S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4922
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 18, 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 criminal procedure law and  the  executive  law,  in
   relation  to  requiring  that all family members of a crime victim and
   all interested parties who want to give a victim impact  statement  to
   parole board members be allowed to do so
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 440.50 of the criminal procedure law, as  added  by
 chapter 496 of the laws of 1978, subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 193
 of  the  laws of 2017, and subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 14 of the
 laws of 1985, is amended to read as follows:
 § 440.50 Notice to crime victims, FAMILY MEMBERS OF A CRIME VICTIM OR AN
            INTERESTED PARTY of case disposition.
   1. Upon the request of a victim of a crime, A FAMILY MEMBER OF A CRIME
 VICTIM OR AN INTERESTED PARTY, or in any event in all cases in which the
 final disposition includes a conviction of a violent felony  offense  as
 defined  in  section 70.02 of the penal law, a felony defined in article
 one hundred twenty-five of such law, or a felony defined in article  one
 hundred  thirty  of  such law, the district attorney shall, within sixty
 days of the final disposition of the case, inform the victim OR A FAMILY
 MEMBER OF A CRIME VICTIM OR AN  INTERESTED  PARTY  WHO  REQUESTS  TO  BE
 INFORMED  by letter of such final disposition. If such final disposition
 results in the commitment of the defendant to the custody of the depart-
 ment of corrections  and  community  supervision  for  an  indeterminate
 sentence,  the notice provided to the crime victim, A FAMILY MEMBER OF A
 CRIME VICTIM OR AN INTERESTED PARTY shall also inform [the  victim]  HIM
 OR  HER  of  his  or her right to submit a written, audiotaped, or vide-
 otaped victim impact statement to  the  department  of  corrections  and
 community  supervision  or to meet personally with [a member] MEMBERS of
 the state board of parole WHO WILL DETERMINE WHETHER  THE  DEFENDANT  IS
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD01884-01-1

 S. 4922                             2
 
 RELEASED  at  a  time  and  place  separate  from the personal interview
 between a member or members of the board and the inmate and make such  a
 statement,  subject  to procedures and limitations contained in rules of
 the  board,  both  pursuant  to  subdivision  two of section two hundred
 fifty-nine-i of the executive law.  A  copy  of  such  letter  shall  be
 provided  to  the  board  of  parole.  The right of the victim, A FAMILY
 MEMBER OF A CRIME VICTIM OR AN INTERESTED PARTY under  this  subdivision
 to  submit  a written victim impact statement or to meet personally with
 [a member] MEMBERS of the state board of parole applies to each personal
 interview between a member or members of the board and the inmate.
   2. As used in this section,  "victim"  means  any  person  alleged  or
 found,  upon  the record, to have sustained physical or financial injury
 to person or property as a direct result  of  the  crime  charged  or  a
 person  alleged  or found to have sustained, upon the record, an offense
 under article one hundred thirty of the penal law, or in the case  of  a
 homicide or minor child, the victim's family.
   3.  As  used  in  this  section, "final disposition" means an ultimate
 termination of the case at the trial level including,  but  not  limited
 to,  dismissal,  acquittal, or imposition of sentence by the court, or a
 decision by the district attorney, for whatever reason, to not file  the
 case.
   4.  AS USED IN THIS SECTION, "FAMILY MEMBER OF A CRIME VICTIM" MEANS A
 MEMBER OF THE VICTIM'S IMMEDIATE FAMILY WHO IS AT  LEAST  SIXTEEN  YEARS
 OLD.
   5.  AS  USED  IN THIS SECTION, "INTERESTED PARTY" SHALL MEAN A PERSON,
 WHO IS NOT A FAMILY MEMBER OF A CRIME VICTIM, DESIGNATED  BY  THE  JUDGE
 WHO  IMPOSES  THE  SENTENCE  ON  THE  DEFENDANT,  AS A PERSON WHO HAS AN
 INVOLVEMENT WITH THE CASE SUFFICIENT TO MAKE HIM OR  HER  AN  INTERESTED
 PARTY. THE JUDGE WHO IMPOSES THE SENTENCE ON A DEFENDANT SHALL DESIGNATE
 INTERESTED PARTIES, IF ANY, AT THE TIME OF SENTENCING.
   §  2. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 2 of section 259-i of the executive
 law, as separately amended by chapters 40 and 126 of the laws  of  1999,
 subparagraph  (A)  as  amended  by  chapter  130 of the laws of 2016, is
 amended to read as follows:
   (c) (A) Discretionary release on parole shall not be granted merely as
 a reward for good conduct  or  efficient  performance  of  duties  while
 confined  but  after  considering  if  there is a reasonable probability
 that, if such inmate is released, he will live  and  remain  at  liberty
 without violating the law, and that his release is not incompatible with
 the  welfare of society and will not so deprecate the seriousness of his
 crime as to undermine respect for law.  In  making  the  parole  release
 decision, the procedures adopted pursuant to subdivision four of section
 two  hundred fifty-nine-c of this article shall require that the follow-
 ing be considered: (i) the institutional record including program  goals
 and accomplishments, academic achievements, vocational education, train-
 ing  or  work  assignments,  therapy  and  interactions  with  staff and
 inmates; (ii) performance, if any,  as  a  participant  in  a  temporary
 release  program;  (iii)  release  plans  including community resources,
 employment, education and training and support services available to the
 inmate; (iv) any deportation order  issued  by  the  federal  government
 against the inmate while in the custody of the department and any recom-
 mendation  regarding deportation made by the commissioner of the depart-
 ment pursuant to section one hundred forty-seven of the correction  law;
 (v) any current or prior statement made to the board by the crime victim
 or the victim's representative, where the crime victim is deceased or is
 mentally  or  physically  incapacitated  OR  A  FAMILY MEMBER OF A CRIME

