Additions to the Criminal Code

During the 2022 Regular Legislative Session, the Louisiana Legislature made a few changes to various criminal offenses as well as a couple of additions.

The legislature amended the penalty provisions of Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 14, §56 - Simple criminal damage to property - to state that when the offense involves “damage to multiple properties by a number of distinct acts of the offender which are part of a continuous sequence of events, the aggregate amount of the damages shall determine the grade of the offense.” La. R.S. 14:56(C).

The legislature amended Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 14, §34.2 - Battery of a police officer and §108.2 - Resisting a police officer with force or violence - to include “juvenile detention facility officers” in its definition of “police officer.” La. R.S. 14:34.2

The legislature amended Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 14, §40.1 - Terrorizing - to add the crime of “Menacing.”

“Menacing is the intentional communication of information that the commission of a crime of violence, as defined in R.S. 14:2(B), is imminent or in progress or that a circumstance dangerous to human life exists or is about to exist, when committed under any of the following circumstances:

(a) the actions of the offender cause members of the general public to be in sustained fear for their safety, and a reasonable person would have known that such actions could cause such sustained fear.

(b) the actions of the offender cause the evacuation of a building, a public structure, or a facility of transportation, and a reasonable person would have known that such actions could cause an evacuation.

(c) The actions of the offender cause any other serious disruption to the general public, an a reasonable person would have known that such actions could cause serious disruption to the general public.”

La. R.S. 14:40.1(B)(1). The penalty for this offense is a fine of not more than $1,000 and/or imprisonment with or without hard labor for not more than 2 years. La. R.S. 14:40.1(B)(2).

The Louisiana Legislature also added Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 14, §67.12, which criminalizes the “Theft of a catalytic converter or engine control module.”

If you or someone you know is facing criminal prosecution, give us a call at (318) 459-9111 to schedule a consultation.