HF 1439

as introduced - 80th Legislature (1997 - 1998) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to peace officers; increasing criminal 
  1.3             penalties for falsely reporting a crime; providing 
  1.4             criminal penalties for persons who knowingly make 
  1.5             false allegations of misconduct against peace officers 
  1.6             in civil actions; amending Minnesota Statutes 1996, 
  1.7             section 609.505; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.8             Minnesota Statutes, chapter 609. 
  1.9   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.10     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 609.505, is 
  1.11  amended to read: 
  1.12     609.505 [FALSELY REPORTING CRIME.] 
  1.13     Subdivision 1.  [CRIME.] Whoever informs a law enforcement 
  1.14  officer that a crime has been committed, knowing that it is 
  1.15  false and intending that the officer shall act in reliance upon 
  1.16  it, is guilty of a misdemeanor crime and shall be sentenced as 
  1.17  provided in subdivision 2.  
  1.18     Subd. 2.  [PENALTIES.] A person who is convicted a second 
  1.19  or subsequent time under this section is guilty of a gross 
  1.20  misdemeanor of violating subdivision 1 may be sentenced as 
  1.21  follows: 
  1.22     (1) if the crime falsely reported was a felony-level 
  1.23  offense, to imprisonment for not more than five years or to 
  1.24  payment of a fine of not more than $10,000, or both; or 
  1.25     (2) otherwise, to imprisonment for not more than one year 
  1.26  or to payment of a fine of not more than $3,000, or both. 
  1.27     Sec. 2.  [609.508] [FALSE ALLEGATIONS OF PEACE OFFICER 
  2.1   MISCONDUCT.] 
  2.2      It is a gross misdemeanor for any person knowingly to make 
  2.3   a false statement in a charge or complaint against a peace 
  2.4   officer in any civil action filed in state court under chapter 
  2.5   363 or United States Code, title 42, section 1983, or alleging 
  2.6   assault, battery, false arrest, false imprisonment, or 
  2.7   defamation. 
  2.8      Sec. 3.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  2.9      Sections 1 and 2 are effective August 1, 1997, and apply to 
  2.10  crimes and acts committed on or after that date.