Bill Text: NY A04596 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Enacts the reproductive health care facilities and religious worship access act; provides that the crime of criminal interference with health care services or religious worship shall be established by the mens rea of knowingly injuring, intimidating or interfering with a person obtaining or providing or assisting in obtaining or providing reproductive health services or a place of religious worship; includes in the definition of such crime engaging in a course of conduct or repeatedly committing acts within twenty-five feet of the premises of a reproductive health care facility or a place of religious worship; defines such premises; provides for a civil cause of action for any person harmed by conduct constituting such a crime.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 17-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-05-20 - print number 4596a [A04596 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-A04596-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4596--A 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY February 17, 2023 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. BICHOTTE HERMELYN, PAULIN, PRETLOW, OTIS, JACOB- SON, LUNSFORD, SIMON, SEAWRIGHT, GLICK, DICKENS, BURDICK, DAVILA, DINOWITZ, LEVENBERG, ARDILA, AUBRY, SILLITTI -- read once and referred to the Committee on Codes -- recommitted 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 commit- tee AN ACT to amend the penal law and the civil rights law, in relation to enacting the reproductive health care facilities and religious worship access act The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "reproduc- 2 tive health care facilities and religious worship access act". 3 § 2. Legislative intent. The legislature finds that the right to 4 obtain reproductive health services and the right to religious worship 5 are essential personal rights protected by state and federal law. Equal- 6 ly, the right to peaceably protest and express one's views is protected 7 by state and federal law. Such actions include, but are not limited to, 8 the right to speak, march, demonstrate, or engage in other activity 9 protected by the First Amendment. 10 The legislature finds that current law does not adequately protect 11 reproductive health care facilities or places of religious worship and 12 those who work in or seek services from or access to such facilities. 13 Therefore, the legislature has determined that it is appropriate for the 14 protection of the public health, safety and welfare, to enact legis- 15 lation to prohibit interference with access to reproductive health care 16 services or places of religious worship, so that persons harmed by such 17 conduct can seek redress in the courts and the state can obtain injunc- 18 tive relief and damages. Furthermore, the legislature has determined 19 that it is appropriate to enact this legislation to: ensure public safe- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD05975-03-4A. 4596--A 2 1 ty and order; protect freedom to receive reproductive health services; 2 advance medical privacy and the well-being of patients seeking reproduc- 3 tive health care services at facilities; protect the exercise of reli- 4 gious freedom at places of religious worship and the well-being of those 5 exercising their freedom of religion at places of religious worship; and 6 safeguard private property. 7 § 3. Section 240.70 of the penal law, as added by chapter 635 of the 8 laws of 1999, is amended to read as follows: 9 § 240.70 Criminal interference with health care services or religious 10 worship in the second degree. 11 1. A person is guilty of criminal interference with health services or 12 religious worship in the second degree when: 13 (a) by force or threat of force or by physical obstruction, [he or she14intentionally] such person knowingly injures, intimidates or interferes 15 with, or attempts to injure, intimidate or interfere with, another 16 person because such other person was or is obtaining or providing, or 17 assisting in obtaining or providing, reproductive health services; or 18 (b) by force or threat of force or by physical obstruction, [he or she19intentionally] such person knowingly injures, intimidates or interferes 20 with, or attempts to injure, intimidate or interfere with, another 21 person in order to discourage such other person or any other person or 22 persons from obtaining or providing, or assisting in obtaining or 23 providing, reproductive health services; or 24 (c) by force or threat of force or by physical obstruction, [he or she25intentionally] such person knowingly injures, intimidates or interferes 26 with, or attempts to injure, intimidate or interfere with, another 27 person because such person was or is seeking to exercise, or assisting 28 in the exercise of the right of religious freedom at a place of reli- 29 gious worship; or 30 (d) [he or she intentionally] such person knowingly damages the prop- 31 erty of a health care facility, or attempts to do so, because such 32 facility provides reproductive health services, or intentionally damages 33 the property of a place of religious worship[.]; or 34 (e) such person engages in a course of conduct or repeatedly commits 35 acts, or attempts to engage in a course of conduct or repeatedly commit 36 acts, within twenty-five feet of the premises of a reproductive health 37 care facility in order to discourage another person from obtaining or 38 providing, or assisting in obtaining or providing, reproductive