NY State Senate Bill 2019-S7280

Senate Bill S7280

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Relates to ensuring privacy protections for all emergency personnel present at a crime scene

download bill text pdf

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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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 15, 2020	referred to codes

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2019-S7280 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A9107
Current Committee:: Senate Codes
Law Section:: Criminal Procedure Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§245.20 & 245.70, CP L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2021-2022: S1522, A4949
2023-2024: S678

2019-S7280 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Ensures privacy protections for all emergency personnel present at a crime scene including ambulance services or advanced life support first response services, certified first responders, firefighters, emergency medical technicians or advanced emergency medical technicians, who are employed by or enrolled members of any such service.

2019-S7280 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S7280

SPONSOR: TEDISCO
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to ensuring
privacy protections for all emergency personnel present at a crime scene

 
PURPOSE:

To ensure privacy protections for all emergency personnel present at a
crime scene as it relates to the discovery process.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Paragraph (c) of subdivision 1 of section 245.20 of the criminal proce-
dure law, as added by section 2 of part LLL of chapter 59 of the laws of
2019, is amended to read as follows:

(c) The names and adequate contact information for all persons other
than law enforcement personnel,

AMBULANCE SERVICES OR ADVANCED LIFE
SUPPORT FIRST RESPONSE SERVICES, CERTIFIED FIRST RESPONDERS, FIREFIGHT-
ERS, EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIANS OR ADVANCED EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNI-
CIANS, WHO ARE EMPLOYED BY OR ENROLLED MEMBERS OF ANY SUCH SERVICE,
whom the prosecutor knows to have evidence or information relevant to
any offense charged or to any potential defense thereto, including a
designation by the prosecutor as to which of those persons may be called
as witnesses. Nothing in this paragraph shall require the disclosure of
physical addresses; provided, however, upon a motion and good cause
shown the court may direct the disclosure of a physical address. Infor-
mation under this subdivision relating to a confidential informant may
be withheld, and redacted from discovery materials, without need for a
motion pursuant to section 245.70 of this article; but the prosecution
shall notify the defendant in writing that such information has not been
disclosed, unless the court rules otherwise for good cause shown.

§ 2. Subdivision 4 of section 245.70 of the criminal procedure law, as
added by section 2 of part LLL of chapter 59 of the laws of 2019, is
also amended to add first responders in the same manner as paragraph (c)
above.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The ill-conceived discovery reform laws passed in the 2019-2020 New York
State Budget overhauled the discovery process, requiring an expedited
timeline to provide materials such as police reports, radio trans-
missions, body-worn and dash-cam video, along with other data related to
prosecution.

While current law protects law enforcement personnel from disclosure of
name and adequate contact information in this process to protect them
and their families from threats, the same protection is not extended to
first responders, who are in many instances called upon to provide
services at crime scenes.

Emergency personnel should have the same privacy protection as law
enforcement officials, so they are not subject to retaliation or witness
tampering. This measure provides such protection.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become a law.

2019-S7280 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7280
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 15, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sens. TEDISCO, BORRELLO, GALLIVAN, GRIFFO, SEWARD -- 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 ensuring
   privacy protections for all emergency personnel  present  at  a  crime
   scene
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 1 of  section  245.20  of  the
 criminal  procedure law, as added by section 2 of part LLL of chapter 59
 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   (c) The names and adequate contact information for all  persons  other
 than  law  enforcement  personnel,  AMBULANCE  SERVICES OR ADVANCED LIFE
 SUPPORT FIRST RESPONSE SERVICES, CERTIFIED FIRST RESPONDERS,  FIREFIGHT-
 ERS, EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIANS OR ADVANCED EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNI-
 CIANS, WHO ARE EMPLOYED BY OR ENROLLED MEMBERS OF ANY SUCH SERVICE, whom
 the  prosecutor  knows  to  have evidence or information relevant to any
 offense charged or to any potential defense thereto, including a  desig-
 nation  by  the prosecutor as to which of those persons may be called as
 witnesses. Nothing in this paragraph shall  require  the  disclosure  of
 physical  addresses;  provided,  however,  upon  a motion and good cause
 shown the court may direct the disclosure of a physical address.  Infor-
 mation  under  this subdivision relating to a confidential informant may
 be withheld, and redacted from discovery materials, without need  for  a
 motion  pursuant  to section 245.70 of this article; but the prosecution
 shall notify the defendant in writing that such information has not been
 disclosed, unless the court rules otherwise for good cause shown.
   § 2. Subdivision 4 of section 245.70 of the criminal procedure law, as
 added by section 2 of part LLL of chapter 59 of the  laws  of  2019,  is
 amended to read as follows:
   4. Showing of good cause. In determining good cause under this section
 the  court may consider: constitutional rights or limitations; danger to
 the integrity of physical evidence or the safety of a witness;  risk  of
 intimidation,  economic  reprisal,  bribery,  harassment  or unjustified
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD14752-01-0

 S. 7280                             2
 
 annoyance or embarrassment to any person, and the nature,  severity  and
 likelihood of that risk; a risk of an adverse effect upon the legitimate
 needs  of  law  enforcement, AMBULANCE SERVICES OR ADVANCED LIFE SUPPORT
 FIRST RESPONSE SERVICES, CERTIFIED FIRST RESPONDERS, FIREFIGHTERS, EMER-
 GENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIANS OR ADVANCED EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIANS, WHO
 ARE  EMPLOYED  BY OR ENROLLED MEMBERS OF ANY SUCH SERVICE, including the
 protection of the confidentiality of informants, and the nature, severi-
 ty and likelihood of that risk; the  nature  and  circumstances  of  the
 factual  allegations in the case; whether the defendant has a history of
 witness intimidation or tampering and the nature of  that  history;  the
 nature  of  the  stated  reasons  in  support of a protective order; the
 nature of the witness identifying  information  that  is  sought  to  be
 addressed  by  a  protective  order,  including  the option of employing
 adequate alternative contact information; danger to any person  stemming
 from  factors  such  as  a  defendant's substantiated affiliation with a
 criminal enterprise as defined in subdivision three of section 460.10 of
 the penal law; and other similar factors found to outweigh  the  useful-
 ness of the discovery.
   §  3.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
 have become a law.

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