(1) A person commits recruitment of a juvenile for a criminal street gang if he or she is eighteen years of age or older and:
(a) Knowingly solicits, invites, recruits, encourages, coerces, or otherwise causes a person younger than eighteen years of age to actively participate in or become a member of a criminal street gang; or
(b) By use of force, threat, or intimidation directed at any person, or by the infliction of bodily injury upon any person, knowingly prevents a person younger than eighteen years of age from leaving a criminal street gang.
(2) Recruitment of a juvenile for a criminal street gang in violation of subsection (1)(b) of this section is a class 1 misdemeanor, and recruitment of a juvenile for a criminal street gang in violation of subsection (1)(a) of this section is a class 2 misdemeanor.
(3) Nothing in this section shall affect the ability to charge criminal offenses under article 17 of this title.
Source: L. 2001: Entire article added, p. 987, � 1, effective March 1, 2002. L. 2021: (2) amended, (SB 21-271), ch. 462, p. 3219, � 385, effective March 1, 2022.