SB242 Alabama 2015 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Arthur OrrSenator

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2015

Title

Cyber-bullying of students and school employees, crime created, penalties, restitution, reporting requirement, deferred prosecution and expungement authorized

Summary

SB242 would criminalize cyber-bullying by public K-12 students against other students or school employees, with penalties, reporting duties for staff, and options for deferred prosecution and expungement.

What This Bill Does

It creates a new cyber-bullying crime for students in public K-12 schools and lists prohibited acts, such as fake profiles, posting private information or images, hacking, and persistent messages. A student who commits cyber-bullying could receive a Class C misdemeanor, plus possible restitution; prosecutors may defer prosecution and place the student on probation, and the record can be expunged after conditions are met. It requires school staff to report cyber-bullying incidents and provides immunity from civil liability for those reporting in good faith.

Who It Affects

• Students in public K-12 schools who commit cyber-bullying could be charged with a Class C misdemeanor and may owe restitution, with the possibility of deferred prosecution and expungement after fulfilling probation terms.
• School employees are required to report cyber-bullying incidents and are protected from civil liability if they report in good faith.

Key Provisions

• Creates a crime of cyber-bullying by a public K-12 student against another student or school employee and defines specific acts that qualify as cyber-bullying.
• Imposes penalties of a Class C misdemeanor for students, plus potential restitution; allows deferred prosecution and probation with eventual discharge and possible expungement.
• Requires school employees to report cyber-bullying incidents and grants immunity from civil liability for good-faith reports.
• Notes the bill's relation to constitutional provisions on local expenditures, clarifying it is exempt from certain local-funding approval requirements due to defining a new crime; sets the effective date as the first day of the third month after passage.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Cyber-bullying