NY State Assembly Bill 2009-A9772

Assembly Bill A9772

2009-2010 Legislative Session

Provides that stalking by technological means shall be prohibited and shall be included in the crimes of stalking in the first, second and third degrees

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Assembly Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 26, 2010	referred to codes

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2009-A9772 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Assembly Codes
Law Section:: Penal Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§120.40, 120.50, 120.55 & 120.60, Pen L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2011-2012: A452
2013-2014: A559, A8690
2015-2016: A3520
2017-2018: A7476

2009-A9772 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides that stalking by technological means, including illegal wiretapping, cell phones, caller ID, Internet, cameras and GPS systems, shall be prohibited and shall be included in the crimes of stalking in the first, second and third degrees.

2009-A9772 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                BILL NUMBER:A9772

TITLE  OF BILL:  An act to amend the penal law, in relation to prohibit-
ing stalking by technological means

PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:  Provides that stalking  by  technolog-
ical  means  shall  be prohibited and shall be included in the crimes of
stalking in the first, second and third degrees.

SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:  Sections 1, 2 and 3 amend the penal law
Sections 120.50, 120.55, and 120.60 and include stalking  by  technolog-
ical  means  as  an  element  of stalking in the first, second and third
degrees. Technological means include, but are not  limited  to:  illegal
wire tapping, cell phones, caller identification, the Internet, cameras,
global positioning system and any other type of tracking device.

Section  4  provides  an  effective  date  of the first of November next
succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.

JUSTIFICATION:   A recent study  by  the  United  States  Department  of
Justice  concludes  that  one in twelve women will be stalked during her
lifetime and one out of every forty-five men will be stalked during  his
lifetime.  The  study further estimated that 1,006,970 women and 370,990
men are stalked annually.

New York State's Stalking Law was enacted in 1999. Since that time,  the

availability  of  new  and  ever  more sophisticated technological means
which can be utilized by a stalker to further his  or  her  purpose  has
greatly  increased. Tracy Bahm, Director of the Stalking Resource Center
(a part of the National Center for Victims of  Crime)  has  stated;  "As
society  and  technology  evolve,  stalkers will always find new ways to
harass their victims."

Illegal wiretapping, cell phones, caller identification,  the  Internet,
hidden  cameras,  and  tracking  devices  including  global  positioning
systems (GPS) are just a few of the technological means which have  been
employed  by  stalkers.  This equipment can be purchased locally or over
the Internet and the costs are not prohibitive.

In a recent Wisconsin case, the stalker had placed a GPS device  between
the  radiator and the grill of the victim's car, enabling the stalker to
track the victim wherever and whenever he wanted. A GPS device  uses  an
array  of  satellites to pinpoint location and can also send coordinates
to cell phones or computers. GPS's are used  by  trucking  companies  to
track  cargo,  corrections authorities use them to monitor parolees, and
hikers, boaters and motorists use the systems to keep from getting lost,
just to name a few of the current legitimate uses for the systems',  and
now stalkers are using them to track their victims.

Current  New  York law on stalking did not foresee the use of technolog-
ical means to commit stalking crimes. This bill updates current law  and

prohibits the use of technology in any form in the furtherance of stalk-
ing and increases the penalty for such use.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2007-2008:   A.1176  -  Pemained  in  Committee/S.884  -  Passed  Senate
2005-2006: A.1944 - Held for Consideration in  Codes  Committee/S.851  -
Passed Senate

2003-2004: A.8428-A - Pemained in Committee/S.3705-A - Passed Senate

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:  None.

EFFECTIVE  DATE:    This  act shall take effect on the first of November
next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.

