S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  6459--A
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              April 11, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. McDONALD, BRABENEC, BURDICK, ZEBROWSKI, GUNTHER,
   WOERNER, COLTON,  ZACCARO,  BENDETT,  ANGELINO,  K. BROWN,  DeSTEFANO,
   MCGOWAN  -- read once and referred to the Committee on Codes -- recom-
   mitted to the Committee on Codes in accordance with Assembly  Rule  3,
   sec.  2  --  committee  discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
   amended and recommitted to said committee
 
 AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure  law,  in  relation  to  allowing
   victim  impact  statements in New York state be video recorded; and to
   amend the executive law, in relation to requiring that the members  of
   the  parole  board  and  all  presiding commissioners for such hearing
   review all relevant victim impact statements prior to the conduct of a
   parole hearing
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Paragraph  (b)  of subdivision 3 of section 390.30 of the
 criminal procedure law, as amended by chapter 618 of the laws  of  1992,
 is amended to read as follows:
   (b) The report shall also contain a victim impact statement, unless it
 appears  that such information would be of no relevance to the recommen-
 dation or court disposition, which shall  include  an  analysis  of  the
 victim's  version  of the offense, the extent of injury or economic loss
 and the actual out-of-pocket loss to the victim and  the  views  of  the
 victim  relating  to disposition including the amount of restitution and
 reparation sought by the victim after the victim has  been  informed  of
 the right to seek restitution and reparation, subject to the availabili-
 ty of such information. In the case of a homicide or where the victim is
 unable  to assist in the preparation of the victim impact statement, the
 information may be acquired from the victim's family OR  REPRESENTATIVE.
 The victim impact statement shall be made available to the victim by the
 prosecutor  pursuant  to subdivision two of section 390.50 of this arti-

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD04782-05-4
 A. 6459--A                          2
              

 
 cle. Nothing contained in this section shall be interpreted  to  require
 that a victim supply information for the preparation of this report.
   § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 440.50 of the criminal procedure law, as
 amended  by  chapter  322  of  the  laws  of 2021, is amended to read as
 follows:
   1. Upon the request of a victim of a crime, 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  by letter of such final disposition. If such final disposi-
 tion results in the commitment of the defendant to the  custody  of  the
 department of corrections and community supervision for an indeterminate
 OR COMBINED sentence, the notice provided to the crime victim shall also
 inform  the  victim of [his or her] THE VICTIM'S right to submit a writ-
 ten, audiotaped, or [videotaped] VIDEO RECORDED victim impact  statement
 to  the  department  of corrections and community supervision or to meet
 [personally] IN PERSON OR BY VIDEO CONFERENCE with a member of the state
 board of parole at a time and place separate from the personal interview
 between a member or members of the board and the incarcerated individual
 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  OR  STATEMENT  shall  be provided to the board of parole AND ALL
 PRESIDING COMMISSIONERS FOR SUCH HEARING. The right of the victim  under
 this  subdivision  to  submit a [written] victim impact statement IN ANY
 FORMAT or to meet [personally] IN PERSON OR BY VIDEO CONFERENCE  with  a
 member  of  the state board of parole applies to each personal interview
 between a member or members of the board and the  incarcerated  individ-
 ual.
   § 3. Subdivision 2 of section 259-i of the executive law is amended by
 adding a new paragraph (f) to read as follows:
   (F)  PRIOR  TO  THE  CONDUCT OF ANY PAROLE HEARING AS PROVIDED IN THIS
 ARTICLE, THE MEMBERS OF THE BOARD AND ALL  PRESIDING  COMMISSIONERS  FOR
 SUCH  HEARING  SHALL REVIEW ALL VICTIM IMPACT STATEMENTS RELATING TO THE
 OFFENSE OR OFFENSES  OF  WHICH  THE  INCARCERATED  INDIVIDUAL  HAS  BEEN
 CONVICTED,  INCLUDING  VICTIM  IMPACT  STATEMENTS PROVIDED IN CONNECTION
 WITH THE PRE-SENTENCING REPORT AND  VICTIM  IMPACT  STATEMENTS  PROVIDED
 DIRECTLY  TO  THE PAROLE BOARD.  THE PRESIDING COMMISSIONERS AND MEMBERS
 OF THE BOARD THAT PARTICIPATE IN THE HEARING SHALL SIGN A WRITTEN ATTES-
 TATION CONFIRMING THAT THEY HAVE REVIEWED THE VICTIM  IMPACT  STATEMENTS
 PRIOR TO THE HEARING.
   §  4.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
 have become a law. Effective immediately the addition, amendment  and/or
 repeal  of  any  rule  or regulation necessary for the implementation of
 this act on its effective date are authorized to be made  and  completed
 on or before such date.