Bill Text: NY A00169 | 2025-2026 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Removes the $250 amount of damage from cemetery desecration in the second degree; makes cemetery desecration in the second degree a class E felony to apply to any damage or theft regardless of value; adds crime of cemetery desecration in the first degree and makes such crime a class D felony.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2025-01-08 - referred to codes [A00169 Detail]

Download: New_York-2025-A00169-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                           169

                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                       (Prefiled)

                                     January 8, 2025
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  EICHENSTEIN -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Codes

        AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to cemetery desecration;  and
          to repeal certain provisions of such law relating thereto

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Section 145.23 of the penal law, as amended by chapter  353
     2  of the laws of 2007, is amended to read as follows:
     3  § 145.23 Cemetery desecration in the [first] second degree.
     4    A  person  is  guilty  of  cemetery  desecration in the [first] second
     5  degree when with intent to damage property of another person, and having
     6  no right to do so nor any reasonable ground to  believe  that  [he]  the
     7  person has such right, [he] the person:
     8    (a)  damages  any  real  or personal property maintained as a cemetery
     9  plot, grave, burial place or other place of interment of  human  remains
    10  [in an amount exceeding two hundred fifty dollars]; or
    11    (b)  with  intent  to  steal personal property, [he] the person steals
    12  personal property[,  the  value  of  which  exceeds  two  hundred  fifty
    13  dollars,]  which  is  located at a cemetery plot, grave, burial place or
    14  other place of interment of human remains and which property is owned by
    15  the person or organization which maintains or owns  such  place  or  the
    16  estate,  next-of-kin  or representatives of the deceased person interred
    17  there[; or
    18    (c) commits the crime of cemetery desecration in the second degree  as
    19  defined  in  section  145.22  of  this  article  and has been previously
    20  convicted of the crime of cemetery  desecration  in  the  second  degree
    21  within the preceding five years].
    22    Cemetery desecration in the [first] second degree is a class E felony.
    23    §  2.  The penal law is amended by adding a new section 145.24 to read
    24  as follows:

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00576-01-5
        A. 169                              2

     1  § 145.24 Cemetery desecration in the first degree.
     2    A  person  is  guilty of cemetery desecration in the first degree when
     3  such person commits the crime of  cemetery  desecration  in  the  second
     4  degree  as defined in section 145.23 of this article and has been previ-
     5  ously convicted of the crime  of  cemetery  desecration  in  the  second
     6  degree  or cemetery desecration in the first degree within the preceding
     7  five years.
     8    Cemetery desecration in the first degree is a class D felony.
     9    § 3. Section 145.22 of the penal law is REPEALED.
    10    § 4. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
    11  ing the date on which it shall have become a law.