Bill Text: NY S05309 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Relates to orders of protection with respect to companion animals; provides further protection for pets by authorizing the court to order a party to either relinquish a pet or to refrain from any contact with a pet.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - REFERRED TO CHILDREN AND FAMILIES [S05309 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S05309-Introduced.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          5309

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                      March 1, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  WEIK  --  read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Children and Families

        AN ACT to amend the family court act, the criminal procedure law and the
          domestic relations law, in relation to an  order  of  protection  with
          respect to companion animals

          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 352.3 of the family court act,  as
     2  amended  by  chapter  261  of  the  laws  of 2020, is amended to read as
     3  follows:
     4    (1) Upon the issuance of an order pursuant to  section  315.3  or  the
     5  entry  of an order of disposition pursuant to section 352.2, a court may
     6  enter an order of protection  against  any  respondent  for  good  cause
     7  shown. The order may require that the respondent: (a) stay away from the
     8  home,  school,  business  or  place  of employment of the victims of the
     9  alleged offense; or (b) refrain from harassing, intimidating,  threaten-
    10  ing  or  otherwise interfering with the victim or victims of the alleged
    11  offense and such members of the family or household of  such  victim  or
    12  victims  as  shall  be specifically named by the court in such order; or
    13  (c) refrain from intentionally injuring or killing,  without  justifica-
    14  tion,  any companion animal the respondent knows to be owned, possessed,
    15  leased, kept or held by the [person protected by the  order]  petitioner
    16  or  a  minor  child  residing  in  [such  person's]  the petitioner's or
    17  respondent's household; or (d) refrain  from  remotely  controlling  any
    18  connected  devices affecting the home, vehicle or property of the person
    19  protected by the order. Such order may also  grant  the  petitioner  the
    20  exclusive  care,  custody  or  control  of  any  animal  that  is owned,
    21  possessed, leased, kept or held by the petitioner, the respondent  or  a
    22  minor  child residing in the residence or household of the petitioner or
    23  respondent, and order the respondent to stay away from  the  animal  and
    24  forbid the respondent from taking, transferring, concealing, harming, or

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00725-01-3

        S. 5309                             2

     1  otherwise  disposing  of the animal. "Companion animal", as used in this
     2  subdivision, shall have the same  meaning  as  in  subdivision  five  of
     3  section  three  hundred  fifty  of  the  agriculture  and  markets  law.
     4  "Connected  device", as used in this subdivision, shall mean any device,
     5  or other physical object that is capable of connecting to the  internet,
     6  directly  or  indirectly,  and  that  is  assigned  an internet protocol
     7  address or bluetooth address.
     8    § 2. Paragraph 1 of subdivision (h) of section 446 of the family court
     9  act, as amended by chapter 526 of the laws of 2013, is amended  to  read
    10  as follows:
    11    1.  to  refrain from intentionally injuring or killing, without justi-
    12  fication, any  companion  animal  the  respondent  knows  to  be  owned,
    13  possessed,  leased,  kept or held by the [person protected by the order]
    14  petitioner or a minor child residing in [such person's] the petitioner's
    15  or respondent's household. Such order may also grant the petitioner  the
    16  exclusive  care,  custody  or  control  of  any  animal  that  is owned,
    17  possessed, leased, kept or held by the petitioner, the respondent  or  a
    18  minor  child residing in the residence or household of the petitioner or
    19  the respondent, and order the respondent to stay away  from  the  animal
    20  and  forbid  the respondent from taking, transferring, concealing, harm-
    21  ing, or otherwise disposing of the animal.
    22    § 3. Paragraph 1 of subdivision (i) of section 551 of the family court
    23  act, as amended by chapter 526 of the laws of 2013, is amended  to  read
    24  as follows:
    25    1.  to  refrain from intentionally injuring or killing, without justi-
    26  fication, any  companion  animal  the  respondent  knows  to  be  owned,
    27  possessed,  leased,  kept or held by the [person protected by the order]
    28  petitioner or a minor child residing in [such person's] the petitioner's
    29  or respondent's household. Such order may also grant the petitioner  the
    30  exclusive  care,  custody  or  control  of  any  animal  that  is owned,
    31  possessed, leased, kept or held by the petitioner, the respondent  or  a
    32  minor  child residing in the residence or household of the petitioner or
    33  the respondent, and order the respondent to stay away  from  the  animal
    34  and  forbid  the respondent from taking, transferring, concealing, harm-
    35  ing, or otherwise disposing of the animal.
    36    § 4. Paragraph 1 of subdivision (i) of section 656 of the family court
    37  act, as amended by chapter 526 of the laws of 2013, is amended  to  read
    38  as follows:
    39    1.  to  refrain from intentionally injuring or killing, without justi-
    40  fication, any  companion  animal  the  respondent  knows  to  be  owned,
    41  possessed,  leased,  kept  or  held  by  the petitioner or a minor child
    42  residing in the petitioner's or respondent's household. Such  order  may
    43  also  grant the petitioner the exclusive care, custody or control of any
    44  animal that is owned, possessed, leased, kept or held by the petitioner,
    45  the respondent or a minor child residing in the residence  or  household
    46  of  the  petitioner  or the respondent, and order the respondent to stay
    47  away from the animal and  forbid  the  respondent  from  taking,  trans-
    48  ferring, concealing, harming, or otherwise disposing of the animal.
    49    § 5. Paragraph 1 of subdivision (h) of section 759 of the family court
    50  act,  as  amended by chapter 261 of the laws of 2020, is amended to read
    51  as follows:
    52    1. to refrain from intentionally injuring or killing,  without  justi-
    53  fication,  any  companion  animal  the  respondent  knows  to  be owned,
    54  possessed, leased, kept or held by the [person protected by  the  order]
    55  petitioner or a minor child residing in [such person's] the petitioner's
    56  or  respondent's household. Such order may also grant the petitioner the