 S. 4922                             3
 
 VICTIM OR INTERESTED PARTY AS DEFINED IN SECTION 440.50 OF THE  CRIMINAL
 PROCEDURE  LAW; (vi) the length of the determinate sentence to which the
 inmate would be subject had he or she received a  sentence  pursuant  to
 section  70.70 or section 70.71 of the penal law for a felony defined in
 article two hundred twenty or article  two  hundred  twenty-one  of  the
 penal  law;  (vii) the seriousness of the offense with due consideration
 to the type of sentence, length of sentence and recommendations  of  the
 sentencing  court,  the  district attorney, the attorney for the inmate,
 the pre-sentence probation report as well as consideration of any  miti-
 gating and aggravating factors, and activities following arrest prior to
 confinement;  and (viii) prior criminal record, including the nature and
 pattern of offenses, adjustment to  any  previous  probation  or  parole
 supervision  and institutional confinement. The board shall provide toll
 free telephone access for crime victims, FAMILY MEMBERS  AND  INTERESTED
 PARTIES  AS  DEFINED IN SECTION 440.50 OF THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE LAW. In
 the case of an oral statement made in accordance with subdivision one of
 section 440.50 of the criminal procedure law, [the parole  board  member
 shall  present  a  written  report of the statement to the parole board]
 SUCH ORAL STATEMENT SHALL BE MADE TO THE MEMBERS OF THE BOARD  WHO  WILL
 DETERMINE  WHETHER THE DEFENDANT IS RELEASED. A crime victim's represen-
 tative shall mean the crime victim's  closest  surviving  relative,  the
 committee or guardian of such person, or the legal representative of any
 such  person.  Such statement submitted by the victim or victim's repre-
 sentative, OR A FAMILY MEMBER OF A CRIME VICTIM OR INTERESTED  PARTY  AS
 DEFINED  IN  SECTION  440.50  OF  THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE LAW may include
 information concerning threatening or intimidating  conduct  toward  the
 victim, the victim's representative, or the victim's family, made by the
 person  sentenced  and  occurring after the sentencing. Such information
 may include, but need not be limited to, the threatening or intimidating
 conduct of any other person who or  which  is  directed  by  the  person
 sentenced.  Any statement by a victim [or], the victim's representative,
 A FAMILY MEMBER OF A CRIME VICTIM OR AN INTERESTED  PARTY  made  to  the
 board  shall be maintained by the department in the file provided to the
 board when interviewing the inmate in consideration of release. A victim
 [or], victim's representative, FAMILY MEMBER OF A CRIME VICTIM OR INTER-
 ESTED PARTY who has submitted a written request to  the  department  for
 the  transcript  of  such interview shall be provided such transcript as
 soon as it becomes available.
   (B) Where a crime victim or  victim's  representative  as  defined  in
 subparagraph  (A) of this paragraph OR A FAMILY MEMBER OF A CRIME VICTIM
 OR INTERESTED PARTY AS DEFINED IN SECTION 440.50 OF THE CRIMINAL  PROCE-
 DURE  LAW,  or other person submits to the parole board a written state-
 ment concerning the release of an inmate, the parole  board  shall  keep
 that individual's name and address confidential.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.