Committee approves substitute to update telephone‑harassment law to cover social media threats and messages

The House Judiciary Committee approved a substitute to modernize the state’s telephone‑harassment statute so that it applies to contemporary digital communications, including text messages, emails and social-media messages that threaten or harass victims.

Representative Rahim, the sponsor, said the existing statute is outdated and limited to telephone calls, and described the bill as a necessary update to cover the ways threats and intimidation now travel. Officer Benjamin Burling of the Las Cruces Police Department testified that investigators frequently encounter threatening texts, images and social-media posts that do not fit the current statute unless they amount to a repeating pattern. Burling described cases — including domestic-violence and neighbor disputes — where a single, digital threat could raise immediate danger but did not meet statutory elements requiring a pattern or the specific emotional-distress standard used in harassment law.

Supporters included law-enforcement leaders and the state’s district attorneys association, which said the bill would allow prosecutors to act earlier in threatening situations. The Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce and other supporters said updating the law reflects modern communication methods. Public testimony in favor and support from prosecutors noted that many jurisdictions use similar statutes or have adapted existing laws to cover digital messaging.

The substitute was reported out of committee as a judiciary committee substitute and the committee announced a do-pass on the substitute. Sponsors and witnesses emphasized that investigative standards and proof requirements remain: prosecutors will still need to show the caller or sender’s identity when pursuing charges, and law-enforcement investigation and evidentiary standards still apply.