ALAMOSA — At this week’s meeting of the Alamosa City Council, an ordinance related to harassment will have its first reading. It will be an amendment of an existing ordinance governing harassment under Section 11 of the city’s Code of Ordinances.

According to Erich Schwiesow, attorney for the city, the need to address the ordinance came to his attention following a harassment case.

“The existing ordinance contains provisions that used to be in the state statue but have since been held to be unconstitutional,” Schwiesow said.

He became aware of the problem when one of the city’s harassment cases was appealed.

Although that issue wasn't the subject of the appeal, it alerted him to the need to fix the city’s ordinance to remove other unconstitutional provisions it contained.

The amendments contained in the ordinance to be considered by council will accomplish that.

In general terms, language in the amended ordinance states that a person is harassing another if there is bodily contact, repeated attempts to communicate with no clear intent or purpose, repeated attempts to communicate at inconvenient hours such that privacy is invaded and the use of obscene language or offensive language designed to incite some kind of response.

More specifically, a person is committing harassment if they strike, shove, kick, or otherwise touch a person or subject that person to physical contact.

It is also considered harassment to follow a person in or about a public place, to repeatedly initiate communication intended to threaten bodily injury or property damage or repeatedly make any comment, suggestion, gesture or proposal that is obscene.

Another behavior considered to harassment — making a telephone call or causing a telephone to ring repeatedly, whether or not a conversation ensures, with no purpose of a legitimate conversation or making repeated communication at inconvenient hours that invade or interfere with that person’s privacy or time at home or the home of another person.

Also, harassment is defined as repeated insults, taunts, challenges, or communication with another in language that is offensively coarse and delivered in a way likely to incite a violent or disorderly response.

The amended ordinance still contains a specific definition of “obscene” but a provision in the current ordinance referencing “obscene” language or “obscene” gestures was removed.

“A sensitivity for protecting free speech is why (that provision) was removed,” Schwiesow said. “No court to my knowledge has held that provision unconstitutional, but people use coarse and obscene language more and more frequently without intending it as harassment.

“Although we encourage people to be civil, we can't legislate civility. The city does not cite people for uncivil language. Disrupting public assemblies is a different matter and a different ordinance violation.”

Any act prohibited by the ordinance and committed remotely — as in over the telephone, by email, text message, social media or other means — and received by someone in Alamosa makes it prosecutable in Alamosa municipal court, even if the message was initiated outside of the city limits.

Wednesday night’s meeting will provide a first reading of the ordinance. If, during that same meeting, council votes to cancel the Dec. 21 meeting, the second reading, which includes public input, will take place on Jan. 4.