HOUSE BILL 442

54th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2019

INTRODUCED BY

Javier Martínez

AN ACT

RELATING TO ARSON; AMENDING THE DEFINITION OF "ARSON"; CHANGING WHAT QUALIFIES AS AGGRAVATED ARSON.

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

     SECTION 1. Section 30-17-5 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1970, Chapter 39, Section 1, as amended) is amended to read:

     "30-17-5. ARSON AND NEGLIGENT ARSON.--

          A. Arson consists of a person maliciously or willfully and unlawfully starting a fire or causing an explosion with the purpose of destroying or damaging:

                (1) a building, occupied structure or property of another person;

                (2) a bridge, utility line, fence [or], sign or wildland; or

                (3) any property, whether the person's own property or the property of another person, to collect insurance for the loss.

          B. Whoever commits arson when the damage is two hundred fifty dollars ($250) or less is guilty of a petty misdemeanor.

          C. Whoever commits arson when the damage is over two hundred fifty dollars ($250) but not more than five hundred dollars ($500) is guilty of a misdemeanor.

          D. Whoever commits arson when the damage is over five hundred dollars ($500) but not more than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) is guilty of a fourth degree felony.

          E. Whoever commits arson when the damage is over two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) but not more than twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) is guilty of a third degree felony.

          F. Whoever commits arson when the damage is over twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) is guilty of a second degree felony.

          G. Negligent arson consists of a person recklessly starting a fire or causing an explosion, whether on the person's property or the property of another person, and thereby directly:

                (1) causing the death or bodily injury of another person, [or] including a public safety officer performing the officer's duties;

                (2) damaging or destroying a building or occupied structure of another person; or

                (3) damaging or destroying wildland.

          H. Whoever commits negligent arson is guilty of a fourth degree felony.

          I. As used in this section, "occupied structure" includes a boat, trailer, car, airplane, structure or place adapted for the transportation or storage of property, for overnight accommodations of persons or for carrying on business therein, whether or not a person is actually present.

          J. As used in this section, "wildland" means any brush-covered land, cut-over land, forest, grasslands, woods or wild land-urban interface."

     SECTION 2. Section 30-17-6 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1963, Chapter 303, Section 17-6) is amended to read:

     "30-17-6. AGGRAVATED ARSON.--

          A. Aggravated arson consists of [the wilful or malicious] a person maliciously or willfully and unlawfully damaging by any explosive substance or [the wilful or malicious] maliciously or willfully and unlawfully setting fire to any bridge, aircraft, watercraft, vehicle, [pipe line] pipeline, utility line, communication line or structure, railway structure, private or public building, dwelling or other structure or wildland:

                (1) causing a person, including a public safety officer performing the officer's duties, great bodily harm;

                (2) causing property damage and other losses in excess of one million dollars ($1,000,000);

                (3) causing or proximately causing multiple structures to burn in any single violation pursuant to Section 30-17-5 NMSA 1978;

                (4) by a person who has been previously convicted of arson on one or more occasions within the past ten years; or

                (5) by a person who used a device designed to accelerate the fire or delay the fire's ignition.

          B. Whoever commits aggravated arson is guilty of a second degree felony.

          C. As used in this section, "wildland" means any brush-covered land, cut-over land, forest, grasslands, woods or wild land-urban interface."

     SECTION 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is July 1, 2019.

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