Official Summary Text
SB1635 - 572R - Senate Fact Sheet
Assigned to
JUDE������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ AS
PASSED BY COW
ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Seventh
Legislature, Second Regular Session
AMENDED
FACT SHEET FOR
S.B. 1635
unlawful alert; arrests
Purpose
Establishes the criminal classification of
unlawful alerting of
another person to avoid arrest
, which a person commits by knowingly
communicating information to another specific person with intent to hinder,
delay or prevent the lawful arrest of the other specific person.
Background
A person commits
hindering prosecution
if the person renders
assistance to another person with intent to hinder the apprehension,
prosecution, conviction or punishment of the other person. Acts that constitute
hindering prosecution
include: 1) harboring or concealing the other
person;
2) warning the other person of impending discovery apprehension, prosecution or
conviction;
3) providing the other person with money, transportation, a weapon, a disguise
or other similar means of avoiding discovery and apprehension; 4) preventing or
obstructing an act that might aid in the discovery or apprehension of a person
by means of force, deception or intimidation;
5) suppressing evidence that might aid in discovery or apprehension by an act
of concealment, alteration or destruction; or 6) concealing the identity of the
person.
Hindering prosecution
in the first degree is a class 5 felony,
or a class 3 felony if the offense involves terrorism, murder or intent to
promote or assist a criminal street gang.
Hindering prosecution
in the
second degree
is a class 1 misdemeanor if the offense is a misdemeanor
or a petty offense (A.R.S. ��
13-2510
;
13-2511
;
and
13-2512
).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state
General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1.
Establishes
the criminal classification of
unlawful alerting of another person to avoid
arrest
if the person, with intent to hinder, delay or prevent the lawful
arrest of the other specific person, knowingly communicates information to the
other specific person that alerts them of a real-time, imminent or ongoing
effort by law enforcement to execute an arrest of the other person
2.
Classifies
unlawful alerting of another person to avoid arrest
as a class 1
misdemeanor.
3.
Specifies
that this criminal classification does not apply to:
a)
an attorney who provides lawful legal advice to the attorney's client;
b)
a person who provides information in response to a lawful request by a
local, state or federal peace officer;
c)
a person's communication that is made without knowledge that the person
warned is the subject of an arrest; and
d)
a
person's communication that is made without the intent to hinder, delay or
prevent the lawful arrest of another specific person.
4.
Allows the Attorney General or the appropriate county attorney to
prosecute violations.
5.
Defines
communicates
as an electronic communication, a gesture, a
verbal statement, a signal
or the use of amplified sound bells, whistles
or similar devices used for intentional signaling, written messages and any
other method of conveying information.
6.
Defines
imminent or ongoing effort to arrest
as a law enforcement
activity that occurs contemporaneously with or immediately preceding an attempt
to take a person into custody, including surveillance, approach, pursuit or
execution of an arrest warrant.
7.
Defines
intentional signaling
as a deliberate use of sound,
light, movement or other conduct that is made for the purpose of conveying a
warning to or alerting another person.
8.
Defines
law enforcement officer
and
lawful arrest
.
9.
Contains a severability clause.
10.
Becomes
effective on the general effective date.
Amendments Adopted by
Committee of the Whole
1.
Specifies that a person commits
unlawful alerting of another person
to avoid arrest
if the person hinders, delays or prevents the lawful arrest
of a specific person, rather than any person, by knowingly communicating
prescribed information.
2.
Specifies that
unlawful alerting
only applies to a real-time,
imminent effort by law enforcement to execute an arrest, rather than an ongoing
effort by law enforcement.
3.
Makes technical changes.
Senate Action
JUDE �������� 2/18/26 ���� DP ����� 4-3-0
Prepared by Senate Research
February 26, 2026
ZD/ci
Current Bill Text
Read the full stored bill text
SB1635 - 572R - S Ver
Senate Engrossed
unlawful alert;
arrests
State of Arizona
Senate
Fifty-seventh Legislature
Second Regular Session
2026
SENATE BILL 1635
AN
ACT
AMENDING Title 13, chapter 25, ARIZONA
REVISED STATUTES, BY ADDING SECTION 13-2515; RELATING TO ESCAPE AND
RELATED OFFENSES.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it
enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section
1.
1. Title
13, chapter 25, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 13-2515,
to read:
START_STATUTE
13-2515.
Unlawful alerting of another person to avoid arrest;
classification; definitions
A. A person commits unlawful alerting
of another person to avoid arrest if the person, with the intent to hinder,
delay or prevent the lawful arrest of the other
specific person,
knowingly communicates information to
that other person
that alerts or warns
that other person of a real-time,
imminent effort to arrest
that other person by a local,
state or federal law enforcement officer.
B. This section does not apply to:
1. An attorney who provides lawful
legal advice to the attorney's client.
2. A person who provides information
in response to a lawful request by a local, state or federal law enforcement
officer.
3. A person's Communication that is
made without knowledge that the person warned is the subject of an arrest.
4. A person's communication that is
made without the intent to hinder, delay or prevent the lawful arrest of
another
specific person.
C. The attorney general or the county
attorney of the county in which the offense occurs may prosecute violations of
this section.
D. Unlawful alerting of another
person to avoid arrest is a class 1 misdemeanor.
E. For the purposes of this section:
1. "Communicates" includes:
(
a
) An
electronic communication.
(
b
) A gesture.
(
c
)
A verbal
statement.
(
d
)
A signal or the use of amplified sounds
, bells,
whistles or similar devices when used as intentional signaling.
(
e
) A written
message.
(
f
) Any other
method of conveying information that is not listed in subdivision (
a
), (
b
), (
c
), (
d
) or (
e
) of this paragraph.
2. "Imminent or ongoing effort
to arrest":
(
a
) Means a law
enforcement activity that occurs contemporaneously with or immediately
preceding an attempt to take a person into custody.
(
b
) Includes
surveillance, approach, pursuit or execution of an arrest warrant by a law
enforcement officer.
3. "Intentional signaling"
means a person's deliberate use of sound, light, movement or other conduct that
is made for the purpose of conveying a warning to or alerting another person.
4. "Law
enforcement officer" means an individual who is authorized by law to
engage in or supervise the prevention, detection, investigation or enforcement
of laws and who is employed by or acting on behalf of a local, state or federal
governmental entity.
5. "Lawful arrest" means an
arrest that is supported by legal authority and probable cause even if a
warrant has not been issued.
END_STATUTE
Sec.
2.
2.
Severability
If a provision of this act or its
application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does
not affect other provisions or applications of the act that can be given effect
without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of
this act are severable.