Delaware 153rd General Assembly (2025-2026) Status: Passed Senate Bipartisan · 9 R · 3 D cosponsors

SB 232 — AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO CRIMINAL MISCHIEF.

Last action — Passed By Senate. Votes: 20 YES 1 ABSENT

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has passed the Senate. Introduced January 28, 2026. It now moves to the second chamber.

Next likely step: consideration and a floor vote in the House.

Prognosis

Likely to advance 74% · high confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

High

How often bills like it became law.

  • Passed Senate

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 13 sponsors

    13 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (9 R · 3 D) — cross-party backing.

  • Cleared a recorded vote

    Passed 2 recorded votes so far.

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

In plain language

This bill increases penalties for damaging authorized emergency vehicles.

The bill makes damaging an authorized emergency vehicle that costs $5,000 or more a class F felony. It also corrects technical aspects of existing law.

Summary

This Act increases for the crime of criminal mischief to a class F felony when the person intentionally causes damage to an authorized emergency vehicle resulting in a pecuniary loss of $5,000 or more or in the authorized emergency vehicle becoming temporarily unable to be used to respond to an emergency. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

57 added · 11 removed

Plain-language change summary

The amendment to SB 232 changes the conditions under which a person can be convicted of criminal mischief involving an authorized emergency vehicle. Specifically, it adds that damage must be $5,000 or more and must render the vehicle temporarily unable to respond to an emergency. This amendment clarifies the standards for prosecution related to damage of emergency vehicles.

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Previous
Latest
Rep.
Sen.
Wilson & Rep.
Short HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 153rd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE AMENDMENT NO.
Short Sens.
1 TO SENATE BILL NO.
Buckson, Hocker, Lawson, Pettyjohn, Richardson;
232 AMEND Senate Bill No.
Reps.
232 on line 28 by deleting “or” after “more” and before “in” therein and inserting in lieu thereof “and”.
Cooke, Gray, Griffith, Morris, Osienski, Shupe, Yearick DELAWARE STATE SENATE 153rd GENERAL ASSEMBLY SENATE BILL NO.
SYNOPSIS This Amendment requires that, for a person to be convicted of criminal mischief of an authorized emergency vehicle, the damage to the vehicle must be $5,000 or more and result in the vehicle becoming temporarily unable to be used to respond to an emergency.
232 AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO CRIMINAL MISCHIEF.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Section 1.
Amend § 811, Title 11 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:
§ 811.
Criminal mischief;
classification of crime;
defense.
(a) A person is guilty of criminal mischief when the person intentionally or recklessly:
recklessly does any of the following:
(1) Damages tangible property of another person;
or person.
(2) Tampers with tangible property of another person so as to endanger person or property;
or property.
(3) Tampers or makes connection with tangible property of a gas, electric, steam or waterworks corporation, telegraph or telephone corporation or other public utility, except that in any prosecution under this subsection it is an affirmative defense that the accused engaged in the conduct charged to constitute an offense for a lawful purpose.
(4) Damages an authorized emergency vehicle.
For purposes of this section:
a.
“Aircraft” means a device in, on, or by which an individual or thing may be transported in the air.
b.
“Authorized emergency vehicle” means all of the following:
1.
A vehicle, aircraft, watercraft, or unmanned aircraft system owned, leased, or used in performance of duties by any of the following:
A.
A fire department or fire company, including the use by fire chief, assistant fire chief, chief engineer, or fire police officer.
B.
A law-enforcement agency.
C.
An ambulance company.
2.
A specialized vehicle used by a paramedic in performance of the paramedic’s duties.
c.
“Law-enforcement agency” means an agency that employs a law-enforcement officer, as defined under § 222 of this title.
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06/16/2026 10:02 AM 4801530190
01/26/2026 03:28 PM d.
“Unmanned aircraft system” means as defined under § 1334 of this title.
e.
“Vehicle” means as defined under § 222 of this title.
f.
“Watercraft” means a device in, on, or by which an individual or thing may be transported on the water.
(b) Criminal mischief is punished as follows:
(1) Criminal mischief is a class F felony if the person intentionally causes damage to an authorized emergency vehicle resulting in pecuniary loss of $5,000 or more or in the authorized emergency vehicle becoming temporarily unable to be used to respond to an emergency.
(1)(2) Criminal mischief is a class G felony if the actor person intentionally causes pecuniary loss of $5,000 or more, or if the actor person intentionally causes a substantial interruption or impairment of public communication, transportation, supply of water, gas gas, or power, or other public service;
service.
(2)(3) Criminal mischief is a class A misdemeanor if the actor person intentionally or recklessly causes pecuniary loss in excess of $1,000;
$1,000 and paragraphs (b)(1) and (b)(2) of this section do not apply.
(3)(4) Otherwise criminal Criminal mischief is an unclassified misdemeanor;
misdemeanor if paragraphs (b)(1) through (b)(3) of this section do not apply.
(4)(5) If an actor the person commits an act of criminal mischief of any degree on or along a Delaware byway, as defined in § 101 of Title 17, the court shall impose a minimum mandatory fine of at least $500.
(c) It is a defense that the defendant person has a reasonable ground to believe that the defendant person has a right to engage in the conduct set forth in subsection (a) of this section.
SYNOPSIS This Act increases for the crime of criminal mischief to a class F felony when the person intentionally causes damage to an authorized emergency vehicle resulting in a pecuniary loss of $5,000 or more or in the authorized emergency vehicle becoming temporarily unable to be used to respond to an emergency.
This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
Author:
Senator Wilson DLS :
MJC :
AF Page 2 of 2 Released:
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Action History

