Bill Text: IL SB3128 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Amends the Criminal Code of 2012 concerning the offense of financial exploitation of an elderly person or a person with a disability. Expands the scope of "person who stands in a position of trust and confidence" to include a friend or acquaintance of the elderly person or person with a disability who is in a position of trust.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 9-0)
Status: (Failed) 2021-01-13 - Session Sine Die [SB3128 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2019-SB3128-Introduced.html
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1 | AN ACT concerning criminal law.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The Criminal Code of 2012 is amended by changing | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
5 | Section 17-56 as follows:
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6 | (720 ILCS 5/17-56) (was 720 ILCS 5/16-1.3)
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7 | Sec. 17-56. Financial exploitation of an elderly person or | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
8 | a
person with a disability.
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9 | (a) A person commits financial exploitation of an elderly
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10 | person or a person with a disability when he or she stands in a
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11 | position of trust
or confidence with the
elderly person or a | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
12 | person with a disability
and he
or she knowingly: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
13 | (1) by
deception or
intimidation obtains control over | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
14 | the property of an elderly person or
a person
with a | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
15 | disability;
or | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
16 | (2) illegally uses the assets or resources of an | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
17 | elderly person or a
person with a disability.
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18 | (b) Sentence. Financial exploitation of an elderly person | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
19 | or a person
with a
disability is: (1) a Class 4
felony if the | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
20 | value of the property is $300 or less, (2) a Class 3 felony if
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21 | the value of the property is more than $300 but less than | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
22 | $5,000, (3) a Class 2
felony if the value of the property is | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
23 | $5,000 or more but less than
$50,000, and (4) a Class 1 felony |
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1 | if the value of the property is $50,000 or more
or if the | ||||||
2 | elderly person is over 70 years of age and the value of the
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3 | property is $15,000 or more or if the elderly person is 80 | ||||||
4 | years of age or
older and the value of the property is $5,000 | ||||||
5 | or more.
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6 | (c) For purposes of this Section:
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7 | (1) "Elderly person" means a person 60
years of age or | ||||||
8 | older.
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9 | (2) "Person with a disability" means a person who
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10 | suffers from a physical or mental impairment resulting from
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11 | disease, injury, functional disorder or congenital | ||||||
12 | condition that impairs the
individual's mental or physical | ||||||
13 | ability to independently manage his or her
property or | ||||||
14 | financial resources, or both.
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15 | (3) "Intimidation" means the communication to an | ||||||
16 | elderly person or a
person with a disability that he or she | ||||||
17 | shall be deprived of food and
nutrition,
shelter, | ||||||
18 | prescribed
medication or medical care and treatment or | ||||||
19 | conduct as provided in Section 12-6 of this Code.
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20 | (4) "Deception" means, in addition to its meaning as | ||||||
21 | defined in Section
15-4 of this Code,
a misrepresentation | ||||||
22 | or concealment of material fact
relating to the terms of a | ||||||
23 | contract or agreement entered into with the
elderly person | ||||||
24 | or person with a disability or to the
existing or
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25 | pre-existing condition of
any of the property involved in | ||||||
26 | such contract or agreement; or the use or
employment of any |
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1 | misrepresentation, false pretense or false promise in
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2 | order to induce, encourage or solicit the elderly person or
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3 | person with
a disability to
enter into a contract or | ||||||
4 | agreement.
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5 | The illegal use of the assets or resources of an
elderly | ||||||
6 | person or a person with a disability includes, but is not | ||||||
7 | limited
to, the misappropriation of those assets or resources | ||||||
8 | by undue influence,
breach of a fiduciary relationship, fraud, | ||||||
9 | deception, extortion, or
use of the assets or resources | ||||||
10 | contrary to law. | ||||||
11 | A person stands in a position of
trust and confidence with | ||||||
12 | an elderly person or person with a
disability when he (i) is a
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13 | parent, spouse, adult child or other relative by blood or | ||||||
14 | marriage of the
elderly person or person with a disability, | ||||||
15 | (ii) is a joint
tenant or
tenant in common with
the elderly | ||||||
16 | person or person with a disability, (iii) has
a legal or
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17 | fiduciary relationship
with the elderly person or person with a | ||||||
18 | disability, (iv) is a financial
planning or investment | ||||||
19 | professional, or (v) is a paid or unpaid caregiver for the | ||||||
20 | elderly person or person with a disability , or (vi) is a friend | ||||||
21 | or acquaintance in a position of trust .
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22 | (d) Limitations. Nothing in this Section shall be construed | ||||||
23 | to limit the remedies
available to the victim under the | ||||||
24 | Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986.
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25 | (e) Good faith efforts. Nothing in this Section shall be | ||||||
26 | construed to impose criminal
liability on a person who has made |
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1 | a good faith effort to assist the
elderly person or person with | ||||||
2 | a disability in the
management of his or her
property, but | ||||||
3 | through
no fault of his or her own has been unable to provide | ||||||
4 | such assistance.
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5 | (f) Not a defense. It shall not be a defense to financial | ||||||
6 | exploitation of an elderly
person or person with a disability | ||||||
7 | that the accused reasonably believed
that the victim was
not an | ||||||
8 | elderly person or person with a disability. Consent is not a | ||||||
9 | defense to financial exploitation of an elderly person or a | ||||||
10 | person with a disability if the accused knew or had reason to | ||||||
11 | know that the elderly person or a person with a disability | ||||||
12 | lacked capacity to consent.
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13 | (g) Civil Liability. A civil cause of action exists for | ||||||
14 | financial exploitation of an elderly person or a
person with a | ||||||
15 | disability as described in subsection (a) of this Section. A | ||||||
16 | person against whom a civil judgment has been entered for | ||||||
17 | financial exploitation of an elderly person
or person with a | ||||||
18 | disability shall be liable to the victim or to the estate of | ||||||
19 | the
victim in damages of treble the amount of the value of the | ||||||
20 | property
obtained, plus reasonable attorney fees and court | ||||||
21 | costs. In a civil action under this subsection, the burden of
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22 | proof that the defendant committed financial exploitation of an | ||||||
23 | elderly person or a
person with a disability as described in | ||||||
24 | subsection (a) of this Section shall be
by a preponderance of | ||||||
25 | the evidence. This subsection shall be operative
whether or not | ||||||
26 | the defendant has been charged or convicted of the criminal |
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1 | offense as described in subsection (a) of this Section. This | ||||||
2 | subsection (g) shall not limit or affect the right of any | ||||||
3 | person to bring any cause of action or seek any remedy | ||||||
4 | available under the common law, or other applicable law, | ||||||
5 | arising out of the financial exploitation of an elderly person | ||||||
6 | or a person with a disability.
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7 | (h) If a person is charged with financial exploitation of | ||||||
8 | an elderly person or a person with a disability that involves | ||||||
9 | the taking or loss of property valued at more than $5,000, a | ||||||
10 | prosecuting attorney may file a petition with the circuit court | ||||||
11 | of the county in which the defendant has been charged to freeze | ||||||
12 | the assets of the defendant in an amount equal to but not | ||||||
13 | greater than the alleged value of lost or stolen property in | ||||||
14 | the defendant's pending criminal proceeding for purposes of | ||||||
15 | restitution to the victim. The burden of proof required to | ||||||
16 | freeze the defendant's assets shall be by a preponderance of | ||||||
17 | the evidence. | ||||||
18 | (Source: P.A. 101-394, eff. 1-1-20 .)
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