Senate Bill 121 aims to recodify and reorganize the battery statutes in Wisconsin law, specifically those found in sections 940.19 to 940.208. The bill does not change the penalties for existing crimes but restructures the definitions and classifications of battery offenses based on the identity of the actor and the victim. Key changes include the creation of a new subchapter titled "Bodily security; battery," which consolidates various battery-related offenses, and the renumbering of several statutes to improve clarity. Additionally, the bill expands the definition of "family member" to include grandparents and legal guardians, and it clarifies the inclusion of jails in the context of bodily harm caused by prisoners.

The bill also modifies the titles of certain crimes to align with the new structure, such as changing "Physical abuse of an elder person" to "Battery to an elder person." It consolidates various threats to commit battery into a single crime and moves it to a different chapter related to public peace. Furthermore, the bill repeals outdated cross-references and updates the statutory language to reflect these changes. Overall, the legislation seeks to streamline the battery statutes while maintaining the existing penalties and legal definitions.

Statutes affected:
Bill Text: 343.12(7)(c)9j, 343.12, 939.22(21)(e), 939.22, 939.22(21)(em)