        S. 5309                             3

     1  exclusive care,  custody  or  control  of  any  animal  that  is  owned,
     2  possessed,  leased,  kept or held by the petitioner, the respondent or a
     3  minor child residing in the residence or household of the petitioner  or
     4  the  respondent,  and  order the respondent to stay away from the animal
     5  and forbid the respondent from taking, transferring,  concealing,  harm-
     6  ing, or otherwise disposing of the animal.
     7    § 6. Paragraph 1 of subdivision (i) of section 842 of the family court
     8  act,  as  amended by chapter 335 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read
     9  as follows:
    10    1. to refrain from intentionally injuring or killing,  without  justi-
    11  fication,  any  companion  animal  the  respondent  knows  to  be owned,
    12  possessed, leased, kept or held by  the  petitioner  or  a  minor  child
    13  residing  in  the petitioner's or respondent's household. Such order may
    14  also grant the petitioner the exclusive care, custody or control of  any
    15  animal that is owned, possessed, leased, kept or held by the petitioner,
    16  the  respondent  or a minor child residing in the residence or household
    17  of the petitioner or the respondent, and order the  respondent  to  stay
    18  away  from  the  animal  and  forbid  the respondent from taking, trans-
    19  ferring, concealing, harming, or otherwise disposing of the animal.
    20    § 7. Subparagraph 1 of paragraph (g) of subdivision 1 of section  1056
    21  of  the family court act, as amended by chapter 526 of the laws of 2013,
    22  is amended to read as follows:
    23    1. to refrain from intentionally injuring or killing,  without  justi-
    24  fication,  any  companion  animal  the  respondent  knows  to  be owned,
    25  possessed, leased, kept or held by the [person protected by  the  order]
    26  petitioner or a minor child residing in [such person's] the petitioner's
    27  or  respondent's household. Such order may also grant the petitioner the
    28  exclusive care,  custody  or  control  of  any  animal  that  is  owned,
    29  possessed,  leased,  kept or held by the petitioner, the respondent or a
    30  minor child residing in the residence or household of the petitioner  or
    31  the  respondent,  and  order the respondent to stay away from the animal
    32  and forbid the respondent from taking, transferring,  concealing,  harm-
    33  ing, or otherwise disposing of the animal.
    34    § 8. Clause (A) of subparagraph 6 of paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of
    35  section  530.12 of the criminal procedure law, as amended by chapter 526
    36  of the laws of 2013, is amended to read as follows:
    37    (A) to refrain from intentionally injuring or killing, without  justi-
    38  fication,  any  companion  animal  the  defendant  knows  to  be  owned,
    39  possessed, leased, kept or held by the victim or a minor child  residing
    40  in  the victim's or defendant's household. Such order may also grant the
    41  victim the exclusive care, custody or control  of  any  animal  that  is
    42  owned, possessed, leased, kept or held by the victim, the defendant or a
    43  minor  child residing in the residence or household of the victim or the
    44  defendant, and order the defendant to stay  away  from  the  animal  and
    45  forbid  the defendant from taking, transferring, concealing, harming, or
    46  otherwise disposing of the animal.
    47    § 9. Subparagraph 1 of paragraph  (c)  of  subdivision  1  of  section
    48  530.13  of  the criminal procedure law, as amended by chapter 261 of the
    49  laws of 2020, is amended to read as follows:
    50    1. to refrain from intentionally injuring or killing,  without  justi-
    51  fication,  any  companion  animal  the  defendant  knows  to  be  owned,
    52  possessed, leased, kept or held by such victim or  victims  or  a  minor
    53  child  residing  in such victim's or victims' household.  Such order may
    54  also grant the victim the exclusive care,  custody  or  control  of  any
    55  animal that is owned, possessed, leased, kept or held by the victim, the
    56  defendant or a minor child residing in the residence or household of the

