Understanding ARS Aggravated Harassment: ARS 13-2921.01

To understand aggravated harassment, you must understand its two components: the underlying harassment and the aggravating factors that make it more serious.

Harassment

The foundation of any aggravated harassment charge is the underlying offense of harassment itself, as defined in ARS 13-2921. Before the state can prove aggravated harassment, prosecutors must first prove that you committed harassment. 

Harassment includes various forms of conduct carried out intentionally or knowingly that would seriously alarm, annoy, or disturb a reasonable person. By contrast, accidental encounters or coincidental meetings generally do not satisfy the legal definition of harassment.

Here are the main forms of harassment recognized under Arizona law:

Repeatedly Following or Surveillance: This involves following someone multiple times or watching them in a way that would make a reasonable person feel afraid, threatened, or unsafe. It is not just one instance—the behavior must be repeated or ongoing. For example, showing up at someone’s workplace, home, or other locations they frequent on multiple occasions could constitute harassment.

Making False Reports to Authorities: This occurs when false reports are made to police, government agencies, or other authorities about another person with the intent to cause them legal difficulty or get them in trouble. 

Unwanted Communication: This includes any form of unwanted or harassing communication directed at a specific person. This may include verbal contact, such as speaking in person or over the phone; electronic communication, such as emails, text messages, or social media messages; mechanical or telegraphic communication; telephonic communication; or written messages, such as letters or notes. The communication does not need to be threatening in its tone or content. It is sufficient if the communication would seriously alarm, annoy, or harass a reasonable person.

In harassment cases, the critical question is whether a reasonable person in the victim’s position would feel seriously alarmed, annoyed, or harassed by the conduct. The law applies this “reasonable person” standard to determine when behavior crosses the line into criminal harassment. In practice, the court considers whether an average person—not someone unusually sensitive nor someone indifferent to all conduct—would find the behavior seriously disturbing.

Aggravating Factors

Once harassment is established, the charge rises to aggravated harassment if at least one of the following aggravating factors is present. These factors mark situations where the conduct is treated as especially serious because legal protections were already in place or because there is a history of similar behavior.

• Active protective order means a court has issued an order protecting the alleged victim, the order was properly served (so you were formally notified), and it remained in effect at the time of the alleged harassment. Protective orders may take the form of an order of protection or an injunction against harassment.
• Emergency protective order is a court‑issued protective order that is typically granted quickly in urgent situations, often at the request of law enforcement responding to domestic violence incidents or other emergencies.
• Prior conviction means you have a previous conviction for a domestic violence offense involving the same victim named in the current charges.

Court-ordered release with no-contact provision means you were subject to a court‑ordered release that specifically prohibited contact with the alleged victim, and this order was in effect when the alleged harassment occurred. Such conditions are often imposed when a person is released on bail or bond, requiring them to stay away from certain individuals.