Bill Text: NY S02372 | 2025-2026 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Enacts "Chelsey's law"; provides that a person commits the crime of manslaughter or aggravated manslaughter when such person knows or has reasonable grounds to know that a controlled substance is likely to cause the death of another person and sells, administers, delivers, or causes the delivery of a controlled substance to another person and such substance causes, contributes to, or aids in the death of such other person.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 14-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2025-01-16 - REFERRED TO CODES [S02372 Detail]
Download: New_York-2025-S02372-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 2372 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 16, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. PALUMBO, ASHBY, BORRELLO, CANZONERI-FITZPATRICK, GALLIVAN, HELMING, MARTINS, MATTERA, MURRAY, OBERACKER, ORTT, RHOADS, WEBER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to enacting "Chelsey's law" The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 "Chelsey's law". 3 § 2. Section 125.15 of the penal law is amended by adding a new subdi- 4 vision 2 to read as follows: 5 2. knowing or having reasonable grounds to know that a controlled 6 substance, or any mixture, compound, or combination of a controlled 7 substance with other substances, is likely to cause the death of another 8 person, such person sells, administers, delivers, or causes the delivery 9 of a controlled substance to another person and such substance, or 10 mixture, compound, or combination of substances, causes, contributes to, 11 or aids in the death of such other person; or 12 § 3. Subdivision 4 of section 125.20 of the penal law, as added by 13 chapter 477 of the laws of 1990, is amended and a new subdivision 5 is 14 added to read as follows: 15 4. Being eighteen years old or more and with intent to cause physical 16 injury to a person less than eleven years old, the defendant recklessly 17 engages in conduct which creates a grave risk of serious physical injury 18 to such person and thereby causes the death of such person[.]; or 19 5. The defendant commits the crime of manslaughter in the second 20 degree, as defined in subdivision two of section 125.15 of this article, 21 and where: 22 (a) the defendant sells, administers, delivers, or causes such deliv- 23 ery to an individual less than eighteen years old; or EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02143-01-5S. 2372 2 1 (b) the substance, mixture, compound, or combination of substances 2 includes any substance listed in schedule I, II, III, IV, or V of 3 section thirty-three hundred six of the public health law that is clas- 4 sified as either an opiate or opium derivative under such law; or 5 (c) the defendant sells, administers, delivers, or causes such deliv- 6 ery to an individual already impaired by one or more substances; or 7 (d) the defendant sells, administers, delivers, or causes such deliv- 8 ery, while knowing or having reasonable grounds to know that such indi- 9 vidual intended to use one or more additional substances in conjunction 10 with conveyed substance; or 11 (e) the defendant sells, administers, delivers, or causes such deliv- 12 ery, while knowing or having reasonable grounds to know that such indi- 13 vidual had either completed a drug rehabilitation program or overdosed 14 within thirty days of such conveyance; or 15 (f) in cases involving a mixture, compound, or combination of 16 substances, the defendant does not disclose to the immediate next recip- 17 ient the full and accurate listing of substances contained in such 18 mixture, compound, or combination of substances. 19 § 4. Subdivision 2 of section 125.22 of the penal law, as added by 20 chapter 765 of the laws of 2005, is amended and a new subdivision 3 is 21 added to read as follows: 22 2. with intent to cause the death of a police officer or peace offi- 23 cer, where such officer was in the course of performing [his or her] 24 their official duties and the defendant knew or reasonably should have 25 known that such victim was a police officer or peace officer, [he or26she] the defendant causes the death of such officer or another police 27 officer or peace officer under circumstances which do not constitute 28 murder because [he or she] the defendant acts under the influence of 29 extreme emotional disturbance, as defined in paragraph (a) of subdivi- 30 sion one of section 125.25 of this article. The fact that homicide was 31 committed under the influence of extreme emotional disturbance consti- 32 tutes a mitigating circumstance reducing murder to aggravated 33 manslaughter in the first degree or manslaughter in the first degree and 34 need not be proved in any prosecution initiated under this subdivi- 35 sion[.]; or 36 3. the defendant commits the crime of manslaughter in the second 37 degree, as defined in subdivision two of section 125.15 of this article, 38 and where: 39 (a) the defendant sells, administers, delivers, or causes such deliv- 40 ery to an individual less than sixteen years old; or 41 (b) the defendant has prior knowledge that the substance, mixture, 42 compound, or combination of substances (i) has caused the death of 43 another person or (ii) contains an ingredient, substance, component, or 44 additive that has caused the death of another person. 45 § 5. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 125.23 to read 46 as follows: 47 § 125.23 Presumption; controlled substances. 48 In any prosecution under section 125.15, 125.20, or 125.22 of this 49 article, it shall be presumptive evidence that a controlled substance, 50 or any mixture, compound, or combination of a controlled substance with 51 other substances is likely to cause the death of another person when 52 such substance, or any mixture, compound, or combination of a controlled 53 substance with other substances, is sold, administered, delivered, or 54 caused to be delivered without a prescription from a duly licensed 55 medical professional. The sale, administration, delivery, or caused 56 delivery of a controlled substance, or any mixture, compound, or combi-S. 2372 3 1 nation of a controlled substance with other substances, by any individ- 2 ual other than a duly licensed medical professional shall be presumptive 3 evidence that such person knew or had reasonable grounds to know that 4 such substance, mixture, compound, or combination of substances was 5 likely to cause the death of such other person. 6 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately.
