S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4290
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 3, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  LANZA  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes
 
 AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to the crime  of  endangering
   the  welfare  of  a child and to create a new crime of endangering the
   welfare of a child in the first degree

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1.  Section 260.10 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 447
 of the laws of 2010, is amended to read as follows:
 § 260.10 Endangering the welfare of a child IN THE SECOND DEGREE.
   A person is guilty of endangering the welfare of a child IN THE SECOND
 DEGREE when:
   1.  He or she knowingly acts in a manner likely to be injurious to the
 physical, mental or moral welfare of a child less than  seventeen  years
 old  or  directs  or  authorizes  such  child to engage in an occupation
 involving a substantial risk of danger to his or her life or health; or
   2. Being a parent, guardian or other person legally charged  with  the
 care or custody of a child less than eighteen years old, he or she fails
 or refuses to exercise reasonable diligence in the control of such child
 to  prevent  him  or  her  from becoming an "abused child," a "neglected
 child," a "juvenile delinquent" or a "person in need of supervision," as
 those terms are defined in articles ten, three and seven of  the  family
 court act.
   3. A person is not guilty of the provisions of this section when he or
 she  engages  in  the  conduct  described  in subdivision one of section
 260.00 of this article: (a) with the intent to wholly abandon the  child
 by relinquishing responsibility for and right to the care and custody of
 such  child;  (b)  with  the intent that the child be safe from physical
 injury and cared for in an appropriate manner; (c)  the  child  is  left
 with an appropriate person, or in a suitable location and the person who
 leaves  the child promptly notifies an appropriate person of the child's
 location; and (d) the child is not more than thirty days old.
   Endangering the welfare of a child IN THE SECOND DEGREE is a  class  A
 misdemeanor.
              

 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD05886-01-1

 S. 4290                             2
 
   § 2. Section 260.11 of the penal law is renumbered section 260.12.
   §  3.  The penal law is amended by adding a new section 260.11 to read
 as follows:
 § 260.11 ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A CHILD IN THE FIRST DEGREE.
   A PERSON IS GUILTY OF ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A CHILD IN THE  FIRST
 DEGREE WHEN:
   1. HE OR SHE KNOWINGLY ACTS IN A MANNER WHICH CREATES A RISK OF EITHER
 SERIOUS  PHYSICAL  INJURY  OR  PROLONGED  IMPAIRMENT  OF  THE  MENTAL OR
 EMOTIONAL CONDITION OF A CHILD LESS THAN SEVENTEEN YEARS OLD; OR
   2. HE OR SHE COMMITS THE OFFENSE OF ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A CHILD
 IN THE SECOND DEGREE, WHEN:
   (A) THE CHILD IS LESS THAN ELEVEN YEARS OLD; OR
   (B) THE CHILD SUFFERED PHYSICAL INJURY; OR
   (C) HE OR SHE HAS PREVIOUSLY BEEN CONVICTED OF ANY  OF  THE  FOLLOWING
 OFFENSES:    ENDANGERING  THE WELFARE OF A CHILD IN THE SECOND DEGREE AS
 DEFINED IN SECTION 260.10; ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF  A  CHILD  IN  THE
 FIRST  DEGREE  AS  DEFINED  IN  THIS  SECTION; ABANDONMENT OF A CHILD AS
 DEFINED IN SECTION 260.00; ASSAULT IN THE SECOND DEGREE  AS  DEFINED  IN
 SUBDIVISION  EIGHT  OR NINE OF SECTION 120.05; AGGRAVATED ASSAULT UPON A
 PERSON LESS  THAN  ELEVEN  YEARS  OLD  AS  DEFINED  IN  SECTION  120.12;
 MANSLAUGHTER  IN  THE  FIRST  DEGREE  AS  DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION FOUR OF
 SECTION 125.20; MURDER IN THE SECOND DEGREE AS  DEFINED  IN  SUBDIVISION
 FOUR  OF SECTION 125.25; RAPE IN THE THIRD DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVI-
 SION TWO OF SECTION 130.25; RAPE IN THE  SECOND  DEGREE  AS  DEFINED  IN
 SECTION 130.30; RAPE IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION THREE
 OF SECTION 130.35; CRIMINAL SEXUAL ACT IN THE THIRD DEGREE AS DEFINED IN
 SUBDIVISION  TWO  OF  SECTION  130.40; CRIMINAL SEXUAL ACT IN THE SECOND
 DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SECTION 130.45; CRIMINAL SEXUAL ACT  IN  THE  FIRST
 DEGREE  AS  DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION THREE OF SECTION 130.50; SEXUAL ABUSE
 IN THE SECOND DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION TWO  OF  SECTION  130.60;
 SEXUAL  ABUSE  IN  THE  FIRST  DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION THREE OF
 SECTION 130.65; AGGRAVATED SEXUAL ABUSE IN THE THIRD DEGREE  AS  DEFINED
 IN PARAGRAPH (C) OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION 130.66; AGGRAVATED SEXUAL
 ABUSE  IN  THE  SECOND DEGREE AS DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH (C) OF SUBDIVISION
 ONE OF SECTION 130.67; AGGRAVATED SEXUAL ABUSE IN THE  FIRST  DEGREE  AS
 DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH (C) OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION 130.70; COURSE OF
 SEXUAL CONDUCT AGAINST A CHILD IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SECTION
 130.75; COURSE OF SEXUAL CONDUCT AGAINST A CHILD IN THE SECOND DEGREE AS
 DEFINED  IN SECTION 130.80; DISSEMINATING INDECENT MATERIAL TO MINORS IN
 THE SECOND DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SECTION 235.21;  DISSEMINATING  INDECENT
 MATERIAL TO MINORS IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SECTION 235.22; USE
 OF A CHILD IN A SEXUAL PERFORMANCE AS DEFINED IN SECTION 263.05; PROMOT-
 ING  AN  OBSCENE  SEXUAL  PERFORMANCE  BY  A CHILD AS DEFINED IN SECTION
 263.10; POSSESSING AN OBSCENE SEXUAL PERFORMANCE BY A CHILD  AS  DEFINED
 IN  SECTION 263.11; PROMOTING A SEXUAL PERFORMANCE BY A CHILD AS DEFINED
 IN SECTION 263.15; POSSESSING A SEXUAL PERFORMANCE BY A CHILD AS DEFINED
 IN SECTION 263.16; OR A SIMILAR OFFENSE AGAINST A  CHILD  IN  ANY  OTHER
 JURISDICTION.
   ENDANGERING  THE  WELFARE  OF A CHILD IN THE FIRST DEGREE IS A CLASS D
 FELONY.
   § 4. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 1 of section 70.02 of the penal law,
 as amended by chapter 134 of the laws of 2019, is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   (c)  Class  D violent felony offenses: an attempt to commit any of the
 class C felonies set forth in paragraph (b); reckless assault of a child
 as defined in section 120.02, assault in the second degree as defined in

