HOUSE BILL 195

52nd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2015

INTRODUCED BY

William "Bill" R. Rehm

AN ACT

RELATING TO CRIMINAL LAW; ENACTING THE WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION ACT; PROVIDING PENALTIES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. [NEW MATERIAL] SHORT TITLE.--Sections 1 through 4 of this act may be cited as the "Weapons of Mass Destruction Act".

     SECTION 2. [NEW MATERIAL] DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Weapons of Mass Destruction Act:

          A. "chemical warfare agent" means:

                (1) any weaponized toxic or poisonous chemical, including the following agents or any analog thereof:

                     (a) nerve agents, including tabun, sarin, soman, cyclosarin and the V-series of nerve agents;

                     (b) choking agents, including phosgene and diphosgene;

                     (c) blood agents, including hydrogen cyanide, cyanogen chloride and arsine; and

                     (d) blister agents, including sulfur mustard agents, nitrogen mustard agents, arsenicals, urticants and incapacitating agents; or

                (2) any other dangerous chemical or hazardous material when the chemical or material is designed or intended to cause great bodily harm or death or widespread and substantial damage to property;

          B. "nuclear agent" means any explosive nuclear device that is designed to cause a nuclear yield;

          C. "radiological agent" means any:

                (1) radiological exposure device designed to contain radioactive material that can expose a person to ionizing radiation at a level dangerous to human life;

                (2) radiological dispersal device that is an explosive device utilized to spread radioactive material; or

                (3) simple radiological dispersal device that is a container designed to release radiological material as a weapon without an explosion;

          D. "vector" means a living organism or molecule, including a recombinant molecule or biological product that may be engineered as a result of biotechnology, that is capable of carrying a biological agent or toxin to a host; 

          E. "weapon of mass destruction" means a chemical warfare agent, weaponized biological warfare agent, nuclear agent or radiological agent;

          F. "weaponized" means that a substance or agent has been processed, prepared, packaged or synthesized for use as a weapon or munition; and

          G. "weaponized biological warfare agent" means any weaponized pathogen, toxin, vector or endogenous biological regulator.

     SECTION 3. [NEW MATERIAL] POSSESSION, MANUFACTURE AND USE OF WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION.--

          A. Any person who knowingly and without lawful authority possesses, develops, manufactures, produces or transfers any weapon of mass destruction is guilty of a second degree felony and shall be sentenced pursuant to Section 31-18-15 NMSA 1978.

          B. Any person who knowingly and intentionally uses against another human being a weapon of mass destruction and thereby causes the death of a person is guilty of a first degree felony for use of a weapon of mass destruction resulting in the death of a person and shall be sentenced pursuant to Section 31-18-15 NMSA 1978.

          C. Any person who knowingly and intentionally uses against another human being a weapon of mass destruction and thereby causes great bodily harm to a person is guilty of a first degree felony and shall be sentenced pursuant to Section 31-18-15 NMSA 1978.  

          D. Any person who knowingly and intentionally uses a weapon of mass destruction against property with the intent to cause widespread and substantial damage to that property is guilty of a first degree felony and shall be sentenced pursuant to Section 31-18-15 NMSA 1978.  

          E. Any person who, without lawful authority, uses recombinant technology or any other scientific technology to create new pathogens or more virulent forms of existing pathogens for the purpose of creating a weapon of mass destruction is guilty of a first degree felony and shall be sentenced pursuant to Section 31-18-15 NMSA 1978.  

          F. Any person who knowingly and intentionally gives, mails, sends or causes to be sent any false or facsimile weapon of mass destruction to another person, or places or causes to be placed at any location any false or facsimile weapon of mass destruction, with the intent that another person believes that it is a weapon of mass destruction, is guilty of a third degree felony and shall be sentenced pursuant to Section 31-18-15 NMSA 1978.

     SECTION 4. [NEW MATERIAL] THREAT TO USE A WEAPON OF MASS DESTRUCTION.--No person shall threaten to use a weapon of mass destruction against another human being. A person who violates this section is:

           A. for the first offense, guilty of a fourth degree felony and shall be sentenced pursuant to Section 31-18-15 NMSA 1978; and

          B. for a second or subsequent offense, guilty of a third degree felony and shall be sentenced pursuant to Section 31-18-15 NMSA 1978.

