COUNTY EXECUTIVE MIKE HEIN SIGNS LOCAL LAW PROHIBITING
CYBER-BULLYING IN ULSTER COUNTY
KINGSTON, N.Y. – Today, Ulster County Executive Mike Hein signed
into law legislation that he had proposed, and the Legislature refined, to
prohibit cyber-bullying in Ulster County and help protect victims. County
Executive Hein was joined by Kenneth Ronk, Jr., Chair of the Ulster County
Legislature; Legislator Carl Belfiglio; Legislator Chris Allen; Ulster County
District Attorney D. Holley Carnright; Jeff Rindler, the Executive Director of
the Hudson Valley LGBTQ Center; and Jane Clementi, Co-Founder of the Tyler
Clementi Foundation and mother of Tyler Clementi – an 18 year old victim of
bullying who tragically ended his life in 2010 and focused national attention
on the need for new tools to help prevent cyber-bulling.
Michael P. Hein, Ulster County Executive “All of our children are precious and need to know there is help
and protection available,” said Ulster County Executive Mike Hein. “I am proud of all of the work achieved in
collaboration with schools, parents and our stakeholders who assisted in developing
this valuable tool to hold those who engage in cyber-bullying accountable. As technology continues to advance at an ever
increasing pace, our youth are more and more susceptible to cyber-bullying with
access to the internet and social media at their fingertips. Cyber-bullying is a serious issue and can be
devastating to the victim and their family, and can lead to anxiety, depression
and in severe cases suicide.”
Kenneth J. Ronk, Jr., Chair, Ulster County Legislator
"When I was a kid home was the one place where a bullied
kid was safe,” said Kenneth J. Ronk, Jr., Chair of the Ulster County
Legislature. “Today cyber-bullying
doesn’t just happen at school. It no
longer just happens face to face. It
follows the victim home and can impact every corner of their life. This Cyber- Bullying Law is an example of
legislation catching up with technology.
This law will be a tool for law enforcement to offer some level of protection
for victims and identify bullies before they do any more damage."
Jonathan R. Heppner, Ulster County Legislator "Driven by a general support for the intention of this
legislation was an important effort by the Legislature and Executive's Office
to listen to the community, have a constructive debate and craft the best
possible policy,” said Legislator Jonathan Heppner. “In addition to protecting victims, it was
also crucial to have a commitment to education and prevention while also
disciplining young people appropriately with productive intervention
programming. I commend Executive Hein,
the Legislature and advocates for their work."
Jeff Rindler, Executive Director, Hudson Valley LGBTQ Community
Center “The Hudson Valley LGBTQ Community Center applauds County
Executive Mike Hein and the Ulster County Legislature for understanding the
serious potential impact of cyber-bulling,” said Jeff Rindler, Executive
Director of Hudson Valley LGBTQ Community Center. “This law allows us to teach
our children that behavior has consequences and hopefully make our youth think
twice before hitting the `send button.´"
Jane Clementi, Co-Founder of the Tyler Clementi Foundation
“I am pleased to support Ulster County and County Executive Mike
Hein for their forward thinking, understanding and recognition of the need to
protect the children of Ulster County from the potential harms of
cyber-bullying,” said Jane Clementi, Co-Founder of the Tyler Clementi
Foundation.
The new law prohibits cyber-bullying of persons under the age of
eighteen who are in Ulster County and includes the following prohibitions:
A person is guilty of Cyber-Bullying of a Minor when: with the
intent to harass, abuse, intimidate, torment, or otherwise inflict emotional
harm on a minor, the actor electronically transmits, anonymously or otherwise:
a. information
about such minor which has no legitimate communicative purpose and the actor
knows or reasonably should know that the electronic transmission of the
information will cause harm to the minor’s reputation or the minor’s
relationships with the minor’s parents, family members, friends, peers,
employers, and school administrators and faculty; or
b. private
sexual information about the minor; or
c. a
photograph or a video, whether real or altered, that depicts any uncovered
portion of the breasts, buttocks, or genitals of the minor and said photograph
or video has no legitimate communicative purpose; or
d. false
sexual information about the minor; or
e. information
that has no legitimate communicative purpose by appropriating the minor’s name,
likeness, e-mail accounts, websites, blogs for the purpose of harassing such
minor or other minors.
County Executive Hein was joined by Jane Clementi of the Tyler
Clementi Foundation which she co-founded with her husband Joseph Clementi. The Clementi’s son Tyler ended his life in
2010 after losing their son to suicide due to bullying. The Tyler Clementi Foundation works to end
online and offline bullying in schools, workplaces and faith communities in the
United States. For more information
please visit http://tylerclementi.org/.
Annually, County Executive Hein participates in No Name-Calling
Week, a national bullying prevention week which is co-sponsored by GLSEN and
the Hudson Valley LGBTQ Center in order to raise awareness of bullying and to
celebrate kindness. Over the years the
County has developed webcasts, videos for elementary and middle school
students, visited school assemblies and classrooms and collaborated with other
local youth groups. In addition, Ulster
County has recently partnered with the Voice Theatre to provide over 50
anti-bullying workshops at six high schools throughout the County, and the
Don't Be A Monster Program during National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month
in October. For more information please visit
http://ulstercountyny.gov/executive/stop-bullying.