 S. 4290                             3
 
 section 120.05, menacing a police officer or peace officer as defined in
 section 120.18, stalking in the first degree, as defined in  subdivision
 one  of section 120.60, strangulation in the second degree as defined in
 section  121.12, rape in the second degree as defined in section 130.30,
 criminal sexual act in the second degree as defined in  section  130.45,
 sexual abuse in the first degree as defined in section 130.65, course of
 sexual  conduct  against  a  child  in  the  second degree as defined in
 section 130.80, aggravated sexual abuse in the third degree  as  defined
 in  section  130.66,  facilitating  a  sex  offense  with  a  controlled
 substance as defined in section 130.90, labor trafficking as defined  in
 paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdivision three of section 135.35, ENDANGER-
 ING  THE  WELFARE  OF  A CHILD IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SECTION
 260.11, criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree  as  defined
 in  subdivision  five, six, seven, eight, nine or ten of section 265.02,
 criminal sale of a firearm in the third degree  as  defined  in  section
 265.11, intimidating a victim or witness in the second degree as defined
 in section 215.16, soliciting or providing support for an act of terror-
 ism  in  the  second  degree  as defined in section 490.10, and making a
 terroristic threat as defined in section 490.20,  falsely  reporting  an
 incident  in  the  first  degree as defined in section 240.60, placing a
 false bomb or hazardous substance in the  first  degree  as  defined  in
 section  240.62, placing a false bomb or hazardous substance in a sports
 stadium or arena, mass transportation facility or enclosed shopping mall
 as defined in section 240.63, aggravated unpermitted use of indoor pyro-
 technics in the first degree as defined in section 405.18, and  criminal
 manufacture,  sale,  or  transport  of an undetectable firearm, rifle or
 shotgun as defined in section 265.50.
   § 5. Section 260.12 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 89 of  the
 laws of 1984 and as renumbered by section two of this act, is amended to
 read as follows:
 § 260.12 Endangering the welfare of a child; corroboration.
   A  person shall not be convicted of endangering the welfare of a child
 AS DEFINED IN SECTION 260.10 OR 260.11 OF THIS ARTICLE, or of an attempt
 to commit the same, upon the testimony of a victim who is  incapable  of
 consent because of mental defect or mental incapacity as to conduct that
 constitutes an offense or an attempt to commit an offense referred to in
 section  130.16,  without  additional  evidence  sufficient  pursuant to
 section 130.16 to sustain a conviction of  an  offense  referred  to  in
 section 130.16, or of an attempt to commit the same.
   § 6. Section 260.15 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 447 of the
 laws of 2010, is amended to read as follows:
 § 260.15 Endangering the welfare of a child; defense.
   In any prosecution for endangering the welfare of a child, pursuant to
 section  260.10 OR 260.11 of this article, based upon an alleged failure
 or refusal to provide proper medical care or treatment to an ill  child,
 it is an affirmative defense that the defendant (a) is a parent, guardi-
 an  or  other  person  legally  charged with the care or custody of such
 child; and (b) is a member or adherent of an organized church  or  reli-
 gious group the tenets of which prescribe prayer as the principal treat-
 ment for illness; and (c) treated or caused such ill child to be treated
 in accordance with such tenets.
   § 7. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.