(a) Except as provided in § 47-18-2303, it is an offense for a person, in connection with a telecommunications service or an interconnected VoIP service, to knowingly cause any caller identification service to transmit misleading or inaccurate caller identification information to a subscriber with the intent to defraud or cause harm to another person or to wrongfully obtain anything of value.

Attorney's Note

Under the Tennessee Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
class A misdemeanorup to 11 monthsup to $2,500
For details, see Tenn. Code § 40-35-111

Terms Used In Tennessee Code 47-18-2302

  • Attorney general: means the office of the Tennessee attorney general and reporter. See Tennessee Code 47-18-2102
  • Caller identification information: means information provided by a caller identification service regarding the telephone number, or other origination information, of a call or facsimile transmission made using a telecommunications service or an interconnected VoIP service, or of a text message sent using a text messaging service. See Tennessee Code 47-18-2301
  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • Person: means a natural person, consumer, individual, governmental agency, partnership, corporation, trust, estate, incorporated or unincorporated association, and any other legal or commercial entity however organized. See Tennessee Code 47-18-2102
  • Place of primary use: means the street address where a subscriber's use of a telecommunications service or interconnected VoIP service primarily occurs, which shall be:
    (A) The residential street address or the primary business street address of the subscriber or, in the case of a subscriber of interconnected VoIP service, the subscriber's registered location. See Tennessee Code 47-18-2301
  • Provider: means a person or entity that offers telecommunications service or interconnected VoIP service. See Tennessee Code 47-18-2301
  • Reporter: Makes a record of court proceedings and prepares a transcript, and also publishes the court's opinions or decisions (in the courts of appeals).
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Subscriber: means a person:
    (A) Who subscribes to a caller identification service in connection with a telecommunications service or an interconnected VoIP service. See Tennessee Code 47-18-2301
  • Telecommunications service: means the offering of telecommunications for a fee directly to the public, or to classes of users so as to be effectively available directly to the public, regardless of the facilities used. See Tennessee Code 47-18-2301
  • Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
(b) A violation of subsection (a) is a Class A misdemeanor.
(c) Nothing in this section prohibits:

(1) Criminal prosecution under any other law;
(2) A civil action brought by the attorney general and reporter pursuant to § 47-18-2304; or
(3) A civil action brought by an aggrieved person pursuant to § 47-18-2305.
(d) The transmission of misleading or inaccurate caller identification information to a subscriber is an element of the offense under subsection (a) and occurs where the subscriber’s place of primary use for the caller identification service is located.
(e) Pursuant to § 39-11-103 and subsection (d), if a subscriber’s place of primary use for the caller identification service is located in this state, an essential element of the offense under subsection (a) is committed in this state and a defendant is subject to prosecution in this state, regardless of whether the defendant was actually physically present in this state when the offense occurred.
(f) Venue for the offense under subsection (a) shall be in any county where an essential element of the offense was committed, regardless of whether the defendant was actually physically present in the county when the offense occurred.
(g) This section shall not apply to a provider; except that, a provider shall remain liable pursuant to this section if the provider acts with the intent to assist, aid, or abet, in the commission or concealment of any person planning or causing a caller identification service to transmit misleading or inaccurate caller identification information to a subscriber while the person has the intent to defraud, cause harm to another person, or wrongfully obtain anything of value.
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