LAWS OF DELAWARE
VOLUME 85
CHAPTER 223
153rd GENERAL ASSEMBLY
FORMERLY
SENATE SUBSTITUTE NO. 1
FOR
SENATE BILL NO. 142
AS AMENDED BY
SENATE AMENDMENT NO. 1
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 AND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO SEXUAL EXTORTION.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Section 1. Amend § 774, Title 11 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:
§ 774. Sexual extortion; class E felony.
felony; class B felony.
(a) A person is guilty of sexual extortion when the person
intentionally compels intentionally:
(1) Compels or induces another person to engage
do 1 or more of the following:
a. Engage in any sexual act involving contact, penetration
penetration, or intercourse with the person
defendant or another or others, or to produce
person.
b. Produce a visual depiction of the person
victim or another person who is nude, or who is engaging in sexual conduct, with the
person victim or another
or others by person.
(2) By means of instilling in the victim a fear that, if
such the sexual act or production is not performed, the defendant or another
will: person will do 1 or more of the following:
(1) a. Cause physical injury to
anyone; anyone.
(2) b. Cause damage to property;
property.
(3) c. Engage in other conduct constituting a
crime; crime.
(4) d. Accuse anyone of a crime or cause criminal charges to be instituted against
anyone; anyone.
(5) e. Expose a secret or publicize an asserted fact, whether true or false, intending to subject anyone to hatred,
contempt or ridicule; contempt, or ridicule.
(6) f. Falsely testify or provide information or withhold testimony or information with respect to another’s legal claim or
defense; defense.
(7) g. Reproduce, distribute, exhibit, publish, transmit, or otherwise disseminate a visual depiction of any person who is nude, or who is engaging in sexual
conduct; or conduct.
(8) h. Perform any other act which is calculated to materially
harm another person materially with respect to the other person’s health, safety, business, calling, career, financial condition,
reputation reputation, or personal relationships.
Sexual
(b) Except as provided in subsection (c) of this section, sexual extortion is a class E felony.
(c) Sexual extortion is a Class B felony under any of the following circumstances:
(1) The defendant is an adult and the victim is 1 of the following:
a. A child, as defined in §1100 of this title.
b. A vulnerable adult, as defined in § 1105 of this title.
(2) A violation of subsection (a) of this section causes the victim to suffer serious physical injury or death.
Section 2. Amend § 4163, Title 14 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:
§ 4163. Child abuse and child safety awareness, prevention, detection, and reporting [For applicability of section, see 83 Del. Laws, c. 407, § 2].
(b) Educational programming. —
The Child Protection Accountability Commission and the Division of Family Services of the Department of Services for Children, Youth, and Their Families shall identify and maintain educational programming to be used by each school district and charter school for informing school district and charter school employees, students, and parents about personal body safety and child abuse and about how to detect and report child abuse. The Child Protection Accountability Commission and the Division of Family Services of the Department of Services for Children, Youth, and Their Families, in collaboration with the Department of Education, must review the educational programming and trainings required
under this subsection every 3 years, at a minimum, and update the educational programming and trainings as needed to be relevant to Delaware students and conform with best practices. The educational programming must include all of the following:
(1) Training and education for school district and charter school employees that is evidence-based, whenever available, in order to raise awareness of issues regarding personal body safety, child abuse, child safety, sexual extortion,
and adult sexual misconduct in schools.Such
schools. The training and education must include:
include all of the following:
(2) (2)a. Evidence-based, whenever available, age-appropriate instruction for students enrolled in grades pre-kindergarten through 12 that is related to personal body
safety and safety, sexual
abuse abuse, and other forms of child
abuse. Such abuse, and sexual extortion. The instruction
shall must include information on the difference between appropriate and inappropriate conduct and the actions that a child may take to be protected from sexual abuse and other forms of child abuse.
Such The instruction shall
must be designed to build on skills learned the previous year.
b. The instruction about sexual extortion must include age-appropriate instruction on the dangers and consequences of sexual extortion and resources for online safety.
(3) Information for parents of students enrolled in grades pre-kindergarten through 12, online or in-person upon request, on all of the following:
g. Effective, age-appropriate ways to discuss sexual extortion.
h. Warning signs that a child may be a victim of sexual extortion.
(4) Each school district and charter school shall require a school administrator, school nurse, or school counselor to receive training in addition to the requirements set forth in paragraph (b)(1) of this section. The training and education
to must be evidence-based, whenever available,
that and must include:
include all of the following:
d. Coordination with law enforcement and Title IX coordinators for any suspected violation of applicable policies or civil or criminal
law. law, including the crime of sexual extortion as defined in § 774 of Title 11.
Section 3. Section 1 of this Act is effective upon the Act’s enactment into law. Section 2 of this Act is effective upon the Act’s enactment into law and is implemented beginning on August 1, 2027.
Approved September 19, 2025