Bill Text: NY S05631 | 2015-2016 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to murder in the first degree.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-01-06 - REFERRED TO CODES [S05631 Detail]
Download: New_York-2015-S05631-Introduced.html
S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
5631
2015-2016 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
May 21, 2015
___________
Introduced by Sen. ORTT -- 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 murder in the first degree
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 125.27 of the penal law, as added
2 by chapter 1 of the laws of 1995, subparagraph (ii-a) of paragraph (a)
3 as added by chapter 1 of the laws of 2013, subparagraph (vii) of para-
4 graph (a) as amended by chapter 264 of the laws of 2003 and subparagraph
5 (xii) of paragraph (a) as amended and subparagraph (xiii) of paragraph
6 (a) as added by chapter 300 of the laws of 2001, is amended and a new
7 subdivision 1-a is added to read as follows:
8 1. A person is guilty of murder in the first degree when[:
9 1. With], WITH intent to cause the death of another person, he causes
10 the death of such person or of a third person; and
11 (a) Either:
12 (i) the intended victim was a police officer as defined in subdivision
13 34 of section 1.20 of the criminal procedure law who was at the time of
14 the killing engaged in the course of performing his official duties, and
15 the defendant knew or reasonably should have known that the intended
16 victim was a police officer; or
17 (ii) the intended victim was a peace officer as defined in paragraph a
18 of subdivision twenty-one, subdivision twenty-three, twenty-four or
19 sixty-two (employees of the division for youth) of section 2.10 of the
20 criminal procedure law who was at the time of the killing engaged in the
21 course of performing his official duties, and the defendant knew or
22 reasonably should have known that the intended victim was such a
23 uniformed court officer, parole officer, probation officer, or employee
24 of the division for youth; or
25 (ii-a) the intended victim was a firefighter, emergency medical tech-
26 nician, ambulance driver, paramedic, physician or registered nurse
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11250-02-5
S. 5631 2
1 involved in a first response team, or any other individual who, in the
2 course of official duties, performs emergency response activities and
3 was engaged in such activities at the time of killing and the defendant
4 knew or reasonably should have known that the intended victim was such
5 firefighter, emergency medical technician, ambulance driver, paramedic,
6 physician or registered nurse; or
7 (iii) the intended victim was an employee of a state correctional
8 institution or was an employee of a local correctional facility as
9 defined in subdivision two of section forty of the correction law, who
10 was at the time of the killing engaged in the course of performing his
11 official duties, and the defendant knew or reasonably should have known
12 that the intended victim was an employee of a state correctional insti-
13 tution or a local correctional facility; or
14 (iv) at the time of the commission of the killing, the defendant was
15 confined in a state correctional institution or was otherwise in custody
16 upon a sentence for the term of his natural life, or upon a sentence
17 commuted to one of natural life, or upon a sentence for an indeterminate
18 term the minimum of which was at least fifteen years and the maximum of
19 which was natural life, or at the time of the commission of the killing,
20 the defendant had escaped from such confinement or custody while serving
21 such a sentence and had not yet been returned to such confinement or
22 custody; or
23 (v) the intended victim was a witness to a crime committed on a prior
24 occasion and the death was caused for the purpose of preventing the
25 intended victim's testimony in any criminal action or proceeding whether
26 or not such action or proceeding had been commenced, or the intended
27 victim had previously testified in a criminal action or proceeding and
28 the killing was committed for the purpose of exacting retribution for
29 such prior testimony, or the intended victim was an immediate family
30 member of a witness to a crime committed on a prior occasion and the
31 killing was committed for the purpose of preventing or influencing the
32 testimony of such witness, or the intended victim was an immediate fami-
33 ly member of a witness who had previously testified in a criminal action
34 or proceeding and the killing was committed for the purpose of exacting
35 retribution upon such witness for such prior testimony. As used in this
