Bill Text: NY A06872 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Criminalizes the harassment of a child when the perpetrator intentionally or knowingly harasses, annoys or alarms a child or a child's parent or guardian; establishes a private right of action for harassment of a child.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 14-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-04-01 - print number 6872c [A06872 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A06872-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         6872--C

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                       May 8, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M.  of  A. CRUZ, GIBBS, SANTABARBARA, LUNSFORD, McMAHON,
          ZACCARO, CONRAD, RAMOS, COLTON,  JEAN-PIERRE,  GUNTHER,  L. ROSENTHAL,
          SIMONE,  HEVESI -- read once and referred to the Committee on Codes --
          committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as  amended  and
          recommitted  to  said  committee -- again reported from said committee
          with amendments, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to  said
          committee  -- recommitted to the Committee on Codes in accordance with
          Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

        AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to criminalizing the  harass-
          ment  of  a  child;  and to amend the civil rights law, in relation to
          establishing a private right of action for harassment of a child

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

     1    Section 1.  The penal law is amended by adding a new section 260.16 to
     2  read as follows:
     3  § 260.16 Criminal harassment of a child.
     4    1.    A  person is guilty of criminal harassment of a child when he or
     5  she intentionally harasses, annoys or alarms  the  child  of  any  other
     6  person  by  knowingly  and  willfully  engaging in conduct directed at a
     7  specific child that seriously alarms, annoys, torments or terrorizes the
     8  child, serves no legitimate purpose, would cause a reasonable  child  to
     9  suffer  substantial emotional distress, and actually causes the child to
    10  suffer substantial emotional distress. Such conduct includes, but is not
    11  limited to:
    12    a. striking, shoving, kicking, or otherwise subjecting such  child  to
    13  physical contact, or attempting or threatening to do the same;
    14    b.  following  or  lying  in  wait  of  a child, provided that for the
    15  purposes of this section, "lying in wait" means  holding  oneself  in  a
    16  concealed position to watch and wait for a child;
    17    c.  recording  or attempting to record a child's image or voice, after
    18  the child, or, if the child is younger  than  fourteen  years  old,  the
    19  parent  or  legal  guardian  of the child has expressed that they do not

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02043-12-4
        A. 6872--C                          2

     1  consent to the child being recorded, unless the person acts in a reason-
     2  able manner and the recording is of the child:
     3    (i) engaging in public speech or demonstration; or
     4    (ii) attending or participating in a newsworthy public event;
     5    d. engaging in a course of conduct or repeatedly committing acts which
     6  alarm,  seriously  annoy,  or  cause emotional distress of a child which
     7  serve no legitimate purpose; or
     8    e. publishing identifying or contact information about the child with-
     9  out the express consent of the parent or legal guardian  of  the  child,
    10  or,  if the child is fourteen years old or older, the express consent of
    11  the child.
    12    2. The provisions of this section shall not apply with respect to  any
    13  law  enforcement  personnel  engaged  in the conduct of their authorized
    14  duties or to any person engaged in  otherwise  legally  mandated  activ-
    15  ities.
    16    Criminal harassment of a child is a class A misdemeanor.
    17    §  2.  The civil rights law is amended by adding a new section 52-e to
    18  read as follows:
    19    § 52-e. Private right of action for harassment  of  a  child.  1.    A
    20  parent  or  legal  guardian  whose  child  was  subject to conduct which
    21  constitutes harassment pursuant to subdivision two of this section,  may
    22  bring a civil action against the individual that engaged in such conduct
    23  on  behalf  of  the  child.  The  remedies in that civil action shall be
    24  limited to one or more of  the  following:    actual  damages,  punitive
    25  damages,  reasonable  attorney's  fees,  costs,  discouragement  of  any
    26  compensation from the sale, license, or  dissemination  of  the  child's
    27  image  or  voice received by the individual, and injunctive relief.  The
    28  rights and remedies conferred in this section shall be cumulative and in
    29  addition to and not in lieu of any other rights  or  remedies  available
    30  under law.
    31    2. For the purposes of this section, a person, other than law enforce-
    32  ment  personnel  engaged  in the conduct of their authorized duties or a
    33  person engaged in otherwise legally mandated activity, harasses a  child
    34  when  he  or she intentionally or knowingly harasses, annoys or alarms a
    35  child or a child's parent or guardian by:
    36    a. striking, shoving, kicking, or otherwise subjecting such  child  to
    37  physical contact, or attempting or threatening to do the same;
    38    b.  following  or  lying  in  wait  of  a child, provided that for the
    39  purposes of this section, "lying in wait" means  holding  oneself  in  a
    40  concealed position to watch and wait for a child;
    41    c.  recording  or attempting to record a child's image or voice, after
    42  the child, or, if the child is younger  than  fourteen  years  old,  the
    43  parent  or  legal  guardian  of the child has expressed that they do not
    44  consent to the child being recorded, unless the person acts in a reason-
    45  able manner and the recording is of the child:
    46    (i) engaging in public speech or demonstration; or
    47    (ii) attending or participating in a newsworthy public event;
    48    d. engaging in a course of conduct or repeatedly committing acts which
    49  alarm, seriously annoy, or cause emotional distress  of  a  child  which
    50  serve no legitimate purpose; or
    51    e. publishing identifying or contact information about the child with-
    52  out  the  express  consent of the parent or legal guardian of the child,
    53  or, if the child is fourteen years old or older, the express consent  of
    54  the child.
    55    §  3.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
    56  have become a law.