     SECTION 5. Section 31-18-15 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1977, Chapter 216, Section 4, as amended) is amended to read:

     "31-18-15. SENTENCING AUTHORITY--NONCAPITAL FELONIES--BASIC SENTENCES AND FINES--PAROLE AUTHORITY--MERITORIOUS DEDUCTIONS.--

          A. If a person is convicted of a noncapital felony, the basic sentence of imprisonment is as follows:

                (1) for a first degree felony resulting in the death of a child, life imprisonment;

                (2) for a first degree felony for aggravated criminal sexual penetration, life imprisonment;

                (3) for a first degree felony for use of a weapon of mass destruction resulting in the death of a person, life imprisonment;

                [(3)] (4) for a first degree felony, eighteen years imprisonment;

                [(4)] (5) for a second degree felony resulting in the death of a human being, fifteen years imprisonment;

                [(5)] (6) for a second degree felony for a sexual offense against a child, fifteen years imprisonment;

                [(6)] (7) for a second degree felony, nine years imprisonment;

                [(7)] (8) for a third degree felony resulting in the death of a human being, six years imprisonment;

                [(8)] (9) for a third degree felony for a sexual offense against a child, six years imprisonment;

                [(9)] (10) for a third degree felony, three years imprisonment; or

                [(10)] (11) for a fourth degree felony, eighteen months imprisonment.

          B. The appropriate basic sentence of imprisonment shall be imposed upon a person convicted and sentenced pursuant to Subsection A of this section, unless the court alters the sentence pursuant to the provisions of the Criminal Sentencing Act.

          C. The court shall include in the judgment and sentence of each person convicted and sentenced to imprisonment in a corrections facility designated by the corrections department authority for a period of parole to be served in accordance with the provisions of Section 31-21-10 NMSA 1978 after the completion of any actual time of imprisonment and authority to require, as a condition of parole, the payment of the costs of parole services and reimbursement to a law enforcement agency or local crime stopper program in accordance with the provisions of that section. The period of parole shall be deemed to be part of the sentence of the convicted person in addition to the basic sentence imposed pursuant to Subsection A of this section together with alterations, if any, pursuant to the provisions of the Criminal Sentencing Act.

          D. When a court imposes a sentence of imprisonment pursuant to the provisions of Section 31-18-15.1, 31-18-16 [31-18-16.1] or 31-18-17 NMSA 1978 and suspends or defers the basic sentence of imprisonment provided pursuant to the provisions of Subsection A of this section, the period of parole shall be served in accordance with the provisions of Section 31-21-10 NMSA 1978 for the degree of felony for the basic sentence for which the inmate was convicted. For the purpose of designating a period of parole, a court shall not consider that the basic sentence of imprisonment was suspended or deferred and that the inmate served a period of imprisonment pursuant to the provisions of the Criminal Sentencing Act.

          E. The court may, in addition to the imposition of a basic sentence of imprisonment, impose a fine not to exceed:

                (1) for a first degree felony resulting in the death of a child, seventeen thousand five hundred dollars ($17,500);

                (2) for a first degree felony for aggravated criminal sexual penetration, seventeen thousand five hundred dollars ($17,500);

                (3) for a first degree felony for use of a weapon of mass destruction resulting in the death of a person, seventeen thousand five hundred dollars ($17,500);

                [(3)] (4) for a first degree felony, fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000);

                [(4)] (5) for a second degree felony resulting in the death of a human being, twelve thousand five hundred

dollars ($12,500);

                [(5)] (6) for a second degree felony for a sexual offense against a child, twelve thousand five hundred dollars ($12,500);

                [(6)] (7) for a second degree felony, ten thousand dollars ($10,000);

                [(7)] (8) for a third degree felony resulting in the death of a human being, five thousand dollars ($5,000);

                [(8)] (9) for a third degree felony for a sexual offense against a child, five thousand dollars ($5,000); or

                [(9)] (10) for a third or fourth degree felony, five thousand dollars ($5,000).

          F. When the court imposes a sentence of imprisonment for a felony offense, the court shall indicate whether or not the offense is a serious violent offense, as defined in Section 33-2-34 NMSA 1978. The court shall inform an offender that the offender's sentence of imprisonment is subject to the provisions of Sections 33-2-34, 33-2-36, 33-2-37 and 33-2-38 NMSA 1978. If the court fails to inform an offender that the offender's sentence is subject to those provisions or if the court provides the offender with erroneous information regarding those provisions, the failure to inform or the error shall not provide a basis for a writ of habeas corpus.

          G. No later than October 31 of each year, the

New Mexico sentencing commission shall provide a written report to the secretary of corrections, all New Mexico criminal court judges, the administrative office of the district attorneys and the chief public defender. The report shall specify the average reduction in the sentence of imprisonment for serious violent offenses and nonviolent offenses, as defined in Section 33-2-34 NMSA 1978, due to meritorious deductions earned by prisoners during the previous fiscal year pursuant to the provisions of Sections 33-2-34, 33-2-36, 33-2-37 and 33-2-38 NMSA 1978. The corrections department shall allow the commission access to documents used by the department to determine earned meritorious deductions for prisoners."    

     SECTION 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is July 1, 2015.

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