36 subparagraph "immediate family member" means a husband, wife, father,
37 mother, daughter, son, brother, sister, stepparent, grandparent, step-
38 child or grandchild; or
39 (vi) the defendant committed the killing or procured commission of the
40 killing pursuant to an agreement with a person other than the intended
41 victim to commit the same for the receipt, or in expectation of the
42 receipt, of anything of pecuniary value from a party to the agreement or
43 from a person other than the intended victim acting at the direction of
44 a party to such agreement; or
45 (vii) the victim was killed while the defendant was in the course of
46 committing or attempting to commit and in furtherance of robbery,
47 burglary in the first degree or second degree, kidnapping in the first
48 degree, arson in the first degree or second degree, rape in the first
49 degree, criminal sexual act in the first degree, sexual abuse in the
50 first degree, aggravated sexual abuse in the first degree or escape in
51 the first degree, or in the course of and furtherance of immediate
52 flight after committing or attempting to commit any such crime or in the
53 course of and furtherance of immediate flight after attempting to commit
54 the crime of murder in the second degree; provided however, the victim
55 is not a participant in one of the aforementioned crimes and, provided
56 further that, unless the defendant's criminal liability under this
S. 5631 3
1 subparagraph is based upon the defendant having commanded another person
2 to cause the death of the victim or intended victim pursuant to section
3 20.00 of this chapter, this subparagraph shall not apply where the
4 defendant's criminal liability is based upon the conduct of another
5 pursuant to section 20.00 of this chapter; or
6 (viii) as part of the same criminal transaction, the defendant, with
7 intent to cause serious physical injury to or the death of an additional
8 person or persons, causes the death of an additional person or persons;
9 provided, however, the victim is not a participant in the criminal tran-
10 saction; or
11 (ix) prior to committing the killing, the defendant had been convicted
12 of murder as defined in this section or section 125.25 of this article,
13 or had been convicted in another jurisdiction of an offense which, if
14 committed in this state, would constitute a violation of either of such
15 sections; or
16 (x) the defendant acted in an especially cruel and wanton manner
17 pursuant to a course of conduct intended to inflict and inflicting
18 torture upon the victim prior to the victim's death. As used in this
19 subparagraph, "torture" means the intentional and depraved infliction of
20 extreme physical pain; "depraved" means the defendant relished the
21 infliction of extreme physical pain upon the victim evidencing debase-
22 ment or perversion or that the defendant evidenced a sense of pleasure
23 in the infliction of extreme physical pain; or
24 (xi) the defendant intentionally caused the death of two or more addi-
25 tional persons within the state in separate criminal transactions within
26 a period of twenty-four months when committed in a similar fashion or
27 pursuant to a common scheme or plan; or
28 (xii) the intended victim was a judge as defined in subdivision twen-
29 ty-three of section 1.20 of the criminal procedure law and the defendant
30 killed such victim because such victim was, at the time of the killing,
31 a judge; or
32 (xiii) the victim was killed in furtherance of an act of terrorism, as
33 defined in paragraph (b) of subdivision one of section 490.05 of this
34 chapter; and
35 (b) The defendant was more than eighteen years old at the time of the
36 commission of the crime.
37 1-A. A PERSON IS GUILTY OF MURDER IN THE FIRST DEGREE WHEN, ACTING
38 EITHER ALONE OR WITH ONE OR MORE OTHER PERSONS, HE OR SHE COMMITS OR
39 ATTEMPTS TO COMMIT RAPE IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED UNDER SECTION
40 130.35 OF THIS TITLE, CRIMINAL SEXUAL ACT IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS DEFINED
41 UNDER SECTION 130.50 OF THIS TITLE, SEXUAL ABUSE IN THE FIRST DEGREE AS
42 DEFINED UNDER SECTION 130.65 OF THIS TITLE, OR IN THE COURSE OF AND
43 FURTHERANCE OF IMMEDIATE FLIGHT AFTER COMMITTING OR ATTEMPTING TO COMMIT
44 ANY SUCH CRIMES, HE OR SHE, OR ANOTHER PARTICIPANT IF THERE BE ANY,
45 CAUSES THE DEATH OF A PERSON OTHER THAN ONE OF THE PARTICIPANTS, AND THE
46 DECEASED PERSON IS FOUND TO HAVE BEEN ADMINISTERED ANY UNLAWFULLY
47 CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE OR ANY PREPARATION, COMPOUND, MIXTURE OR SUBSTANCE
48 THAT REQUIRES A PRESCRIPTION TO OBTAIN AS DEFINED UNDER SECTION 130.90
49 OF THIS TITLE.
50 S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
