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Families urge new coercive‑suicide felony as committee advances narrowly drafted bill
Summary
Witnesses whose relatives were coerced via social media urged passage of HB 19-51, which would create a Class D felony for knowingly encouraging suicide when the victim is vulnerable and at imminent risk; committee approved sending the bill to Finance, Ways and Means.
Chairman Williams said HB 19-51 would add "coercive suicide" to the assisted‑suicide portion of state code and make it a Class D felony, focusing on intentional conduct that exploits a known, vulnerable person. The sponsor said the draft was narrow to avoid First Amendment problems and was developed with the attorney general's office and legal counsel.
Candy Sparks, who identified herself as the mother of Grace Ann Sparks, described her daughter's death in 2019 as the result of repeated online manipulation: "It was not her choice. It was engineered," she said, urging members not to conflate the bill with criminalizing speech, grief, or mental illness. Hannah Duncan, the victim's sister, said technology lets predators reach victims without physical proximity and called the bill a necessary fix to a statutory gap. Committee members asked about possible unintended consequences and the bill's mens rea; sponsors said language requires intentional encouragement and that courts would resolve borderline cases. The committee voted to send HB 19-51 as amended to Finance, Ways and Means (22 yeas, 0 nos).
