NY State Senate Bill 2021-S6790

Senate Bill S6790

2021-2022 Legislative Session

Relates to deeming individuals facing criminal charges as being incapable of consent when the actor is a law enforcement agent who knows or should know that such person is facing pending charges

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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Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 05, 2022	referred to codes
May 17, 2021	referred to codes

2021-S6790 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Codes
Law Section:: Penal Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §130.05, Pen L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:: S4348

2021-S6790 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Deems individuals facing criminal charges as being incapable of consent when the actor is a police officer, peace officer or other law enforcement agent who knows or reasonably should know that such person is facing pending charges unless such person is a member of the same family or household as such police officer, peace officer or other law enforcement agent.

2021-S6790 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S6790

SPONSOR: SEPULVEDA
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the penal law, in relation to deeming persons incapable
of consent when such persons are facing pending criminal charges and the
actor is a police officer, peace officer or other law enforcement agent
who knows or reasonably should know that such person is facing pending
charges

 
PURPOSE:

To ensure that a law enforcement officer is prohibited from engaging in
sexual intercourse with an individual who the officer knows or reason-
ably should know has a pending criminal case.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Amends Penal Law section 130.05 section 1 to add new paragraph k

Section two sets forth the effective date

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The current law already considers a person in police custody to be inca-
pable of consent; however, that law does not include individuals who are
not in custody but who have open criminal cases pending. A law enforce-
ment officer engaging in a sexual relationship with someone whose fate
in the criminal justice system depends significantly on that officer's
good graces is abusing power and violating the public trust. Law
enforcement are employed to protect and serve, not coerce or exploit
individuals. This legislation seeks to close that loophole and adds a
new section to the penal law to indicate that any individual who the law
enforcement officer knows or reasonably should know has a pending crimi-
nal case is incapable of consenting to sexual intercourse with said
officer.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

This is a new bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

N/A

 
LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

N/A

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2021-S6790 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6790
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 17, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sen. SEPULVEDA -- 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 deeming persons incapable
   of consent when such persons are facing pending criminal  charges  and
   the  actor is a police officer, peace officer or other law enforcement
   agent who knows or reasonably should know that such person  is  facing
   pending charges
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraph (j) of subdivision 3 of  section  130.05  of  the
 penal law, as added by section 1 of part JJ of chapter 55 of the laws of
 2018, is amended and a new paragraph (k) is added to read as follows:
   (j)  detained  or  otherwise in the custody of a police officer, peace
 officer, or other law enforcement official and the  actor  is  a  police
 officer, peace officer or other law enforcement official who either: (i)
 is  detaining  or  maintaining custody of such person; or (ii) knows, or
 reasonably should know, that at the time of the offense, such person was
 detained or in custody[.]; OR
   (K) FACING PENDING CRIMINAL CHARGES AND THE ACTOR IS A POLICE OFFICER,
 PEACE OFFICER OR OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENT  WHO  KNOWS  OR  REASONABLY
 SHOULD  KNOW  THAT  SUCH  PERSON  IS  FACING PENDING CHARGES UNLESS SUCH
 PERSON IS A MEMBER OF THE SAME FAMILY OR HOUSEHOLD AS DEFINED  IN  PARA-
 GRAPHS  (B),  (C)  AND  (D)  OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION 530.11 OF THE
 CRIMINAL PROCEDURE LAW AS SUCH POLICE OFFICER, PEACE  OFFICER  OR  OTHER
 LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENT.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
 
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD03048-02-1

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