and other equipment provided for the transmission of mes-

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      sages by telephone.  , thereby interfering with any communica-

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      tions service. 

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           (d) Using  any  vulgar, indecent, obscene, or offensive lan-

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      guage or suggesting any lewd or lascivious act in the course of a

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      telephone conversation OR MESSAGE.

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           (e) Repeatedly initiating a telephone call and, without

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      speaking, deliberately hanging up or breaking the telephone con-

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      nection as or after the telephone call is answered.

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           (f) Making an unsolicited commercial telephone call  which 

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      THAT is received between the hours of 9 p.m. and 9 a.m.  For the

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      purpose of this subdivision, "an unsolicited commercial telephone

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      call" means a call made by a person or recording device, on

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      behalf of a person, corporation, or other entity, soliciting

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      business or contributions.

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           (g) Deliberately calling a telephone of another person in a

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      repetitive manner  which  THAT causes interruption in telephone

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      service or prevents the person from utilizing his or her tele-

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      phone service.

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           (2)  Any  A person violating this section may be imprisoned

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      for not more than 6 months  ,  or fined not more than $500.00, or

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      both.  An offense is committed under this section if the

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      communication either originates or terminates  or both originates



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      and terminates  in this state and may be prosecuted at the place

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      of origination or termination.




















































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