§ 13A-11-11 — Falsely Reporting an Incident

(a) A person commits the crime of falsely reporting an incident if with knowledge that the information reported, conveyed, or circulated is false, he or she initiates or circulates a false report or warning of an alleged occurrence or impending occurrence of a fire, bomb, explosion, crime, catastrophe, or emergency or the alleged release or impending release of a hazardous or dangerous substance, including, but not limited to, chemical, biological, or bacteriological substance or any nerve agent under circumstances in which it is likely to cause evacuation of a building, place of assembly, or transportation facility, or to cause public inconvenience or alarm.
(b) Falsely reporting an incident is a Class A misdemeanor except that falsely reporting an incident of a bomb or explosion or the alleged release or impending release of a hazardous or dangerous substance is a Class C felony. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, if the objective or target of the person listed in subsection (a) is to interfere with the attendance, operation, activities, or other business conducted at a public or private school, university, college, or other educational institution in this state, no part of a sentence imposed pursuant to subsection (a) or this subsection shall be probated, deferred, suspended, or withheld, and no person sentenced pursuant to subsection (a) or this subsection shall be eligible for early release, leave, work release, earned time, good time, or any other program administered by an agency of the executive or judicial branches of this state which would have the effect of reducing or mitigating the sentence until the defendant has completed the minimum sentence pursuant to subsection (a) or this subsection.

Legislative History

(Acts 1977, No. 607, p. 812, §5550; Act 2000-113, p. 166, §1; Act 2009-718, §21.)