  1. Passed By Senate. Votes: 20 YES 1 ABSENT

  2. Suspension of Rules in Senate

  3. Passed By House. Votes: 32 YES 9 NO

  4. Amendment HA 1 to SB 232 - Passed In House by Voice Vote

  5. Amendment HA 1 to SB 232 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  6. Reported Out of Committee (Judiciary) in House with 5 Favorable, 3 On Its Merits, 1 Unfavorable

  7. Assigned to Judiciary Committee in House

  8. Passed By Senate. Votes: 17 YES 3 NO 1 ABSENT

  9. Reported Out of Committee (Judiciary) in Senate with 2 Favorable, 4 On Its Merits

  10. Introduced and Assigned to Judiciary Committee in Senate

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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13 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 49 not signed on · 3 voted No

Sponsors (13)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (49)

49 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 49 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

SM

Passed 20 Yea · 0 Nay · 1 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 15000
Republican 5001
Total 20001
% of votes cast 95%0%0%5%
How each member voted (21)
Member Party Vote
Bryan Townsend Democratic Yea
Daniel Cruce Democratic Yea
Darius J. Brown Democratic Yea
David P. Sokola Democratic Yea
John "Jack" Walsh Democratic Yea
Kyra L. Hoffner Democratic Yea
Laura V. Sturgeon Democratic Yea
Marie Pinkney Democratic Yea
Nicole Poore Democratic Yea
Ray Seigfried Democratic Yea
Russell Huxtable Democratic Yea
S. Elizabeth Lockman Democratic Yea
Spiros Mantzavinos Democratic Yea
Stephanie L. Hansen Democratic Yea
Trey Paradee Democratic Yea
Brian Pettyjohn Republican Yea
Bryant L. Richardson Republican Yea
Dave G. Lawson Republican Not Voting
David L. Wilson Republican Yea
Eric Buckson Republican Yea
Gerald W. Hocker Republican Yea

Official roll call →

SM

Passed 17 Yea · 3 Nay · 1 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 11301
Republican 6000
Total 17301
% of votes cast 81%14%0%5%
How each member voted (21)
Member Party Vote
Bryan Townsend Democratic Yea
Daniel Cruce Democratic Yea
Darius J. Brown Democratic Yea
David P. Sokola Democratic Yea
John "Jack" Walsh Democratic Yea
Kyra L. Hoffner Democratic Yea
Laura V. Sturgeon Democratic Nay
Marie Pinkney Democratic Nay
Nicole Poore Democratic Yea
Ray Seigfried Democratic Yea
Russell Huxtable Democratic Yea
S. Elizabeth Lockman Democratic Nay
Spiros Mantzavinos Democratic Yea
Stephanie L. Hansen Democratic Yea
Trey Paradee Democratic Not Voting
Brian Pettyjohn Republican Yea
Bryant L. Richardson Republican Yea
Dave G. Lawson Republican Yea
David L. Wilson Republican Yea
Eric Buckson Republican Yea
Gerald W. Hocker Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Subjects

public-safety
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does SB 232 do?
This Act increases for the crime of criminal mischief to a class F felony when the person intentionally causes damage to an authorized emergency vehicle resulting in a pecuniary loss of $5,000 or more or in the authorized emergency vehicle becoming temporarily unable to be used to respond to an emergency. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
Who sponsors SB 232?
SB 232 is sponsored by Stell Parker Selby, Lyndon D. Yearick (Republican), Bryan W. Shupe (Republican), Edward S. Osienski (Democratic), Shannon Morris (Republican), Nicole Poore (Democratic), Ronald E. Gray (Republican), Bryant L. Richardson (Republican), Brian Pettyjohn (Republican), Dave G. Lawson (Republican), Franklin D. Cooke (Democratic), Daniel B. Short (Republican), and David L. Wilson (Republican).
What is the current status of SB 232?
This bill has passed the Senate. Introduced January 28, 2026. It now moves to the second chamber.
Where can I track SB 232?
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