Bill Text: NY A10651 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Limits the circumstances which justify the use of deadly force by a police officer or peace officer.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 9-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-06-17 - referred to codes [A10651 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A10651-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          10651

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                      June 17, 2020
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  COMMITTEE  ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Perry) --
          read once and referred to the Committee on Codes

        AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to justification for the  use
          of deadly physical force by a police or peace officer

          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 "New  York
     2  police use of deadly force restraint act".
     3    §  2.    Subdivision  1 of section 35.30 of the penal law, as added by
     4  chapter 73 of the laws of 1968, the  opening  paragraph  as  amended  by
     5  chapter 511 of the laws of 2004, and paragraph (c) as amended by chapter
     6  843  of  the laws of 1980, is amended and a new subdivision 1-a is added
     7  to read as follows:
     8    1. A police officer or a peace officer, in the course of effecting  or
     9  attempting  to  effect  an  arrest,  or  of  preventing or attempting to
    10  prevent the escape from custody, of a person whom he or  she  reasonably
    11  believes  to  have committed an offense, may use physical force when and
    12  to the extent he or she reasonably believes  such  to  be  necessary  to
    13  effect the arrest, or to prevent the escape from custody, or in self-de-
    14  fense  or  to  defend  a  third  person  from  what he or she reasonably
    15  believes to be the use or imminent use of physical  force;  except  that
    16  deadly  physical force may be used for such purposes only when he or she
    17  reasonably believes that:
    18    (a) The offense committed by such person was[:
    19    (i) a felony or an attempt to commit a felony  involving  the  use  or
    20  attempted  use  or  threatened  imminent use of physical force against a
    21  person; or
    22    (ii) kidnapping, arson, escape in the first degree,  burglary  in  the
    23  first  degree  or  any  attempt  to  commit  such a crime] a felony that
    24  threatened or resulted in death or serious bodily injury, if the officer
    25  reasonably believes that the person will cause death or  serious  bodily
    26  injury to another person unless immediately apprehended. Where feasible,
    27  a    police  officer  or peace officer shall, prior to the use of force,
    28  make reasonable efforts to identify himself or herself as a police offi-

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD14439-02-0
        A. 10651                            2

     1  cer or peace officer and to warn that deadly force may be  used,  unless
     2  the officer has objectively reasonable grounds to believe such person is
     3  aware of those facts; or
     4    (b)  [The  offense  committed or attempted by such person was a felony
     5  and that, in the course of resisting arrest therefor  or  attempting  to
     6  escape from custody, such person is armed with a firearm or deadly weap-
     7  on; or
     8    (c)]  Regardless of the particular offense which is the subject of the
     9  arrest or attempted escape, the use of deadly physical force  is  neces-
    10  sary  to  defend  the  police officer or peace officer or another person
    11  from what the officer reasonably believes to be the use or imminent  use
    12  of deadly physical force.
    13    1-a.  A  police  officer  or  peace officer shall not use deadly force
    14  against a person based on the danger that such person poses  to  himself
    15  or  herself,  if  an  objectively  reasonable  officer would believe the
    16  person does not pose an imminent threat of death or serious bodily inju-
    17  ry to the police officer, peace officer or to another person.
    18    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.