North Carolina General Statutes 14-458.2. Cyber-bullying of school employee by student; penalty
(a) The following definitions apply in this section:
(1) School employee. – The term means any of the following:
a. An employee of a local board of education, a charter school authorized under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115C-218.5, a regional school created under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115C-238.62, a laboratory school created under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 116-239.7, or a nonpublic school which has filed intent to operate under Part 1 or Part 2 of Article 39 of Chapter 115C of the N.C. Gen. Stat..
b. An independent contractor or an employee of an independent contractor of a local board of education, a charter school authorized under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115C-218.5, a regional school created under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115C-238.62, a laboratory school created under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 116-239.7, or a nonpublic school which has filed intent to operate under Part 1 or Part 2 of Article 39 of Chapter 115C of the N.C. Gen. Stat., if the independent contractor carries out duties customarily performed by employees of the school.
Attorney's Note
Under the N.C. Gen. Statutes, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| Class 2 misdemeanor | up to 60 days | up to $1,000 |
Terms Used In North Carolina General Statutes 14-458.2
- Access: means to instruct, communicate with, cause input, cause output, cause data processing, or otherwise make use of any resources of a computer, computer system, or computer network. See North Carolina General Statutes 14-453
- Authorization: means having the consent or permission of the owner, or of the person licensed or authorized by the owner to grant consent or permission to access a computer, computer system, or computer network in a manner not exceeding the consent or permission. See North Carolina General Statutes 14-453
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Computer: means an internally programmed, automatic device that performs data processing or telephone switching. See North Carolina General Statutes 14-453
- Computer network: means the interconnection of communication systems with a computer through remote terminals, or a complex consisting of two or more interconnected computers or telephone switching equipment. See North Carolina General Statutes 14-453
- Computer program: means an ordered set of data that are coded instructions or statements that when executed by a computer cause the computer to process data. See North Carolina General Statutes 14-453
- Computer software: means a set of computer programs, procedures and associated documentation concerned with the operation of a computer, computer system, or computer network. See North Carolina General Statutes 14-453
- Computer system: means at least one computer together with a set of related, connected, or unconnected peripheral devices. See North Carolina General Statutes 14-453
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
- Data: means a representation of information, facts, knowledge, concepts, or instructions prepared in a formalized or other manner and intended for use in a computer, computer system, or computer network. See North Carolina General Statutes 14-453
- Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. Source:
- Electronic mail: means the same as the term is defined in N. See North Carolina General Statutes 14-453
- following: when used by way of reference to any section of a statute, shall be construed to mean the section next preceding or next following that in which such reference is made; unless when some other section is expressly designated in such reference. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
- Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
- Profile: means (i) a configuration of user data required by a computer so that the user may access programs or services and have the desired functionality on that computer or (ii) a Web site user's personal page or section of a page made up of data, in text or graphical form, which displays significant, unique, or identifying information, including, but not limited to, listing acquaintances, interests, associations, activities, or personal statements. See North Carolina General Statutes 14-453
(2) Student. – A person who has been assigned to a school by a local board of education as provided in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115C-366 or has enrolled in a charter school authorized under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115C-218.5, a regional school created under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115C-238.62, a laboratory school created under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 116-239.7, or a nonpublic school which has filed intent to operate under Part 1 or Part 2 of Article 39 of Chapter 115C of the N.C. Gen. Stat., or a person who has been suspended or expelled from any of those schools within the last year.
(b) Except as otherwise made unlawful by this Article, it shall be unlawful for any student to use a computer or computer network to do any of the following:
(1) With the intent to intimidate or torment a school employee, do any of the following:
a. Build a fake profile or Web site.
b. Post or encourage others to post on the Internet private, personal, or sexual information pertaining to a school employee.
c. Post a real or doctored image of the school employee on the Internet.
d. Access, alter, or erase any computer network, computer data, computer program, or computer software, including breaking into a password-protected account or stealing or otherwise accessing passwords.
e. Use a computer system for repeated, continuing, or sustained electronic communications, including electronic mail or other transmissions, to a school employee.
(2) Make any statement, whether true or false, intending to immediately provoke, and that is likely to provoke, any third party to stalk or harass a school employee.
(3) Copy and disseminate, or cause to be made, an unauthorized copy of any data pertaining to a school employee for the purpose of intimidating or tormenting that school employee (in any form, including, but not limited to, any printed or electronic form of computer data, computer programs, or computer software residing in, communicated by, or produced by a computer or computer network).
(4) Sign up a school employee for a pornographic Internet site with the intent to intimidate or torment the employee.
(5) Without authorization of the school employee, sign up a school employee for electronic mailing lists or to receive junk electronic messages and instant messages, with the intent to intimidate or torment the school employee.
(c) Any student who violates this section is guilty of cyber-bullying a school employee, which offense is punishable as a Class 2 misdemeanor.
(d) Whenever any student pleads guilty to or is guilty of an offense under this section, the court may, without entering a judgment of guilt and with the consent of the student, defer further proceedings and place the student on probation upon such reasonable terms and conditions as the court may require. Upon fulfillment of the terms and conditions of the probation provided for in this subsection, the court shall discharge the student and dismiss the proceedings against the student. Discharge and dismissal under this subsection shall be without court adjudication of guilt and shall not be deemed a conviction for purposes of this section or for purposes of disqualifications or disabilities imposed by law upon conviction of a crime. Upon discharge and dismissal pursuant to this subsection, the student may apply for an order to expunge the complete record of the proceedings resulting in the dismissal and discharge, pursuant to the procedures and requirements set forth in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-146
(e) Whenever a complaint is received pursuant to Article 17 of Chapter 7B of the N.C. Gen. Stat. based upon a student’s violation of this section, the juvenile may, upon a finding of legal sufficiency pursuant to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 7B-1706, enter into a diversion contract pursuant to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 7B-1706 (2012-149, s. 4; 2014-101, s. 7; 2016-94, s. 11.6(b); 2017-117, s. 2.)