Impersonation of Officer or Employee of Utility

Nev. Rev. Stat. § 207.345. Impersonation of Officer or Employee of Utility

Under Nevada law, it is a crime to impersonate an officer or employee of a utility.  This includes pretending to be an officer or employee of a utility or making unauthorized use of characteristics like uniform or police identification.  The law further states that it is a crime to use such impersonation of an officer or public utility to attempt to commit or commit a crime, or to act in any way to represent the utility or an officer or employee of the utility.

The specific statutory language is set out in Nev. Rev. Stat § 207.354, and states:

1. A person shall not:

(a) Impersonate an officer or employee of a utility or, without authority, assume any characteristic, such as a uniform or insigne, or an identification by which an officer or employee of a utility is distinguished, known, or identified; and

(b) Use the impersonation or the assumed characteristic or identity to commit or attempt to commit any unlawful act or any act in which the person purports to represent the utility or an officer or employee of the utility.

“Public Utility” or “Utility” Defined

 Nev. Stat. Ann. § 704.020(1) defined “public utility” or “utility” as:

(a) Any person who owns, operates, manages or controls any railroad or part of a railroad as a common carrier in this State, or cars or other equipment used thereon, or bridges, terminals, or sidetracks, or any docks or wharves or storage elevators used in connection therewith, whether or not they are owned by the railroad.

(b) Any person other than a provider of commercial mobile radio service, that provides a telecommunication service to the public, but only with regard to those operations which consist of providing a telecommunication to the public.

(c) Any provider of commercial mobile radio service, but such providers:

(1) Must be regulated in a manner consistent with federal law; and

(1) Must nor be regulated as telecommunication providers for the purposes of this chapter.

Nev. Stat. Ann. § 704.020(2) defines “public utility” or “utility” to also include:

(a) Any plant or equipment, or any part of a plant or equipment, within this State for the production, delivery, or furnishing for or to other persons, including private or municipal corporations, heat, gas, coal slurry, light, power in any form or by agency, water for business, manufacturing, agricultural or household use, or sewerage service, whether or not within the limits of municipalities.

(b) Any system for the distribution of liquefied petroleum gas to 10 or more users.

Penalties for Impersonation of Officer or Employee of Utility

The penalty for impersonation of an officer or employee of public utility is a gross misdemeanor punishable by up to 1 year in jail and/or a $3,000 fine.  If the person acted with intent to commit or assist in an act involving terrorism or sabotage, the offense becomes a category C felony carrying prison time of 1–5 years and a maximum fine of $10,000.

The specific statutory language is provided in Nev. Rev. Stat. § 207.345(2):

2. A person who violates any provision of this section is guilty of:

(a) A gross misdemeanor; or

(b) A category C felony and shall be punished as provided in NRS 193.130 if the person acted with intent to:

(1) Commit, cause, aid, further or conceal, or attempt to commit, cause, aid, further, or conceal, any unlawful act involving terrorism or sabotage; or

(2) Assist, solicit or conspire with another person to commit, aid, further or conceal any unlawful act involving terrorism or sabotage.

What is An Act of Terrorism?

An “act of terrorism” is defined in Nev. Rev. Stat. § 202.4415 as any act that involves the use or attempted use of sabotage, coercion, or violence which is intended to:

(a) Cause great bodily harm or death to the general population; or

(b) Cause substantial destruction, contamination, or impairment of:

(1) Any building or infrastructure, communications, transportation, utilities or services; or

(2) Any natural resource or the environment.