AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 AND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SEXUAL EXTORTION.

Plain English Breakdown

The official source does not provide specific details on how schools will educate students and parents about sexual extortion.

Law to Fight Sexual Extortion

This law increases penalties for sexual extortion when an adult targets a child or vulnerable adult, and requires schools and parents to be educated about the crime.

What This Bill Does

• Increases the punishment for sexual extortion from up to 5 years in prison to at least 2 years but no more than 25 years in prison if the defendant is an adult and the victim is a child or vulnerable adult, or if the act causes serious physical injury or death.
• Requires school districts to educate students and their parents about sexual extortion as part of Erin's Law curriculum.

Who It Names or Affects

• People who commit sexual extortion
• Students in Delaware schools
• Parents or guardians of students

Terms To Know

Class E felony

A type of crime that is less serious than a Class B felony and can be punished with up to 5 years in prison.

Vulnerable adult

An adult who needs help because they cannot take care of themselves or protect their rights due to age, illness, disability, or other reasons.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify the exact details of how schools will educate students and parents about sexual extortion.
• It is unclear what specific changes were made in the technical corrections section.

Official Summary Text

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 AND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SEXUAL EXTORTION.
In 2022, the FBI reported that law enforcement received over 7,000 reports related to the financial sexual extortion of minors, resulting in 3,000 victims and more than a dozen suicides. In 2023, South Carolina adopted “Gavin’s Law” in honor of Gavin Guffey, the son of Representative Brandon Guffey. Gavin was victim of sexual extortion, which led him to tragically take his own life at only 17 years old. Gavin’s Law created the crime of sexual extortion.

In Delaware, sexual extortion is a crime under § 774 of Title 11. It is classified as a Class E felony punishable by up to 5 years in prison. This Act increases the penalty for sexual extortion to a Class B felony, which is punishable by a minimum of 2 years in prison up to a maximum of 25 years in prison, under the following circumstances:
1. The defendant is an adult and the victim is a child, as defined in § 1100 of Title 11, or a vulnerable adult, as defined in §1105 of Title 11.
2. The defendant’s sexual extortion of the victim causes the victim to suffer serious physical injury or death.

Gavin’s Law also requires school districts to educate students, and their parents or guardians, about the crime of sexual extortion. South Carolina’s Department of Education recommended including the required education in the Erin’s Law curriculum. Delaware has adopted its own version of Erin’s Law, under § 4163 of Title 14, that requires school districts and charter schools to provide appropriate training to employees and students, and to provide information to parents, about personal body safety, child safety, and how to detect and report child abuse. This Act specifies that information about the crime of sexual extortion must be included in the educational programming required by Erin’s Law.

This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual and to clarify the meaning of § 774 of Title 11.