        S. 5309                             4

     1  victim  or  the defendant, and order the defendant to stay away from the
     2  animal and forbid the defendant from taking,  transferring,  concealing,
     3  harming, or otherwise disposing of the animal.
     4    § 10. Subparagraph 7 of paragraph a of subdivision 3 of section 240 of
     5  the  domestic  relations  law,  as amended by chapter 526 of the laws of
     6  2013, is amended to read as follows:
     7    (7) to refrain from intentionally injuring or killing, without  justi-
     8  fication,  any  companion  animal  the  respondent  knows  to  be owned,
     9  possessed, leased, kept or held by the [person protected by  the  order]
    10  petitioner or a minor child residing in [such person's] the petitioner's
    11  or  respondent's household. Such order may also grant the petitioner the
    12  exclusive care,  custody  or  control  of  any  animal  that  is  owned,
    13  possessed,  leased,  kept or held by the petitioner, the respondent or a
    14  minor child residing in the residence or household of the petitioner  or
    15  the  respondent,  and  order the respondent to stay away from the animal
    16  and forbid the respondent from taking, transferring,  concealing,  harm-
    17  ing,  or  otherwise disposing of the animal. "Companion animal," as used
    18  in this section, shall have the same meaning as in subdivision  five  of
    19  section three hundred fifty of the agriculture and markets law;
    20    §  11.  Paragraph  (g) of subdivision 1 of section 252 of the domestic
    21  relations law, as amended by chapter 526 of the laws of 2013, is amended
    22  to read as follows:
    23    (g) to refrain from intentionally injuring or killing, without  justi-
    24  fication,  any  companion  animal  the  respondent  knows  to  be owned,
    25  possessed, leased, kept or held by the [person protected by  the  order]
    26  petitioner or a minor child residing in [such person's] the petitioner's
    27  or respondent's household.  Such order may also grant the petitioner the
    28  exclusive  care,  custody  or  control  of  any  animal  that  is owned,
    29  possessed, leased, kept or held by the petitioner, the respondent  or  a
    30  minor  child residing in the residence or household of the petitioner or
    31  the respondent, and order the respondent to stay away  from  the  animal
    32  and  forbid  the respondent from taking, transferring, concealing, harm-
    33  ing, or otherwise disposing of the animal. "Companion animal,"  as  used
    34  in  this  section, shall have the same meaning as in subdivision five of
    35  section three hundred fifty of the agriculture and markets law;
    36    § 12. This act shall take effect immediately.
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