Bill Text: NY A04967 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Creates the crime of endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree as a class D violent felony; recodifies prior crime as second degree; makes conforming changes in related provisions of law.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-04-20 - enacting clause stricken [A04967 Detail]
Download: New_York-2011-A04967-Introduced.html
S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K ________________________________________________________________________ 4967 2011-2012 Regular Sessions I N A S S E M B L Y February 9, 2011 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. MAYERSOHN -- read once and referred to the Committee on Codes AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to endangering the welfare of a child in the first and second degrees THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM- BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: 1 Section 1. Section 260.10 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 447 2 of the laws of 2010, is amended to read as follows: 3 S 260.10 Endangering the welfare of a child IN THE SECOND DEGREE. 4 A person is guilty of endangering the welfare of a child when: 5 1. He or she knowingly acts in a manner likely to be injurious to the 6 physical, mental or moral welfare of a child less than seventeen years 7 old or directs or authorizes such child to engage in an occupation 8 involving a substantial risk of danger to his or her life or health; or 9 2. Being a parent, guardian or other person legally charged with the 10 care or custody of a child less than eighteen years old, he or she fails 11 or refuses to exercise reasonable diligence in the control of such child 12 to prevent him or her from becoming an "abused child," a "neglected 13 child," a "juvenile delinquent" or a "person in need of supervision," as 14 those terms are defined in articles ten, three and seven of the family 15 court act. 16 3. A person is not guilty of the provisions of this section when he or 17 she engages in the conduct described in subdivision one of section 18 260.00 of this article: (a) with the intent to wholly abandon the child 19 by relinquishing responsibility for and right to the care and custody of 20 such child; (b) with the intent that the child be safe from physical 21 injury and cared for in an appropriate manner; (c) the child is left 22 with an appropriate person, or in a suitable location and the person who 23 leaves the child promptly notifies an appropriate person of the child's 24 location; and (d) the child is not more than thirty days old. EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD08659-01-1 A. 4967 2 1 Endangering the welfare of a child IN THE SECOND DEGREE is a class A 2 misdemeanor. 3 S 2. Section 260.11 of the penal law is renumbered section 260.12. 4 S 3. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 260.11 to read 5 as follows: 6 S 260.11 ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A CHILD IN THE FIRST DEGREE. 7 A PERSON IS GUILTY OF ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A CHILD IN THE FIRST 8 DEGREE WHEN: 9 1. HE OR SHE KNOWINGLY ACTS IN A MANNER WHICH CREATES A RISK OF EITHER 10 SERIOUS PHYSICAL INJURY OR PROLONGED IMPAIRMENT OF THE MENTAL OR 11 EMOTIONAL CONDITION OF A CHILD LESS THAN SEVENTEEN YEARS OLD; OR 12 2. HE OR SHE COMMITS THE CRIME OF ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A CHILD 13 IN THE SECOND DEGREE AND WHEN: 14 (A) THE CHILD IS LESS THAN ELEVEN YEARS OLD; OR 15 (B) THE CHILD SUFFERED PHYSICAL INJURY; OR 16 (C) HE OR SHE HAS PREVIOUSLY BEEN CONVICTED OF ANY OF THE FOLLOWING 17 CRIMES: ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A CHILD IN THE SECOND DEGREE AS 18 DEFINED IN SECTION 260.10; ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A CHILD IN THE 19 FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED IN THIS SECTION; ABANDONMENT OF A CHILD AS 20 DEFINED IN SECTION 260.00; ASSAULT IN THE SECOND DEGREE AS DEFINED IN 21 SUBDIVISION EIGHT OR NINE OF SECTION 120.05; AGGRAVATED ASSAULT UPON A 22 PERSON LESS THAN ELEVEN YEARS OLD AS DEFINED IN SECTION 120.12; 23 MANSLAUGHTER IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION FOUR OF 24 SECTION 125.20; MURDER IN THE SECOND DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION 25 FOUR OF SECTION 125.25; RAPE IN THE THIRD DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVI- 26 SION TWO OF SECTION 130.25; RAPE IN THE SECOND DEGREE AS DEFINED IN 27 SECTION 130.30; RAPE IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION THREE 28 OF SECTION 130.35; CRIMINAL SEXUAL ACT IN THE THIRD DEGREE AS DEFINED IN 29 SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION 130.40; CRIMINAL SEXUAL ACT IN THE SECOND 30 DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SECTION 130.45; CRIMINAL SEXUAL ACT IN THE FIRST 31 DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION THREE OF SECTION 130.50; SEXUAL ABUSE 32 IN THE SECOND DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION 130.60; 33 SEXUAL ABUSE IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION THREE OF 34 SECTION 130.65; AGGRAVATED SEXUAL ABUSE IN THE THIRD DEGREE AS DEFINED 35 IN PARAGRAPH (C) OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION 