This bill amends Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 609.52, subdivision 3a, to establish enhanced penalties for theft from vulnerable adults. The new legal language specifies that if a theft creates a reasonably foreseeable risk of bodily harm to another, the penalties are increased. For misdemeanors or gross misdemeanors, the offender may be charged with a felony, facing up to three years of imprisonment or a fine of up to $5,000. Additionally, if the underlying crime is a felony, the maximum sentence is increased by 50 percent.

Furthermore, the bill introduces specific enhancements for offenses committed against vulnerable adults, defined in section 609.232, subdivision 11. If the offender knows or has reason to know that the victim is a vulnerable adult, the penalties are escalated: misdemeanors become gross misdemeanors, gross misdemeanors become felonies with a maximum of two years of imprisonment or a fine of up to $5,000, and felony sentences are increased by 25 percent. The effective date for these changes is set for August 1, 2026, applying to crimes committed on or after that date.

Statutes affected:
Introduction: 609.52