Bill Text: NY A10692 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Authorizes electronic appearances before a grand jury proceeding in the event of a state disaster emergency, declared in accordance with article two-B of the executive law.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-07-01 - referred to codes [A10692 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A10692-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          10692

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                      July 1, 2020
                                       ___________

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

        AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law, in  relation  to  conducting
          hearings of a grand jury proceeding during a state disaster emergency;
          and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration there-
          of

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

     1     Section 1. The criminal procedure law is  amended  by  adding  a  new
     2  section 190.95 to read as follows:
     3  § 190.95 Hearing upon grand jury proceedings; emergency provision during
     4             disaster emergency.
     5     During  the  period  of  the  COVID-19  state  disaster emergency, as
     6  declared pursuant to executive order number two hundred two of two thou-
     7  sand twenty and extensions thereof and article two-B  of  the  executive
     8  law, the following additional provisions shall apply to the conduct of a
     9  hearing on a felony complaint pursuant to this article:
    10    1.  The appearance of any party and any witness at such hearing may be
    11  by electronic appearance through an independent audio-visual system,  as
    12  such  terms  are  defined  in  section 182.10 of this chapter, where the
    13  court finds after hearing from the parties and any such witness,  either
    14  in  person or by electronic appearance, that due to the person's circum-
    15  stances and such disaster emergency a personal appearance by such  party
    16  or witness would be an unreasonable hardship to such person or witness.
    17    2.  At  any  such hearing, the jurors must be able to hear and see the
    18  image of each witness clearly though the independent audio-visual system
    19  and such sound and visual image shall be similar to the sound and  image
    20  the  juror  would hear and see if the witness were present together with
    21  the juror testifying in the courtroom. Documents,  photographs  and  the
    22  like  offered at the hearing may be exchanged among the parties by elec-
    23  tronic means. A stenographic transcription or appropriate audio  record-
    24  ing  of  the  proceedings  shall  be  maintained, and the live testimony
    25  received by electronic  appearance,  and  other  electronic  appearances
    26  where practicable, shall be video recorded.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD16763-01-0
        A. 10692                            2

     1    3. The authority for an electronic appearance pursuant to this section
     2  shall  be  considered  sufficient means to enable the court to conduct a
     3  hearing of a grand jury within the meaning of  section  190.30  of  this
     4  article.
     5    §  2.  Section  190.80  of  the  criminal procedure law, as amended by
     6  section 27-a of part WWW of chapter 59 of the laws of 2017,  is  amended
     7  to read as follows:
     8  § 190.80 Grand  jury;  release of defendant upon failure of timely grand
     9             jury action.
    10    Upon application of a defendant who on the basis of a felony complaint
    11  has been held by a local criminal court for the action of a grand  jury,
    12  and  who,  at  the  time  of  such order or subsequent thereto, has been
    13  committed to the custody of the sheriff pending such grand jury  action,
    14  and  who  has  been  confined  in such custody for a period of more than
    15  forty-five days, or, in the case of a juvenile  offender  or  adolescent
    16  offender,  thirty  days, without the occurrence of any grand jury action
    17  or disposition pursuant to subdivision one,  two  or  three  of  section
    18  190.60  of this article, the superior court by which such grand jury was
    19  or is to be impaneled must release him on his own recognizance unless:
    20    (a) The lack of  a  grand  jury  disposition  during  such  period  of
    21  confinement  was due to the defendant's request, action or condition, or
    22  occurred with his consent; [or]
    23    (b) The people have shown good cause why such order of release  should
    24  not  be  issued. Such good cause must consist of some compelling fact or
    25  circumstance which precluded grand jury  action  within  the  prescribed
    26  period or rendered the same against the interest of justice; or
    27    (c) In the event of a state disaster emergency, declared in accordance
    28  with  article  two-B  of  the executive law, electronic appearances at a
    29  hearing of a grand jury proceeding shall be governed by  section  190.95
    30  of this article.
    31    §  3.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
    32  have become a law and shall expire and  be  deemed  repealed  April  30,
    33  2021.