2009-A9772 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  9772

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                            January 26, 2010
                               ___________

Introduced by M. of A. GIBSON, MILLMAN, GALEF, CLARK, CHRISTENSEN, COOK,
  GIANARIS,  HIKIND,  ALFANO,  PHEFFER,  GUNTHER,  GABRYSZAK, MAYERSOHN,
  DelMONTE, POWELL -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of  A.  CRESPO,  DESTITO,
  DINOWITZ,    HOOPER,    JAFFEE,    JOHN,   KOON,   M. MILLER,   ORTIZ,
  PEOPLES-STOKES, ROBINSON, TOWNS, WEISENBERG -- read once and  referred
  to the Committee on Codes

AN  ACT  to  amend the penal law, in relation to prohibiting stalking by
  technological means

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1.  Section 120.40 of the penal law is amended by adding a new
subdivision 6 to read as follows:
  6.  "TECHNOLOGICAL  MEANS"  MEANS  AND SHALL INCLUDE, BUT SHALL NOT BE
LIMITED TO, ILLEGAL WIRETAPPING, CELL PHONES, CALLER IDENTIFICATION, THE
INTERNET, CAMERAS, GLOBAL POSITIONING  SYSTEM  AND  ANY  OTHER  TYPE  OF
TRACKING DEVICE.
  S  2.  Subdivision  4  of section 120.50 of the penal law, as added by
chapter 635 of the laws of 1999, is amended and a new subdivision  5  is
added to read as follows:
  4.  Commits  the crime of stalking in the fourth degree and has previ-
ously been convicted within the preceding ten years of stalking  in  the
fourth degree[.]; OR
  5.  COMMITS THE CRIME OF STALKING IN THE FOURTH DEGREE IN VIOLATION OF
SECTION 120.45 OF THIS ARTICLE, AND UTILIZES  ANY  TECHNOLOGICAL  MEANS,
WHETHER ELECTRONIC OR OTHER, IN FURTHERANCE OF SUCH CRIME.
  S  3.  Subdivision  5  of section 120.55 of the penal law, as added by
chapter 598 of the laws of 2003, is amended and a new subdivision  6  is
added to read as follows:
  5.  Commits  the  crime of stalking in the third degree, as defined in
subdivision three of section 120.50 of this article, against ten or more
persons, in ten or more separate transactions, for which the  actor  has
not been previously convicted[.]; OR
  6.  COMMITS  THE  CRIME  OF STALKING IN THE THIRD DEGREE AS DEFINED IN
SUBDIVISIONS ONE, TWO, THREE AND FOUR OF SECTION 120.50 OF THIS  ARTICLE

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                           LBD04581-01-9

A. 9772                             2

AND  UTILIZES  ANY  TECHNOLOGICAL MEANS, WHETHER ELECTRONIC OR OTHER, IN
FURTHERANCE OF SUCH CRIME.
  S  4.  Subdivision 2 of section 120.60 of the penal law, as amended by
chapter 434 of the laws of 2000, is amended and a new subdivision  3  is
added to read as follows:
  2. commits a class A misdemeanor defined in article one hundred thirty
of  this  chapter, or a class E felony defined in section 130.25, 130.40
or 130.85 of this chapter, or a class D felony defined in section 130.30
or 130.45 of this chapter[.]; OR
  3. COMMITS THE CRIME OF STALKING IN THE SECOND DEGREE, AS  DEFINED  IN
SUBDIVISIONS ONE, TWO, THREE, AND FOUR OF SECTION 120.55 OF THIS ARTICLE
AND  UTILIZES  ANY  TECHNOLOGICAL MEANS, WHETHER ELECTRONIC OR OTHER, IN
FURTHERANCE OF SUCH CRIME.
  S 5. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
ing the date on which it shall have become a law.

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Assembly Bill A9772

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Sponsored By

GIBSON

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Assembly Committee

co-Sponsors

Joan Millman

Sandy Galef

Barbara Clark

Joan Christensen

multi-Sponsors

William Boyland

Marcos Crespo

RoAnn Destito

Jeffrey Dinowitz

2009-A9772 (ACTIVE) - Details

2009-A9772 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2009-A9772 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2009-A9772 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments