Bill Text: NY S00557 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends provisions about sex offenses and consent involving members of the clergy or other ministers of any religion or duly accredited Christian science practitioners.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - REFERRED TO CODES [S00557 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S00557-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                           557

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                     January 5, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by Sens. HOYLMAN, MAY -- 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 amending sex offenses  and
          consent involving members of the clergy

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

     1    Section 1. Paragraph (j) of subdivision 3 of  section  130.05  of  the
     2  penal law, as added by section 1 of part JJ of chapter 55 of the laws of
     3  2018, is amended and a new paragraph (k) is added to read as follows:
     4    (j)  detained  or  otherwise in the custody of a police officer, peace
     5  officer, or other law enforcement official and the  actor  is  a  police
     6  officer, peace officer or other law enforcement official who either: (i)
     7  is  detaining  or  maintaining custody of such person; or (ii) knows, or
     8  reasonably should know, that at the time of the offense, such person was
     9  detained or in custody[.]; or
    10    (k) a member or adherent of an organized church or religious group and
    11  the actor is a member of the clergy or other minister of any religion or
    12  duly accredited Christian science practitioner charged with rape in  the
    13  third  degree  as  defined in section 130.25 of this article, aggravated
    14  sexual abuse in the fourth degree as defined in section 130.65-a of this
    15  article, or sexual abuse in the  third  degree  as  defined  in  section
    16  130.55  of this article, and the act of sexual conduct occurs during the
    17  provision of pastoral counseling services within the context of  his  or
    18  her ministerial charge or obligation.
    19    §  2.  Subdivision 4 of section 130.10 of the penal law, as amended by
    20  section 2 of part JJ of chapter 55 of the laws of 2018,  is  amended  to
    21  read as follows:
    22    4. In any prosecution under this article in which the victim's lack of
    23  consent  is  based solely on his or her incapacity to consent because he
    24  or she was less than seventeen years old, mentally disabled, a client or
    25  patient and the actor is a health care provider, a member or adherent of

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02580-01-3
        S. 557                              2

     1  an organized church or religious group and the actor is a member of  the
     2  clergy  or  other  minister of any religion or duly accredited Christian
     3  science practitioner, detained or otherwise in custody of  law  enforce-
     4  ment  under  the circumstances described in paragraph (j) of subdivision
     5  three of section 130.05 of this article, or committed to  the  care  and
     6  custody or supervision of the state department of corrections and commu-
     7  nity supervision or a hospital and the actor is an employee, it shall be
     8  a  defense  that  the  defendant was married to the victim as defined in
     9  subdivision four of section 130.00 of this article.
    10    § 3. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
    11  have become a law.