The WA Legislature has introduced SB 6295, which aims to cut down on swatting by increasing criminal penalties for those who make a false report they know is likely to generate an emergency response.

For those who don’t know, “swatting” is a criminal harassment tactic of deceiving an emergency service (via such means as hoaxing an emergency services dispatcher) into sending a police and emergency service response team to another person’s address. This is triggered by false reporting of a serious law enforcement emergency, such as a bomb threat, murder, hostage situation, or a false report of a “mental health” emergency, such as reporting that a person is allegedly suicidal or homicidal and may or may not be armed.

The legislation is introduced by Senator Jesse Salomon. With “swatting” incidents on the rise, local law enforcement agencies like the Seattle Police Department are developing creative solutions to address the problem. However, Salomon believes state laws have not kept up with the severity of these crimes and need to be updated.

Under the proposed bill, punishments would be increased if there’s a reckless disregard for the safety of others and someone is hurt or killed as a result of the swatting attack. The measure also allows swatting victims to pursue civil damages from their attackers.

Senators Salomon, Pedersen, Carlyle, Kuderer, Wilson, C., Randall, and Nguyen supported the bill along with companion bill HB 2632.

Please contact my office if you, a friend or family member face criminal charges of Harassment. Hiring a competent, effective defense attorney is the first and best step toward getting justice.