130.66; AGGRAVATED SEXUAL 36 ABUSE IN THE SECOND DEGREE AS DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH (C) OF SUBDIVISION 37 ONE OF SECTION 130.67; AGGRAVATED SEXUAL ABUSE IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS 38 DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH (C) OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION 130.70; COURSE OF 39 SEXUAL CONDUCT AGAINST A CHILD IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SECTION 40 130.75; COURSE OF SEXUAL CONDUCT AGAINST A CHILD IN THE SECOND DEGREE AS 41 DEFINED IN SECTION 130.80; DISSEMINATING INDECENT MATERIAL TO MINORS IN 42 THE SECOND DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SECTION 235.21; DISSEMINATING INDECENT 43 MATERIAL TO MINORS IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SECTION 235.22; USE 44 OF A CHILD IN A SEXUAL PERFORMANCE AS DEFINED IN SECTION 263.05; PROMOT- 45 ING AN OBSCENE SEXUAL PERFORMANCE BY A CHILD AS DEFINED IN SECTION 46 263.10; POSSESSING AN OBSCENE SEXUAL PERFORMANCE BY A CHILD AS DEFINED 47 IN SECTION 263.11; PROMOTING A SEXUAL PERFORMANCE BY A CHILD AS DEFINED 48 IN SECTION 263.15; POSSESSING A SEXUAL PERFORMANCE BY A CHILD AS DEFINED 49 IN SECTION 263.16; OR A SIMILAR OFFENSE AGAINST A CHILD IN ANY OTHER 50 JURISDICTION. 51 ENDANGERING THE WELFARE OF A CHILD IN THE FIRST DEGREE IS A CLASS D 52 FELONY. 53 S 4. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 1 of section 70.02 of the penal law, 54 as amended by chapter 405 of the laws of 2010, is amended to read as 55 follows: A. 4967 3 1 (c) Class D violent felony offenses: an attempt to commit any of the 2 class C felonies set forth in paragraph (b); reckless assault of a child 3 as defined in section 120.02, assault in the second degree as defined in 4 section 120.05, menacing a police officer or peace officer as defined in 5 section 120.18, stalking in the first degree[,] as defined in subdivi- 6 sion one of section 120.60, strangulation in the second degree as 7 defined in section 121.12, rape in the second degree as defined in 8 section 130.30, criminal sexual act in the second degree as defined in 9 section 130.45, sexual abuse in the first degree as defined in section 10 130.65, course of sexual conduct against a child in the second degree as 11 defined in section 130.80, aggravated sexual abuse in the third degree 12 as defined in section 130.66, facilitating a sex offense with a 13 controlled substance as defined in section 130.90, ENDANGERING THE 14 WELFARE OF A CHILD IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED IN SECTION 260.11, 15 criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree as defined in subdi- 16 vision five, six, seven or eight of section 265.02, criminal sale of a 17 firearm in the third degree as defined in section 265.11, intimidating a 18 victim or witness in the second degree as defined in section 215.16, 19 soliciting or providing support for an act of terrorism in the second 20 degree as defined in section 490.10, and making a terroristic threat as 21 defined in section 490.20, falsely reporting an incident in the first 22 degree as defined in section 240.60, placing a false bomb or hazardous 23 substance in the first degree as defined in section 240.62, placing a 24 false bomb or hazardous substance in a sports stadium or arena, mass 25 transportation facility or enclosed shopping mall as defined in section 26 240.63, and aggravated unpermitted use of indoor pyrotechnics in the 27 first degree as defined in section 405.18. 28 S 5. Section 260.12 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 89 of the 29 laws of 1984 and renumbered by section two of this act, is amended to 30 read as follows: 31 S 260.12 Endangering the welfare of a child; corroboration. 32 A person shall not be convicted of endangering the welfare of a child 33 AS DEFINED IN SECTION 260.10 OR 260.11 OF THIS ARTICLE, or of an attempt 34 to commit the same, upon the testimony of a victim who is incapable of 35 consent because of mental defect or mental incapacity as to conduct that 36 constitutes an offense or an attempt to commit an offense referred to in 37 section 130.16, without additional evidence sufficient pursuant to 38 section 130.16 to sustain a conviction of an offense referred to in 39 section 130.16, or of an attempt to commit the same. 40 S 6. Section 260.15 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 447 of the 41 laws of 2010, is amended to read as follows: 42 S 260.15 Endangering the welfare of a child; defense. 43 In any prosecution for endangering the welfare of a child, pursuant to 44 section 260.10 OR 260.11 of this article, based upon an alleged failure 45 or refusal to provide proper medical care or treatment to an ill child, 46 it is an affirmative defense that the defendant (a) is a parent, guardi- 47 an or other person legally charged with the care or custody of such 48 child; and (b) is a member or adherent of an organized church or reli- 49 gious group the tenets of which prescribe prayer as the principal treat- 50 ment for illness; and (c) treated or caused such ill child to be treated 51 in accordance with such tenets. 52 S 7. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed- 53 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.