She could get 2.5 years in jail if she makes too much noise.
Sen. Sandlin has introduced SB 73 which adds additional jail time if a person commits a public order offense while wearing a mask. A “public order offense” is defined as criminal mischief (IC 35-43-1-2), disorderly conduct (IC 35-45-1-3), or rioting (IC 35-45-1-2). Criminal mischief has to do with knowingly or intentionally damaging or defacing someone else’s property. Disorderly conduct has to do with fighting or engaging in “tumultous conduct,” making too much noise after being asked to stop, or disrupting a lawful assembly. Rioting is being a member of an unlawful assembly, and recklessly, knowingly, or intentionally engaging in tumultuous conduct.
Under current law, these are all generally misdemeanors, though they can be enhanced to felonies under certain circumstances. If someone commits one of these offenses, the legislation permits the prosecutor to seek an additional fixed term of imprisonment if the State can prove that the person knowingly or intentionally concealed the person’s identity by wearing a mask or face covering while committing the offense. The additional term of incarceration must be at least 6 months but not more than 2.5 years. I don’t do any criminal law, so I don’t know the significance of choosing to make this a sentence enhancement rather than to increase a misdemeanor to a felony.
I wonder how hard it would be to prove that the person wore the mask for the purpose of concealing his or her identity. It seems plausible that the person could say he or she wore the mask for the purpose of enhancing the impact of his or her message by making themselves scarier or more intimidating. (Or, less plausibly, just as a matter of personal fashion choice.)
In any case, given the ripped-from-the-headlines instincts of many legislators, I have to think that this is an anti-“Antifa” (does that make it pro-fa?) measure. Antifa, is a ten foot tall beastman who showers in vodka and got a Wikipedia page on August 7, 2017. But, people who claim to be part of the movement wear masks at protests and were the Enemy of the Day in certain circles sometime after ACORN met its demise and during a period of George Soros fatigue. The fear of Antifa strikes me as being about as justified as the fear of imposition of Sharia law in America which also seems to get more than its fair share of attention from Indiana legislators.
On its face, I’m not sure I even object to this legislation. Can we make it applicable to committing any crime while wearing a mask? But if, as I suspect, it’s motivated by Antifa panic, then I’m skeptical of how it will be applied.
I guess that would also apply to an anti-Antifa demonstrator wearing a Bob Mueller mask as well as any noisy Halloween party. The latter group is definitely a danger to society, especially if I’m an Indiana legislator trying to sleep.
The newspapers really need to run lists of these crazy ideas so the public can learn about them.
As always, I can’t do anything better than quote The Princess Bride:
Fezzik: Why do you wear a mask? Were you burned by acid, or something like that?
Man in Black: Oh no. It’s just that they’re terribly comfortable. I think everyone will be wearing them in the future.