BILL NUMBER: S4776

SPONSOR: RYAN C
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the penal law, in relation to the crimes of falsely
reporting an incident in the first and second degrees

 
PURPOSE OF BILL:

The purpose of this bill is to expand penalties for false reporting to
include the use of a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of this bill would amend section 240.55 of the Penal Law by
adding the use of a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument to the penalty
of falsely reporting an incident in the second degree.

Section 2 of this bill would amend section 240.60 of the Penal Law by
adding the use of a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument to the penalty
of falsely reporting an incident in the first degree.
              

Section 3 of this bill would establish a severability clause.

Section 4 of this bill provides that the effective date shall take
effect sixty days after it shall have become a law.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

In March and April 2023, over 50 school districts across the State
received reports of emergency incidents that proved to be false. A
barrage of calls and emails reported emergency incidents that ranged
from bomb threats to the alleged presence of an active shooter. One
call, which involved an active shooter threat, garnered a police
response and lockdown at Westhill High School in Onondaga County.  Other
reports have targeted school districts in the Hudson Valley and the
Capitol Region. Luckily, State police were able to recognize that these
allegations were baseless. State police are now working to identify the
source of the reports.

False incident reports are often made with the intention of causing the
deployment of police Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams to provoke
a further incident with a specific individual or group. Such occur-
rences, which are commonly known as "swatting" incidents, can be both a
waste of emergency response resources and a potential harm to the
targeted individuals or groups. SWAT teams have responded to numerous
false reports of emergency situations across the country in which the
possibility of a serious threat has resulted in innocent persons being
injured or killed.

Chapter 561 of 1999 added subdivision 5 of section 240.60 of the Penal
Law, which established that it is a class D felony to knowingly initiate
a false report of a fire, explosion, or the release of a hazardous
substance on school grounds. These laws are meant to deter potential
false reports and ensure public safety from a baseless incident. This
bill would expand the penalty for false reports to include the use of a
deadly weapon or dangerous instrument, which would, in the future, apply
to the threats posed by swatting incidents.  Falsely reporting an inci-
dent to provoke an emergency response is a serious crime that could
result in innocent lives being lost.  Expanding the definition of false-
ly reporting an incident in the first and second degree, would deter
false reporting of emergency incidents and uphold public safety. This
bill would expand criminal penalties for a person that conveys a false
or baseless report to include the false reporting of the use of a deadly
weapon or dangerous instrument.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2023-24: Passed Senate.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect sixty days after it shall have become a law.