ATLANTA — Georgia lawmakers targeted by "swatters" are expected to produce a bill next week that will make the crime a felony first offense.
State Sen. Clint Dixon (R-Buford) said he is collaborating with Lt. Governor Burt Jones on the new bill. Both of them were targeted by what Jones thinks was the same individual over the Christmas holiday.
Dixon said his family was enjoying the holiday when police showed up at his house unannounced.
"The kids were playing with the toys they’d gotten from Santa earlier that day, and my wife was actually upstairs packing for a trip. We were leaving the next day. And she starts screaming that police are coming up the steps," Dixon said Wednesday.
Dixon said he went to the door and met the officers.
"They proceeded to tell me that a call had come out that there was a shooting at the house and there was a hostage situation," Dixon said. "My first reaction was, what house is it? And they said here. And asked me where my wife was. And, of course, she came out about that time, and we invited them in. But very scary."
Dixon was among a list of Georgia politicians swatted over the holiday. Now Dixon claims he’s writing a bill to toughen Georgia’s swatting law. Currently, the first offense at a residence is a misdemeanor. He and Jones want to make it a felony.
"The whole purpose around it is to cause confusion and hope that someone is injured in some sort of way," Jones said of the reason people make the fake calls to police.
He was also swatted at his home in Butts County over the holiday.
"I was actually sitting there, watching 'Yellowstone,'" Jones said, noting his cell phone rang, tipping him off to a hoax 911 call meant to send police to his home in Butts County.
"I said, well, y'all come on out here and – because I know you've got to do that. So everything was good. The family was safe. And like I say – I was fortunate. I know all the authorities," he said.
Jones ultimately said he was targeted three times – once at his home and twice with bomb threats at office buildings he owns. Dixon said his house was also the target of a bomb threat the day following the Christmas Day swatting.
For a complete list of all the lawmakers Swatted over the Christmas holiday, click here.
What is 'swatting'?
According to multiple definitions, "swatting" happens when someone makes a false report to emergency services under the pretext that a crime is being committed or someone is being held hostage to try and prompt a massive police response to a particular address.
It is punishable by federal law under the "Interstate Swatting Hoax Act," which was passed by Congress in 2015. Those who violate the law could face prison time ranging from five years up to life in prison, depending on the severity of the circumstances, including whether any injuries or deaths happen.