Bill Text: NY S05738 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Provides that instructions to the jury shall include certain defenses; provides that such instructions shall include, but not be limited to, "Do not let bias, sympathy, prejudice, or public opinion influence your decision"; defines the term "bias".

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-01-04 - REFERRED TO CODES [S05738 Detail]

Download: New_York-2011-S05738-Introduced.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         5738
                              2011-2012 Regular Sessions
                                   I N  S E N A T E
                                     June 14, 2011
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  Sen.  PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
         printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
       AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to  instructions
         to the jury relating to certain defenses
         THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section 1. The legislature  hereby  finds  and  declares  all  of  the
    2  following:
    3    (a)  New York law defines a hate crime as a specified criminal offense
    4  intentionally committed because of the actual or perceived race,  color,
    5  national  origin,  ancestry,  gender, religion, religious practice, age,
    6  disability or sexual orientation of a person, regardless of whether  the
    7  belief or perception is correct.
    8    (b)  It is the right of every person regardless of actual or perceived
    9  race, color, national  origin,  ancestry,  gender,  religion,  religious
   10  practice,  age,  disability, gender identity or sexual orientation to be
   11  secure and protected from fear, intimidation, and physical  harm  caused
   12  by the actions of violent groups and individuals.
   13    (c)  "Bias"  includes bias based upon the victim's actual or perceived
   14  race, color, national  origin,  ancestry,  gender,  religion,  religious
   15  practice, age, disability, gender identity or sexual orientation.
   16    (d)  It  is  against  public  policy as expressed in rules of court on
   17  judicial conduct for members of the judiciary  or  lawyers  in  judicial
   18  proceedings  to  manifest  bias  based  upon characteristics of parties,
   19  including the actual or perceived age, race, creed, color,  sex,  sexual
   20  orientation or disability of a crime victim.
   21    (e)  "Panic  strategies"  are  those  strategies that try to explain a
   22  defendant's actions or emotional reactions based upon the  knowledge  or
   23  discovery of the fact that the victim possesses one or more of the char-
   24  acteristics  listed  above or associates with a person or group with one
   25  or more of those characteristics.
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD00589-01-1
       S. 5738                             2
    1    (f) The legislature is concerned about the use  of  societal  bias  in
    2  criminal  proceedings and the susceptibility of juries to such bias. The
    3  use of so-called "panic strategies" by  defendants  in  criminal  trials
    4  opens  the  door  for  bias  against victims based on one or more of the
    5  characteristics  listed  above  or an association with a person or group
    6  with one or more of those characteristics.
    7    (g) It is against public policy for a defendant to be acquitted  of  a
    8  charged  offense or convicted of a lesser included offense based upon an
    9  appeal to the societal bias that may be possessed by members of a jury.
   10    S 2. Subdivision 3 of section 300.10 of the criminal procedure law, as
   11  amended by chapter 668 of the laws  of  1984,  is  amended  to  read  as
   12  follows:
   13    3. (A) Where a defendant has raised the affirmative defense of lack of
   14  criminal  responsibility  by  reason  of  mental  disease  or defect, as
   15  defined in section 40.15 of the penal law, the court must, without elab-
   16  oration, instruct the jury as follows: "A jury during its  deliberations
   17  must  never  consider  or  speculate  concerning matters relating to the
   18  consequences of its verdict. However, because  of  the  lack  of  common
   19  knowledge  regarding the consequences of a verdict of not responsible by
   20  reason of mental disease or defect, I charge you that if this verdict is
   21  rendered by you there will be hearings as  to  the  defendant's  present
   22  mental   condition   and,   where  appropriate,  involuntary  commitment
   23  proceedings."
   24    (B) IN ANY CRIMINAL TRIAL OR PROCEEDING, UPON THE REQUEST OF A  PARTY,
   25  THE  COURT  SHALL INSTRUCT THE JURY AS FOLLOWS: "DO NOT LET BIAS, SYMPA-
   26  THY, PREJUDICE, OR PUBLIC OPINION INFLUENCE YOUR DECISION. BIAS INCLUDES
   27  BIAS AGAINST THE VICTIM OR VICTIMS OR WITNESS OR WITNESSES,  BASED  UPON
   28  HIS  OR  HER  RACE,  COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN, ANCESTRY, GENDER, RELIGION,
   29  RELIGIOUS  PRACTICE,  AGE,  DISABILITY,  GENDER   IDENTITY   OR   GENDER
   30  EXPRESSION, OR SEXUAL ORIENTATION."
   31    S  3.  This  act  shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall
   32  have become a law.