S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4391
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 4, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A. O'DONNELL, WEPRIN, SEAWRIGHT -- read once and
   referred to the Committee on Codes
 
 AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to  the  use  of
   sealed records
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. Paragraphs (c) and (d) of subdivision 1 of  section  160.50
 of  the  criminal procedure law, paragraph (c) as amended by chapter 169
 of the laws of 1994, paragraph (d) as amended by chapter 449 of the laws
 of 2015, are amended to read as follows:
   (c) all official records and papers, including judgments and orders of
 a court but not including  published  court  decisions  or  opinions  or
 records  and  briefs  on  appeal, relating to the arrest or prosecution,
 including all duplicates and copies thereof, on file with  the  division
 of  criminal justice services, any court, police agency, or prosecutor's
 office shall be sealed and not  made  available  to,  OR  USED  FOR  ANY
 PURPOSE  NOT  SPECIFICALLY  AUTHORIZED BY LAW BY any person or public or
 private agency, EVEN IF THE RECORDS WERE  PREVIOUSLY  OBTAINED  BY  SUCH
 PERSON OR PUBLIC OR PRIVATE AGENCY;
   (d)  [such]  THE records REFERRED TO IN PARAGRAPH (C) OF THIS SUBDIVI-
 SION shall ONLY be made available to, AND  MAY  ONLY  BE  USED  BY,  the
 person  accused  or to such person's designated agent, and shall ONLY be
 made available to, AND MAY ONLY BE   USED BY: (i) a  prosecutor  in  any
 proceeding  in  which  the  accused  has  moved for an order pursuant to
 section 170.56 or 210.46 of this [chapter] PART, or (ii) a law  enforce-
 ment  agency  upon  ex  parte  motion  in  any superior court, or in any
 district court, city court or the criminal court of the city of New York
 provided that such court sealed the record, if such agency  demonstrates
 to the satisfaction of the court that justice requires that such records
 be  made  available to it, or (iii) any state or local officer or agency
 with responsibility for the issuance of licenses to possess  guns,  when
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD08923-01-1

 A. 4391                             2
 
 the  accused  has  made  application for such a license, or (iv) the New
 York state department of corrections and community supervision when  the
 accused is on parole supervision as a result of conditional release or a
 parole  release  granted  by the New York state board of parole, and the
 arrest which is the subject of the inquiry is one which  occurred  while
 the  accused was under such supervision, or (v) any prospective employer
 of a police officer or peace officer  as  those  terms  are  defined  in
 subdivisions  thirty-three and thirty-four of section 1.20 of this chap-
 ter, in relation to an application for employment as a police officer or
 peace officer; provided, however, that every person who is an  applicant
 for  the  position of police officer or peace officer shall be furnished
 with a copy of all records obtained under this paragraph and afforded an
 opportunity to make  an  explanation  thereto,  or  (vi)  the  probation
 department  responsible  for  supervision of the accused when the arrest
 which is the subject of the inquiry is  one  which  occurred  while  the
 accused was under such supervision; and
   §  2. Paragraphs (c) and (d) of subdivision 1 of section 160.55 of the
 criminal procedure law, paragraph (c) as amended by chapter 169  of  the
 laws  of  1994,  paragraph  (d) as amended by chapter 449 of the laws of
 2015, are amended to read as follows:
   (c) all official records and papers relating to the arrest  or  prose-
 cution,  including  all  duplicates and copies thereof, on file with the
 division of criminal justice services, police  agency,  or  prosecutor's
 office  shall  be  sealed  and  not  made  available to, OR USED FOR ANY
 PURPOSE NOT SPECIFICALLY AUTHORIZED BY LAW BY any person  or  public  or
 private  agency,  EVEN  IF  THE RECORDS WERE PREVIOUSLY OBTAINED BY SUCH
 PERSON OR PUBLIC OR PRIVATE AGENCY;
   (d) the records referred to in paragraph (c) of this subdivision shall
 be made available to, AND MAY ONLY BE USED BY, the person accused or  to
 such person's designated agent, and shall ONLY be made available to, AND
 MAY  ONLY  BE  USED  BY: (i) a prosecutor in any proceeding in which the
 accused has moved for an order pursuant to section 170.56 or  210.46  of
 this  [chapter]  PART,  or  (ii)  a law enforcement agency upon ex parte
 motion in any superior court, or in any district court,  city  court  or
 the  criminal  court  of  the  city of New York provided that such court
 sealed the record, if such agency demonstrates to  the  satisfaction  of
 the  court  that justice requires that such records be made available to
 it, or (iii) any state or local officer or  agency  with  responsibility
 for  the issuance of licenses to possess guns, when the accused has made
 application for such a license, or (iv) the New York state department of
 corrections and community supervision when the accused is  under  parole
 supervision as a result of conditional release or parole release granted
 by  the  New  York  state  board  of  parole and the arrest which is the
 subject of the inquiry is one which occurred while the accused was under
 such supervision, or (v) the probation department responsible for super-
 vision of the accused when the  arrest  which  is  the  subject  of  the
 inquiry  is  one  which occurred while the accused was under such super-
 vision, or (vi) a police agency, probation department, sheriff's office,
 district attorney's office, department of correction of any municipality
 and parole department, for law  enforcement  purposes,  upon  arrest  in
 instances  in which the individual stands convicted of harassment in the
 second degree, as defined in section 240.26 of the penal law,  committed
 against  a  member  of the same family or household as the defendant, as
 defined in subdivision one of section 530.11 of this chapter, and deter-
 mined pursuant to subdivision eight-a of section 170.10 of  this  title;
 and

