NY State Senate Bill 2019-S5391A

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Codes 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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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2020	referred to codes
Jun 16, 2019	print number 5391a
Jun 16, 2019	amend and recommit to codes
Apr 29, 2019	referred to codes

Bill Amendments

Original

A (Active)

2019-S5391 - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Codes
Law Section:: Criminal Procedure Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §720.20, CP L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2021-2022: S256
2023-2024: S3045

2019-S5391 - Summary

Provides that eligible youth who were not given youthful offender status by the court be eligible for conviction sealing.

2019-S5391 - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S5391

SPONSOR: MYRIE
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the criminal procedure law, in
relation to eligibility for conviction sealing for eligible youth

 
PURPOSE:

To amend the eligibility of the record-sealing provisions of the Raise
the Age law.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends section 160.59 of the criminal procedure law by adding
a new subdivision 12 to provide that a defendant who was eligible but
not determined to be a youthful offender shall be eligible to apply for
conviction sealing for eligible offenses.

Section 2 provides the effective date.

JUSTIFICATION:

The record sealing law passed as part of New York's Raise the Age legis-
lation was an important step towards reducing the burden past
convictions carry for people who were involved in the criminal justice
system as teenagers. However, although the law allows individuals to
apply to have their convictions sealed if a judge granted youthful
offender treatment, those who were denied this status despite being
eligible are left behind. This shortcoming in the law perpetuates ineq-
uities in our criminal justice system and prevents successful reentry
for defendants who have served their time and remained law-abiding citi-
zens for ten years or more.

This amendment was proposed by state Supreme Court Justice Joseph Zayas
in a decision where he was unable to approve the sealing request of a
defendant identified as Jane Doe who had been convicted of attempted
second-degree robbery at the age of sixteen. Although she was eligible
to receive youthful offender treatment, the sentencing court did not
grant it. Since completing her probation in 1988, she has not been
convicted or arrested for any further crimes, yet Justice Zayas was
constrained by the current statute and forced to deny her request to
have her conviction sealed, a result he described as "inconsistent with
the laudable goals of the sealing statute" (2018 NY Slip Op 28390).

Expanding eligibility for conviction sealing will give individuals like
Jane Doe, who have made every effort to turn their lives around, the
opportunities they deserve to move beyond the barrier of a criminal
record. This bill will help reduce disparities in the justice system and
enable more New Yorkers to fully integrate into their communities with-
out being continuously stigmatized for mistakes made in their youth.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S5391 - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5391
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              April 29, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  MYRIE  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes
 
 AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation  to  eligibility
   for conviction sealing for eligible youth
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 160.59 of the criminal procedure law is amended  by
 adding a new subdivision 12 to read as follows:
   12. (A) NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER LAW, WHERE AN ELIGIBLE YOUTH WAS NOT
 DETERMINED  TO  BE A YOUTHFUL OFFENDER BY THE COURT PURSUANT TO SUBDIVI-
 SION ONE OF SECTION 720.20 OF THIS CHAPTER, BUT WAS  OTHERWISE  ELIGIBLE
 TO  BE  DETERMINED  TO  BE A YOUTHFUL OFFENDER PURSUANT TO ARTICLE SEVEN
 HUNDRED TWENTY OF THIS CHAPTER, SUCH INDIVIDUAL  SHALL  BE  ELIGIBLE  TO
 APPLY  FOR CONVICTION SEALING IN ACCORDANCE WITH THIS SECTION.  NOTWITH-
 STANDING PARAGRAPH (A) OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION, AN  "ELIGIBLE
 OFFENSE" FOR SUCH INDIVIDUAL SHALL INCLUDE ANY CRIME DEFINED IN THE LAWS
 OF  THIS  STATE OTHER THAN (I) A CLASS A-I OR CLASS A-II FELONY, OR (II)
 AN ARMED FELONY AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION  FORTY-ONE  OF  SECTION  1.20,
 EXCEPT  AS  PROVIDED  IN  PARAGRAPH (B) OF THIS SUBDIVISION, OR (III) AN
 OFFENSE FOR WHICH REGISTRATION AS A SEX OFFENDER IS REQUIRED PURSUANT TO
 ARTICLE SIX-C OF THE CORRECTION LAW.
   (B) NOTWITHSTANDING THE PROVISIONS OF PARAGRAPH (A) OF  THIS  SUBDIVI-
 SION,  AN  ELIGIBLE  YOUTH  WHO  HAS  BEEN  CONVICTED OF AN ARMED FELONY
 OFFENSE IS ELIGIBLE FOR CONVICTION SEALING PURSUANT TO THIS  SECTION  IF
 THE  SENTENCING JUDGE, OR COUNTY OR SUPREME COURT DETERMINES THAT ONE OR
 MORE OF THE FOLLOWING FACTORS EXIST: (I) MITIGATING  CIRCUMSTANCES  THAT
 BEAR  DIRECTLY UPON THE MANNER IN WHICH THE CRIME WAS COMMITTED; OR (II)
 WHERE THE DEFENDANT WAS NOT THE  SOLE  PARTICIPANT  IN  THE  CRIME,  THE
 DEFENDANT'S  PARTICIPATION WAS RELATIVELY MINOR ALTHOUGH NOT SO MINOR AS
 TO CONSTITUTE A DEFENSE TO THE PROSECUTION.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD04909-03-9

 S. 5391                             2
 
   (C) AN ELIGIBLE YOUTH WHO HAS PREVIOUSLY APPLIED FOR CONVICTION  SEAL-
 ING  UNDER  THIS  SECTION, BUT WAS DENIED, SHALL BE PERMITTED TO REAPPLY
 FOR SUCH SEALING PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S5391A (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Codes
Law Section:: Criminal Procedure Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §720.20, CP L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2021-2022: S256
2023-2024: S3045

2019-S5391A (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides that eligible youth who were not given youthful offender status by the court be eligible for conviction sealing.

2019-S5391A (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S5391A

SPONSOR: MYRIE
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the criminal procedure law, in
relation to eligibility for conviction sealing for eligible youth

 
PURPOSE:

To amend the eligibility of the record-sealing provisions of the Raise
the Age law.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends section 160.59 of the criminal procedure law by adding
a new subdivision 12 to provide that a defendant who was eligible but
not determined to be a youthful offender shall be eligible to apply for
conviction sealing for eligible offenses.

Section 2 provides the effective date.

JUSTIFICATION:

The record sealing law passed as part of New York's Raise the Age legis-
lation was an important step towards reducing the burden past
convictions carry for people who were involved in the criminal justice
system as teenagers. However, although the law allows individuals to
apply to have their convictions sealed if a judge granted youthful
offender treatment, those who were denied this status despite being
eligible are left behind. This shortcoming in the law perpetuates ineq-
uities in our criminal justice system and prevents successful reentry
for defendants who have served their time and remained law-abiding citi-
zens for ten years or more.

This amendment was proposed by state Supreme Court Justice Joseph Zayas
in a decision where he was unable to approve the sealing request of a
defendant identified as Jane Doe who had been convicted of attempted
second-degree robbery at the age of sixteen. Although she was eligible
to receive youthful offender treatment, the sentencing court did not
grant it. Since completing her probation in 1988, she has not been
convicted or arrested for any further crimes, yet Justice Zayas was
constrained by the current statute and forced to deny her request to
have her conviction sealed, a result he described as "inconsistent with
the laudable goals of the sealing statute" (2018 NY Slip Op 28390).

