Louisiana § RS 14:91.5 - Unlawful use of a social networking website

§ RS 14:91.5. Unlawful use of a social networking website

            A. The following shall constitute unlawful use of a social networking website:

            (1) The intentional use of a social networking website by a person who is required to register as a sex offender and who was convicted of R.S. 14:81 (indecent behavior with juveniles), R.S. 14:81.1 (child sexual abuse materials), R.S. 14:81.3 (computer-aided solicitation of a minor), or R.S. 14:283 (video voyeurism) or was convicted of a sex offense as defined in R.S. 15:541 in which the victim of the sex offense was a minor.

            (2) The provisions of this Section shall also apply to any person convicted for an offense under the laws of another state, or military, territorial, foreign, tribal, or federal law which is equivalent to the offenses provided for in Paragraph (1) of this Subsection, unless the tribal court or foreign conviction was not obtained with sufficient safeguards for fundamental fairness and due process for the accused as provided by the federal guidelines adopted pursuant to the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006.

            B. For purposes of this Section:

            (1) "Minor" means a person under the age of eighteen years.

            (2)(a) "Social networking website" means an Internet website, the primary purpose of which is facilitating social interaction with other users of the website and has all of the following capabilities:

            (i) Allows users to create web pages or profiles about themselves that are available to the general public or to any other users.

            (ii) Offers a mechanism for communication among users.

            (b) "Social networking website" shall not include any of the following:

            (i) An Internet website that provides only one of the following services: photo-sharing, electronic mail, or instant messaging.

            (ii) An Internet website the primary purpose of which is the facilitation of commercial transactions involving goods or services between its members or visitors.

            (iii) An Internet website the primary purpose of which is the dissemination of news.

            (iv) An Internet website of a governmental entity.

            (3) "Use" shall mean to create a profile on a social networking website or to contact or attempt to contact other users of the social networking website.

            C.(1) Whoever commits the crime of unlawful use of a social networking website shall, upon a first conviction, be fined not more than ten thousand dollars and shall be imprisoned with hard labor for not more than ten years without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence.

            (2) Whoever commits the crime of unlawful use of a social networking website, upon a second or subsequent conviction, shall be fined not more than twenty thousand dollars and shall be imprisoned with hard labor for not less than five years nor more than twenty years without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence.

            Acts 2011, No. 26, §1; Acts 2012, No. 205, §1; Acts 2025, No. 261, §1.