 A. 4391                             3
 
   § 3. Subdivision 4 of section 160.58 of the criminal procedure law, as
 added  by  section  3  of part AAA of chapter 56 of the laws of 2009, is
 amended to read as follows:
   4.  When a court orders sealing pursuant to this section, all official
 records  and  papers  relating  to  the   arrests,   prosecutions,   and
 convictions,  including  all duplicates and copies thereof, on file with
 the division of criminal justice services or any court shall  be  sealed
 and  not  made  available  to,  OR USED FOR ANY PURPOSE NOT SPECIFICALLY
 AUTHORIZED BY LAW BY, any person or public or private  agency,  EVEN  IF
 THE RECORDS WERE PREVIOUSLY OBTAINED BY SUCH PERSON OR PUBLIC OR PRIVATE
 AGENCY;  provided,  however, the division shall retain any fingerprints,
 palmprints and photographs, or digital images of the same.
   § 4. Subdivision 6 of section 160.58 of the criminal procedure law, as
 added by section 3 of part AAA of chapter 56 of the  laws  of  2009,  is
 amended to read as follows:
   6.  Records  sealed  pursuant  to  this subdivision shall ONLY be made
 available to, AND MAY ONLY BE USED BY:
   (a) the defendant or the defendant's designated agent;
   (b) qualified agencies, as defined  in  subdivision  nine  of  section
 eight  hundred  thirty-five  of the executive law, and federal and state
 law enforcement agencies, when acting within  the  scope  of  their  law
 enforcement duties; or
   (c)  any  state or local officer or agency with responsibility for the
 issuance of licenses to possess guns, when the person has made  applica-
 tion for such a license; or
   (d)  any  prospective employer of a police officer or peace officer as
 those terms are defined in subdivisions thirty-three and thirty-four  of
 section  1.20 of this chapter, in relation to an application for employ-
 ment as a police officer or peace officer; provided, however, that every
 person who is an applicant for the position of police officer  or  peace
 officer  shall  be  furnished  with a copy of all records obtained under
 this paragraph and afforded an opportunity to make an explanation there-
 to.
   § 5. Subdivision 2 of section 720.35 of the criminal procedure law, as
 amended by section 87 of subpart B of part C of chapter 62 of  the  laws
 of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
   2.  Except where specifically required or permitted by statute or upon
 specific authorization of the court, all official  records  and  papers,
 whether on file with the court, a police agency or the division of crim-
 inal justice services, relating to a case involving a youth who has been
 adjudicated  a  youthful  offender, are confidential and may not be made
 available to, OR USED FOR ANY PURPOSE NOT SPECIFICALLY AUTHORIZED BY LAW
 BY, any person or public or private agency, EVEN  IF  THE  RECORDS  WERE
 PREVIOUSLY  OBTAINED  BY  SUCH PERSON OR PUBLIC OR PRIVATE AGENCY, other
 than the designated  educational  official  of  the  public  or  private
 elementary  or  secondary  school  in  which  the youth is enrolled as a
 student provided that such local educational official  shall  only  have
 made  available  a notice of such adjudication and shall not have access
 to any other official records and papers, such  youth  or  such  youth's
 designated  agent (but only where the official records and papers sought
 are on file with a court and request therefor is made to that  court  or
 to a clerk thereof), an institution to which such youth has been commit-
 ted,  the  department  of  corrections  and  community supervision and a
 probation department of this state that requires such  official  records
 and  papers  for the purpose of carrying out duties specifically author-
 ized by law; provided, however, that information regarding an  order  of

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 protection  or  temporary order of protection issued pursuant to section
 530.12 of this [chapter] PART or a warrant issued in  connection  there-
 with  may  be  maintained on the statewide automated order of protection
 and  warrant  registry established pursuant to section two hundred twen-
 ty-one-a of the executive law during  the  period  that  such  order  of
 protection  or temporary order of protection is in full force and effect
 or during which such warrant may be executed. Such confidential informa-
 tion may be made available pursuant to law only for purposes of  adjudi-
 cating  or  enforcing  such  order  of  protection or temporary order of
 protection and, where provided to a designated educational official,  as
 defined  in  section 380.90 of this chapter, for purposes related to the
 execution of the student's educational plan, where applicable,  success-
 ful  school adjustment and reentry into the community. Such notification
 shall be kept separate and apart from such student's school records  and
 shall  be  accessible  only by the designated educational official. Such
 notification shall not be part of such student's permanent school record
 and shall not be appended to or included in any documentation  regarding
 such  student  and shall be destroyed at such time as such student is no
 longer enrolled in the school district. At no time shall such  notifica-
 tion be used for any purpose other than those specified in this subdivi-
 sion.
   §  6.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
 have become a law.