health 39 care services when such behavior places such other person in reasonable 40 fear of harm; or 41 (f) such person engages in a course of conduct or repeatedly commits 42 acts, or attempts to engage in a course of conduct or repeatedly commit 43 acts, within twenty-five feet of the premises of a place of religious 44 worship in order to discourage another person from exercising, or 45 assisting in exercising, their right of religion at a place of religious 46 worship when such behavior places such other person in reasonable fear 47 of harm; or 48 (g) within one hundred feet of the entrance to, or within, a reproduc- 49 tive health care services facility, such person intentionally vide- 50 otapes, films, photographs, or records by electronic means, a reproduc- 51 tive health care services patient, person assisting the reproductive 52 health care services patient, provider, or assistant, without that 53 person's consent with specific intent to intimidate the person from 54 becoming or remaining a reproductive health care services patient, 55 person assisting the reproductive health care services patient, provid- 56 er, or assistant, and thereby causes the person to be intimidated; orA. 4596--A 3 1 (h) in any manner or forum, including, but not limited to, internet 2 websites and social media, such person intentionally discloses or 3 distributes a videotape, film, photograph, or recording knowing it was 4 obtained in violation of paragraph (g) of this subdivision with the 5 specific intent to intimidate the person from becoming or remaining a 6 reproductive health care services patient, person assisting the repro- 7 ductive health care services patient, provider, or assistant, and there- 8 by causes the person to be intimidated; or 9 (i) such person knowingly publicly posts or publicly displays, 10 discloses, or distributes on internet websites or social media, the 11 personal information or image of any reproductive health care services 12 patient, person assisting the reproductive health care services patient, 13 provider, or assistant, or other individuals residing at the same home 14 address with the intent to do either of the following: 15 (i) incite a third person to cause imminent great bodily harm to the 16 reproductive health care services patient, person assisting the repro- 17 ductive health care services patient, provider, or assistant, identified 18 in the posting or display, or to a co-resident of that person, where the 19 third person is likely to commit this harm; or 20 (ii) threatens the reproductive health care services patient, person 21 assisting the reproductive health care services patient, provider, or 22 assistant, identified in the posting or display, or a co-resident of 23 that person, in a manner that places the person identified or the co-re- 24 sident in objectively reasonable fear for their personal safety. 25 2. A parent or legal guardian of a minor shall not be subject to pros- 26 ecution for conduct otherwise prohibited by [paragraph (a) or (b) of] 27 subdivision one of this section which is directed exclusively at such 28 minor. 29 3. For purposes of this section: 30 (a) the term "health care facility" means a hospital, clinic, physi- 31 cian's office or other facility that provides reproductive health 32 services, and includes the building or structure in which the facility 33 is located; 34 (b) the term "image" includes, but is not limited to, a photograph, 35 video footage, sketch, or computer-generated image that provides a means 36 to visually identify the person depicted; 37 (c) the term "interferes with" means to restrict a person's freedom of 38 movement and shall include, but shall not be limited to, activities that 39 restrict or attempt to restrict access to or from a health care facili- 40 ty, the performance of medical procedures at a health care facility or 41 the delivery of goods to such a facility or access to or from a place of 42 religious worship or delivery of goods to a place of religious worship; 43 [(c)] (d) the term "intimidates" means to place a person in reasonable 44 apprehension of physical injury to himself or herself or to another 45 person; 46 [(d)] (e) the term "personal information" means information that iden- 47 tifies, relates to, describes, or is capable of being associated with a 48 reproductive health care services patient, person assisting the repro- 49 ductive health care services patient, provider, or assistant, including, 50 but not limited to, their name, signature, social security number, phys- 51 ical characteristics or description, address, telephone number, passport 52 number, driver's license or state identification card number, license 53 plate number, employment, employment history, and financial information; 54 (f) the term "physical obstruction" means rendering impassable ingress 55 to or egress from a facility that provides reproductive health services 56 or to or from a place of religious worship, or rendering passage to orA. 4596--A 4 1 from such a facility or place of religious worship unreasonably diffi- 2 cult or hazardous; [and3(e)] (g) the term "publicly post" or "publicly display" means to 4 intentionally communicate or otherwise make available to the general 5 public; 6 (h) the term "reproductive health care services" means health care 7 services provided in a hospital, clinic, physician's office or other 8 facility and includes medical, surgical, counseling or referral services 9 relating to the human reproductive system, including services relating 10 to pregnancy or the termination of a