Bill Text: NY S05825 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Prohibits the use of cell-site simulators by law enforcement officers; provides a right of action for violations of such prohibition.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - REFERRED TO CODES [S05825 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-S05825-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5825 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN SENATE March 17, 2023 ___________ Introduced by Sen. BRISPORT -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes AN ACT to amend the civil rights law, in relation to prohibiting the use of cell-site simulators by law enforcement officers The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The civil rights law is amended by adding a new article 3-A 2 to read as follows: 3 ARTICLE 3-A 4 PRIVILEGE FROM SURVEILLANCE 5 Section 30. Definitions. 6 31. Prohibition on use; law enforcement. 7 32. Suppression. 8 33. Enforcement. 9 34. Severability. 10 § 30. Definitions. For the purposes of this article, the following 11 terms shall have the following meanings: 12 1. The term "cell-site simulator" means any device that functions as 13 or simulates a base station for commercial mobile services or private 14 mobile services in order to identify, locate, or intercept transmissions 15 from cellular devices for purposes other than providing ordinary commer- 16 cial mobile services or private mobile services. 17 2. The term "law enforcement agency" means a law enforcement agency as 18 defined in subdivision four of section 705.00 of the criminal procedure 19 law. 20 3. The term "law enforcement officer" means a police officer as 21 defined in subdivision thirty-four of section 1.20 of the criminal 22 procedure law. 23 § 31. Prohibition on use; law enforcement. 1. No law enforcement agen- 24 cy or law enforcement officer shall: EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD10073-01-3S. 5825 2 1 (a) obtain, retain, possess, access, sell, or use any prohibited 2 surveillance technology or information derived from a prohibited 3 surveillance technology; 4 (b) enter into an agreement with any third party, including a private 5 entity or a governmental entity, for the purpose of obtaining, access- 6 ing, or using a prohibited surveillance technology or any information 7 derived from the use of a prohibited surveillance technology; or 8 (c) issue any permit or enter into any other agreement that authorizes 9 any third party, on the behalf of a law enforcement agency or law 10 enforcement officer, to obtain, retain, possess, access, sell, or use a 11 prohibited surveillance technology or information derived from a prohib- 12 ited surveillance technology. 13 2. Prohibited surveillance technologies shall include, but shall not 14 be limited to, cell-site simulators. 15 § 32. Suppression. No information obtained in violation of this arti- 16 cle shall be used in any adjudicative proceeding within the authority of 17 the state of New York except as to prove a violation of this article. 18 § 33. Enforcement. 1. Wherever there shall be a violation of this 19 article, an application may be made to the division of human rights to 20 apply to a court or justice having jurisdiction to issue an injunction, 21 and if it shall appear to the satisfaction of the court or justice that 22 the defendant has in fact violated this article an injunction may be 23 issued by such a court or justice enjoining and restraining any further 24 violation without requiring proof that any person has in fact been 25 injured or damaged thereby. 26 2. In addition to the right of action granted to the division of human 27 rights pursuant to this section, any person who has been subjected to 28 the use of a prohibited surveillance technology in violation of this 29 article may bring an action in any court of competent jurisdiction: 30 (a) to enjoin such violation; and 31 (b) to recover actual damages or to receive five thousand dollars each 32 in damages for each individual violation against each individual 33 complainant, whichever is greater; and 34 (c) to recover punitive damages in an appropriate amount for a law 35 enforcement agency's pattern and practice of willful violations of this 36 title. 37 3. Each person affected by the use of a technology prohibited under 38 section thirty-one of this article by a law enforcement agency or law 39 enforcement officer shall be considered to have experienced a separate 40 and distinct violation of this article and may bring an action separate- 41 ly or in the form of a class action to recover in full for each 42 violation. 43 4. A court shall award costs and reasonable attorneys' fees to a 44 plaintiff who is the prevailing party in an action brought under this 45 article. 46 5. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit any individ- 47 ual's rights under state, federal, or local law. 48 § 34. Severability. If any provision of this article or the applica- 49 tion thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, such inva- 50 lidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of the article 51 which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, 52 and to this end the provisions of this article are declared to be sever- 53 able. 54 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
