2018 Rhode Island General Laws
Title 11 - Criminal Offenses
Chapter 11-35.1 Theft of Telecommunication Services
Section 11-35.1-2 Criminal offense.

§ 11-35.1-2. Criminal offense.

(a) A criminal offense is committed by:

(1) Any person who intentionally obtains or attempts to obtain telecommunication service by the use of an unlawful telecommunication device.

(2) Any person who makes, distributes, possesses or assembles an unlawful telecommunication device, or plans or instructions for making the same, under circumstances evidencing an intent to use or employ such unlawful telecommunication device.

(3) Any person who engages in the business for profit or economic gain of selling or offering for sale an unlawful telecommunication device.

(b)(1) A person is guilty of theft of telecommunications service for profit or economic gain when he or she:

(i) Engages in the business for profit or economic gain of tampering or making connection with the equipment of a supplier of a telecommunication service without the consent of the supplier, for the purpose of supplying that service on one or more occasions;

(ii) Engages in the business for profit or economic gain of offering for sale to any person other than the supplier of a telecommunication service any decoder, descrambler or other device or the unauthorized use of a confidential identification or authorization code, the principal function of which defeats the electronic signal encryption jamming or individually addressed switching imposed by the supplier for the purpose of restricting the delivery of that service to persons who pay for the service;

(iii) Without the consent of the supplier of the service, engages in the business for profit or economic gain of connecting or disconnecting the fiber optic, cables, conduits, wires, conductors, attachments or other electromagnetic system of the supplier;

(iv) Conceals or assists another to conceal from any telecommunication service provider or from any lawful authority the existence or place of origin or destination of any telecommunication.

(2) There shall be a rebuttable presumption of intent that a person is engaged in the business for profit or economic gain of offering for sale a decoder, descrambler or other device or a confidential identification or authorization code in violation of paragraph (1)(ii) of this subsection if the person has three (3) or more decoders, descramblers or other devices or confidential identification or authorization codes in his or her possession or under his or her control.

History of Section.
(P.L. 1997, ch. 181, § 1.)