Expanding eligibility for conviction sealing will give individuals like
Jane Doe, who have made every effort to turn their lives around, the
opportunities they deserve to move beyond the barrier of a criminal
record. This bill will help reduce disparities in the justice system and
enable more New Yorkers to fully integrate into their communities with-
out being continuously stigmatized for mistakes made in their youth.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S5391A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  5391--A
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              April 29, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  MYRIE  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be  committed  to  the  Committee  on  Codes  --  committee
   discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
   to said committee
 
 AN  ACT  to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to eligibility
   for conviction sealing for eligible youth

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Section 720.20 of the criminal procedure law is amended by
 adding a new subdivision 5 to read as follows:
   5. (A) NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER LAW, WHERE AN ELIGIBLE YOUTH WAS  NOT
 DETERMINED  TO  BE A YOUTHFUL OFFENDER BY THE COURT PURSUANT TO SUBDIVI-
 SION ONE OF THIS SECTION, BUT WAS OTHERWISE ELIGIBLE TO BE DETERMINED TO
 BE A YOUTHFUL OFFENDER PURSUANT TO THIS ARTICLE, SUCH  INDIVIDUAL  SHALL
 BE  ELIGIBLE  TO APPLY FOR CONVICTION SEALING IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION
 160.59 OF THIS CHAPTER. AN "ELIGIBLE OFFENSE" FOR SUCH INDIVIDUAL  SHALL
 INCLUDE  ANY  CRIME  DEFINED  IN THE LAWS OF THIS STATE OTHER THAN (I) A
 CLASS A-I OR CLASS A-II FELONY, OR (II) AN ARMED FELONY  AS  DEFINED  IN
 SUBDIVISION  FORTY-ONE  OF  SECTION  1.20  OF  THIS  CHAPTER,  EXCEPT AS
 PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH (B) OF THIS SUBDIVISION, OR (III) AN  OFFENSE  FOR
 WHICH  REGISTRATION  AS  A  SEX OFFENDER IS REQUIRED PURSUANT TO ARTICLE
 SIX-C OF THE CORRECTION LAW.
   (B) NOTWITHSTANDING THE PROVISIONS OF PARAGRAPH (A) OF  THIS  SUBDIVI-
 SION,  AN  ELIGIBLE  YOUTH  WHO  HAS  BEEN  CONVICTED OF AN ARMED FELONY
 OFFENSE IS ELIGIBLE FOR CONVICTION SEALING PURSUANT TO SECTION 160.59 OF
 THIS CHAPTER IF THE SENTENCING JUDGE, OR COUNTY OR SUPREME COURT  DETER-
 MINES  THAT  ONE  OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING FACTORS EXIST: (I) MITIGATING
 CIRCUMSTANCES THAT BEAR DIRECTLY UPON THE MANNER IN WHICH THE CRIME  WAS
 COMMITTED;  OR  (II) WHERE THE DEFENDANT WAS NOT THE SOLE PARTICIPANT IN
 THE CRIME, THE DEFENDANT'S PARTICIPATION WAS RELATIVELY  MINOR  ALTHOUGH
 NOT SO MINOR AS TO CONSTITUTE A DEFENSE TO THE PROSECUTION.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD04909-04-9

 S. 5391--A                          2
 
   (C)  AN ELIGIBLE YOUTH WHO HAS PREVIOUSLY APPLIED FOR CONVICTION SEAL-
 ING UNDER SECTION 160.59 OF THIS  CHAPTER,  BUT  WAS  DENIED,  SHALL  BE
 PERMITTED TO REAPPLY FOR SUCH SEALING PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THIS
 SUBDIVISION.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S5391A

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Codes Committee

Bill Amendments

2019-S5391 - Details

2019-S5391 - Summary

2019-S5391 - Sponsor Memo

2019-S5391 - Bill Text download pdf

2019-S5391A (ACTIVE) - Details

2019-S5391A (ACTIVE) - Summary

2019-S5391A (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2019-S5391A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S5391A

Share this bill

Sponsored By

Zellnor Myrie

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Codes Committee

Bill Amendments

2019-S5391 - Details

2019-S5391 - Summary

2019-S5391 - Sponsor Memo

2019-S5391 - Bill Text download pdf

2019-S5391A (ACTIVE) - Details

2019-S5391A (ACTIVE) - Summary

2019-S5391A (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2019-S5391A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments