Bill Text: NY A04800 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Increases the penalties for criminal impersonation in the first degree from a class E felony to a class D felony; increases the penalty for criminal impersonation in the second degree from a class A misdemeanor to a class E felony.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to codes [A04800 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A04800-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          4800

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    February 23, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. PRETLOW -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Codes

        AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to increasing  the  penalties
          for criminal impersonation 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 190.25 of the penal law, the section  heading,  the
     2  opening paragraph, and the closing paragraph as amended by chapter 27 of
     3  the  laws  of 1980, subdivisions 3 and 4 as amended and subdivision 5 as
     4  added by chapter 739 of the laws of 2021, is amended to read as follows:
     5  § 190.25 Criminal impersonation in the second degree.
     6    A person is guilty of criminal impersonation in the second degree when
     7  he or she:
     8    1. Impersonates another and does an act in such assumed character with
     9  intent to obtain a benefit or to injure or defraud another; or
    10    2. Pretends to be a representative of some person or organization  and
    11  does  an  act in such pretended capacity with intent to obtain a benefit
    12  or to injure or defraud another; or
    13    3. (a) Pretends to be a public servant, or wears or  displays  without
    14  authority  any  uniform,  badge,  insignia or facsimile thereof by which
    15  such public servant is lawfully distinguished, or falsely  expresses  by
    16  his  or  her  words  or actions that he or she is a public servant or is
    17  acting with approval or authority of a public agency or department;  and
    18  (b)  so  acts  with intent to induce another to submit to such pretended
    19  official authority, to solicit funds or to otherwise  cause  another  to
    20  act in reliance upon that pretense; or
    21    4.  Impersonates another by communication by internet website or elec-
    22  tronic means with intent to obtain a benefit or injure or defraud anoth-
    23  er, or by such communication pretends to be a public servant in order to
    24  induce another to submit to such authority or act in  reliance  on  such
    25  pretense; or

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09468-01-3
        A. 4800                             2

     1    5.  Impersonates  another  person, without such other person's permis-
     2  sion, by using the other person's electronic signature  with  intent  to
     3  obtain  a  benefit  or  injure  or  defraud  the other person or another
     4  person. For the purposes of this subdivision, electronic signature shall
     5  have the same meaning as set forth in subdivision three of section three
     6  hundred two of the state technology law.
     7    Criminal impersonation in the second degree is a class [A misdemeanor]
     8  E felony.
     9    §  2.  Section 190.26 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 2 of the
    10  laws of 1998, subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 434  of  the  laws  of
    11  2008, is amended to read as follows:
    12  § 190.26 Criminal impersonation in the first degree.
    13    A  person is guilty of criminal impersonation in the first degree when
    14  he or she:
    15    1. Pretends to be a police officer or a federal law enforcement  offi-
    16  cer  as  enumerated  in  section  2.15 of the criminal procedure law, or
    17  wears or displays without authority, any uniform, badge or other  insig-
    18  nia  or  facsimile  thereof, by which such police officer or federal law
    19  enforcement officer is lawfully distinguished or expresses by his or her
    20  words or actions that he or she is acting with the approval or authority
    21  of any police department or acting as a federal law enforcement  officer
    22  with  the  approval  of  any agency that employs federal law enforcement
    23  officers as enumerated in section 2.15 of the  criminal  procedure  law;
    24  and
    25    2.  So  acts with intent to induce another to submit to such pretended
    26  official authority or otherwise to act in reliance  upon  said  pretense
    27  and in the course of such pretense commits or attempts to commit a felo-
    28  ny; or
    29    3.  Pretending to be a duly licensed physician or other person author-
    30  ized to issue a prescription for any drug or any  instrument  or  device
    31  used in the taking or administering of drugs for which a prescription is
    32  required by law, communicates to a pharmacist an oral prescription which
    33  is  required  to  be reduced to writing pursuant to section thirty-three
    34  hundred thirty-two of the public health law.
    35    Criminal impersonation in the first degree is a class [E] D felony.
    36    § 3. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
    37  ing the date on which it shall have become a law.