Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to amend and pass a bill that increases the penalties for rioting.

Highlights:

• Classifies willful engagement in riot as Class F felony “if in the courseof the riot the person causes property damage in excess of two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) or serious bodily injury” (Page 1).

• Classifies such willful engagement as Class E felony “if in the course of the riot the person causes a death” (Page 1).

• Increases penalty for willfully inciting riot to Class A1 misdemeanor (Page 1).

• Authorizes lawsuits against violators (Page 2).

• Specifies that “mere presence alone without an overt act is not sufficient to sustain a conviction pursuant to this section” (Page 2).

• Classifies assault upon emergency personnel, even if such assault does not result in physical injury, as Class H felony (Page 2).

• Establishes section of General Statutes relating to rioting/looting, bail, and pretrial release (Page 2).

• Requires “The Department of Justice, in consultation with the Department of Public Safety, the North Carolina Criminal Justice Education and Training Standards Commission, and the North Carolina Sheriffs' Education and Training Standards Commission [to] develop model law enforcement agency protest response and engagement policies” (Page 3).

• Establishes effective date of December 1, 2023 (Page 3).

Full Bill Text