CERTIFICATION OF ENROLLMENT

                        HOUSE BILL 1636

                        55th Legislature

                      1997 Regular Session

Passed by the House March 12, 1997   Yeas 97   Nays 0 Speaker of the       House of Representatives Passed by the Senate April 9, 1997   Yeas 46   Nays 0

CERTIFICATE I, Timothy A. Martin, Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives of the State of Washington, do hereby certify that the attached is HOUSE BILL 1636  as passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate on the dates hereon set forth.

President of the Senate

Chief Clerk

Approved Place Style On Codes above, and Style Off Codes below.

FILED

Governor of the State of Washington

Secretary of State                   State of Washington

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                          HOUSE BILL 1636

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             Passed Legislature - 1997 Regular Session

State of Washington      55th Legislature     1997 Regular Session

By Representatives Ballasiotes, Costa, Tokuda, Keiser, Ogden and Blalock

Read first time 02/04/97.  Referred to Committee on Law & Justice.

Specifying imminence of threat to bodily harm for crime of harassment.

    AN ACT Relating to the crime of harassment; and amending RCW 9A.46.020.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

    Sec. 1.  RCW 9A.46.020 and 1992 c 186 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:

    (1) A person is guilty of harassment if:

    (a) Without lawful authority, the person knowingly threatens:

    (i) To cause bodily injury immediately or in the future to the person threatened or to any other person; or

    (ii) To cause physical damage to the property of a person other than the actor; or

    (iii) To subject the person threatened or any other person to physical confinement or restraint; or

    (iv) Maliciously to do any other act which is intended to substantially harm the person threatened or another with respect to his or her physical or mental health or safety; and

    (b) The person by words or conduct places the person threatened in reasonable fear that the threat will be carried out.

    (2) A person who harasses another is guilty of a gross misdemeanor punishable under chapter 9A.20 RCW, except that the person is guilty of a class C felony if either of the following applies:  (a) The person has previously been convicted in this or any other state of any crime of harassment, as defined in RCW 9A.46.060, of the same victim or members of the victim's family or household or any person specifically named in a no-contact or no-harassment order; or (b) the person harasses another person under subsection (1)(a)(i) of this section by threatening to kill the person threatened or any other person.

    (3) The penalties provided in this section for harassment do not preclude the victim from seeking any other remedy otherwise available under law.

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