Bill Text: NY A03514 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Enhances criminal penalties for criminal mischief and larceny offenses committed at a place of religious worship and for cemetery desecration.

Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Democrat 17-1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-01-08 - referred to codes [A03514 Detail]

Download: New_York-2013-A03514-Introduced.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         3514
                              2013-2014 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                   January 28, 2013
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  M.  of A. ROZIC, BENEDETTO, LAVINE, SCARBOROUGH, JAFFEE,
         CRESPO, ROBERTS, MAISEL, GUNTHER, CASTRO,  DINOWITZ,  PERRY,  MILLMAN,
         COOK,  GABRYSZAK  --  Multi-Sponsored  by -- M. of A. ABBATE, BOYLAND,
         CERETTO, GALEF, GIBSON, HOOPER,  JACOBS,  SCHIMEL  --  read  once  and
         referred to the Committee on Codes
       AN  ACT  to  amend  the  penal law, in relation to criminal mischief and
         larceny offenses committed at a place of religious worship
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1.  Subdivision  2  of  section  145.05  of the penal law, as
    2  amended by chapter 276 of the laws of 2003, is amended and a new  subdi-
    3  vision 3 is added to read as follows:
    4    2.  damages  property  of  another  person  in an amount exceeding two
    5  hundred fifty dollars[.]; OR
    6    3. DAMAGES PROPERTY WHICH, REGARDLESS OF ITS NATURE OR  VALUE,  IS  IN
    7  ANY BUILDING, STRUCTURE OR UPON THE CURTILAGE OF SUCH BUILDING OR STRUC-
    8  TURE USED AS A PLACE OF RELIGIOUS WORSHIP BY A RELIGIOUS CORPORATION, AS
    9  INCORPORATED UNDER THE RELIGIOUS CORPORATIONS LAW OR THE EDUCATION LAW.
   10    S 2. Section 145.10 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 961 of the
   11  laws of 1971, is amended to read as follows:
   12  S 145.10 Criminal mischief in the second degree.
   13    A person is guilty of criminal mischief in the second degree when with
   14  intent  to  damage property of another person, and having no right to do
   15  so nor any reasonable ground to believe that he OR SHE has  such  right,
   16  he OR SHE:
   17    1. damages property of another person in an amount exceeding one thou-
   18  sand five hundred dollars[.]; OR
   19    2.  DAMAGES PROPERTY WHICH CONSISTS OF A SCROLL, A RELIGIOUS VESTMENT,
   20  A VESSEL, AN ITEM COMPRISING A DISPLAY OF RELIGIOUS SYMBOLS WHICH  FORMS
   21  A  REPRESENTATIVE  EXPRESSION OF FAITH OR ANY OTHER ITEM KEPT OR USED IN
   22  CONNECTION WITH RELIGIOUS WORSHIP IN ANY BUILDING, STRUCTURE OR UPON THE
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD05108-01-3
       A. 3514                             2
    1  CURTILAGE OF SUCH BUILDING OR STRUCTURE USED AS  A  PLACE  OF  RELIGIOUS
    2  WORSHIP  BY A RELIGIOUS CORPORATION, AS INCORPORATED UNDER THE RELIGIOUS
    3  CORPORATIONS LAW OR THE EDUCATION LAW.
    4    Criminal mischief in the second degree is a class D felony.
    5    S  3.  Subdivision 9 of section 155.30 of the penal law, as amended by
    6  chapter 479 of the laws of 2010, is amended to read as follows:
    7    9. The property [consists of a scroll, religious vestment,  a  vessel,
    8  an  item  comprising a display of religious symbols which forms a repre-
    9  sentative expression of faith, or other miscellaneous item  of  property
   10  which:
   11    (a) has a value of at least one hundred dollars; and
   12    (b)  is  kept  for  or  used in connection with religious worship in],
   13  REGARDLESS OF ITS NATURE OR VALUE, IS TAKEN FROM any building, structure
   14  or upon the curtilage of such building or structure used as a  place  of
   15  religious  worship by a religious corporation, as incorporated under the
   16  religious corporations law or the education law.
   17    S 4. Section 155.35 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 464 of the
   18  laws of 2010, is amended to read as follows:
   19  S 155.35 Grand larceny in the third degree.
   20    A person is guilty of grand larceny in the third degree when he or she
   21  steals property and:
   22    1. when the value of the property exceeds three  thousand  dollars[,];
   23  or
   24    2.  the  property is an automated teller machine or the contents of an
   25  automated teller machine[.]; OR
   26    3.  THE PROPERTY CONSISTS OF A SCROLL, A RELIGIOUS VESTMENT, A VESSEL,
   27  AN ITEM COMPRISING A DISPLAY OF RELIGIOUS SYMBOLS WHICH FORM A REPRESEN-
   28  TATIVE EXPRESSION OF FAITH OR ANY OTHER ITEM KEPT OR USED IN  CONNECTION
   29  WITH  RELIGIOUS WORSHIP IN ANY BUILDING, STRUCTURE OR UPON THE CURTILAGE
   30  OF SUCH BUILDING OR STRUCTURE USED AS A PLACE OF RELIGIOUS WORSHIP BY  A
   31  RELIGIOUS  CORPORATION, AS INCORPORATED UNDER THE RELIGIOUS CORPORATIONS
   32  LAW OR THE EDUCATION LAW.
   33    Grand larceny in the third degree is a class D felony.
   34    S 5. Subdivision 2 of section 155.40 of the penal law, as  amended  by
   35  chapter  515  of the laws of 1986, is amended and a new subdivision 3 is
   36  added to read as follows:
   37    2. The property, regardless of its nature and value,  is  obtained  by
   38  extortion committed by instilling in the victim a fear that the actor or
   39  another  person  will  (a)  cause  physical injury to some person in the
   40  future, or (b) cause damage to property, or (c) use or abuse  his  posi-
   41  tion as a public servant by engaging in conduct within or related to his
   42  official  duties, or by failing or refusing to perform an official duty,
   43  in such manner as to affect some person adversely[.]; OR
   44    3. THE PROPERTY CONSISTS OF A SCROLL, A RELIGIOUS VESTMENT, A  VESSEL,
   45  AN  ITEM  COMPRISING A DISPLAY OF RELIGIOUS SYMBOLS WHICH FORMS A REPRE-
   46  SENTATIVE EXPRESSION OF FAITH, OR OTHER ITEM OF PROPERTY WHICH:
   47    (A) HAS A VALUE OF AT LEAST TWO HUNDRED FIFTY DOLLARS; AND
   48    (B) IS KEPT FOR OR USED IN CONNECTION WITH RELIGIOUS  WORSHIP  IN  ANY
   49  BUILDING,  STRUCTURE OR UPON THE CURTILAGE OF SUCH BUILDING OR STRUCTURE
   50  USED AS A PLACE OF RELIGIOUS WORSHIP  BY  A  RELIGIOUS  CORPORATION,  AS
   51  INCORPORATED UNDER THE RELIGIOUS CORPORATIONS LAW OR THE EDUCATION LAW.
   52    S 6. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
   53  ing the date on which it shall have become a law.