pregnancy[.]; 11 (i) the term "premises of a reproductive health care facility" means a 12 health care facility and includes the driveway, entrance, entryway or 13 exit of such facility, any parking lot in which the facility has an 14 ownership or leasehold interest and any public parking lots within two 15 hundred feet of the facility which serve the facility; 16 (j) the term "premises of a place of religious worship" means a struc- 17 ture or space where individuals or a group of people come to exercise 18 their right of religious worship and includes the driveway, entrance, 19 entryway or exit of such structure or space, any parking lot in which 20 the structure or space has an ownership or leasehold interest and any 21 public parking lots within two hundred feet of the structure or space 22 which serves the structure or space; 23 (k) the term "reproductive health care services patient, person 24 assisting the reproductive health care services patient, provider or 25 assistant" means a person or entity, including, but not limited to, 26 employees, staff, volunteers, and third-party vendors, that is or was 27 involved in obtaining, seeking to obtain, providing, seeking to provide, 28 or assisting or seeking to assist another person, at that person's 29 request, to obtain or provide any services in a reproductive health care 30 services facility, or a person or entity that is or was involved in 31 owning or operating or seeking to own or operate a reproductive health 32 care services facility; and 33 (l) the term "social media" means an electronic service or account, 34 or electronic content, including, but not limited to, videos or still 35 photographs, blogs, video blogs, podcasts, instant and text messages, 36 email, online services or accounts, or internet website profiles or 37 locations. 38 Criminal interference with health care services or religious worship 39 in the second degree is a class A misdemeanor. 40 § 4. Section 79-m of the civil rights law, as amended by chapter 566 41 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows: 42 § 79-m. Criminal interference with health care services, religious 43 worship, funeral, burial or memorial service; injunction; civil action. 44 1. Whenever the attorney general or district attorney of the county 45 where the affected health care facility, place of religious worship, or 46 site of a funeral, burial or memorial service is located has reasonable 47 cause to believe that any person or group of persons is being, has been, 48 or may be injured by conduct constituting a violation of section 240.21, 49 240.70 [or], 240.71, 240.72 or 240.73 of the penal law, the attorney 50 general or district attorney may bring an action in the name of the 51 people of the state of New York to permanently enjoin such violation. In 52 such action preliminary and temporary relief may be granted under arti- 53 cle sixty-three of the civil practice law and rules. 54 2. A civil claim or cause of action to recover from a defendant as 55 hereinafter defined, for physical, psychological or other injury or 56 condition suffered by a person, including any person whose ability toA. 4596--A 5 1 access the premises of a health care facility or premises of a place of 2 religious worship has been interfered with or any owner or operator of 3 such a facility or owner of a building in which such facility is located 4 or any employee or volunteer working for such a facility, as a result 5 of acts by such defendant of criminal interference with health care 6 services or religious worship in the second degree as defined in section 7 240.70 of the penal law, criminal interference with health care services 8 or religious worship in the first degree as defined in section 240.71 of 9 the penal law, aggravated interference with health care services in the 10 second degree as defined in section 240.72 of the penal law, or aggra- 11 vated interference with health care services in the first degree as 12 defined in section 240.73 of the penal law may be brought within five 13 years. As used in this subdivision, the term "defendant" shall mean only 14 a person who commits the acts described in this subdivision or who, in a 15 criminal proceeding, could be charged with criminal liability for the 16 commission of such acts pursuant to section 20.00 of the penal law and 17 shall not apply to any related civil claim or cause of action arising 18 from such acts. Nothing in this section shall be construed to require 19 that a criminal charge be brought or a criminal conviction be obtained 20 as a condition of bringing a civil cause of action or receiving a civil 21 judgment pursuant to this subdivision or be construed to require that 22 any of the rules governing a criminal proceeding be applicable to any 23 such civil action. A plaintiff in a civil cause or action brought pursu- 24 ant to this subdivision may seek any relief available consistent with 25 the civil practice law and rules, including injunctive relief. 26 § 5. Severability. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part 27 of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to 28 be invalid and after exhaustion of all further judicial review, the 29 judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder thereof, 30 but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, para- 31 graph, section or part of this act directly involved in the controversy 32 in which the judgment shall have been rendered. 33 § 6. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed- 34 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
