Bill Text: NY S08203 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Relates to sealing of records; authorizes the commissioner of the division of criminal justice services to direct certain records be sealed.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-04-17 - REFERRED TO FINANCE [S08203 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-S08203-Introduced.html

---

                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          8203
                    IN SENATE
                                     April 17, 2018
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  Sen. GALLIVAN -- (at request of the Division of Criminal
          Justice Services) -- read twice and ordered printed, and when  printed
          to be committed to the Committee on Finance
        AN  ACT to amend the executive law and the judiciary law, in relation to
          sealing of records; and to authorize the commissioner of the  division
          of criminal justice services to direct certain records to be sealed
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. The executive law is amended by adding a new section  845-c
     2  to read as follows:
     3    §  845-c. Criminal history record searches; undisposed cases. 1. When,
     4  pursuant to statute or the regulations of  the  division,  the  division
     5  conducts  a  search of its criminal history records and returns a report
     6  thereon, all references to undisposed cases contained in  such  criminal
     7  history record shall be excluded from such report.
     8    2. For purposes of this section, "undisposed case" shall mean a crimi-
     9  nal action or proceeding, other than a criminal action or proceeding for
    10  a class A-I felony, a violent felony offense as defined in section 70.02
    11  of the penal law, a sex offense as defined in article one hundred thirty
    12  of  the penal law, or an offense as defined in section 255.25, 255.26 or
    13  255.27 or article two hundred sixty-three of the penal law, for which:
    14    (a) no conviction or imposition of sentence or other final disposition
    15  has been recorded; and
    16    (b) no entry has been made in the division's criminal history  records
    17  for  a  period  of  at  least  five years preceding the issuance of such
    18  report; and
    19    (c) no warrant is outstanding.
    20    3. When a criminal action in the division's  criminal  history  record
    21  repository  becomes  an  undisposed  case  pursuant to this section, the
    22  division shall notify the district attorney  in  the  county  which  has
    23  jurisdiction.  If  the district attorney notifies the division that such
    24  case is pending and should not meet  the  definition  of  an  undisposed
    25  case, the case shall not be excluded from such report.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD14433-01-8
        S. 8203                             2
     1    4.  The  provisions of subdivision one of this section shall not apply
     2  to criminal history record information (a) provided by the  division  to
     3  qualified  agencies pursuant to subdivision six of section eight hundred
     4  thirty-seven of this article, or to federal  or  state  law  enforcement
     5  agencies,  for criminal justice purposes; (b) prepared solely for a bona
     6  fide research purpose; or (c) prepared for the internal  record  keeping
     7  or case management purposes of the division.
     8    §  2.  Subdivision 2 of section 212 of the judiciary law is amended by
     9  adding a new paragraph (w) to read as follows:
    10    (w) Take such actions and adopt such measures as may be  necessary  to
    11  ensure that no written or electronic report of a criminal history record
    12  search  conducted  by  the  office of court administration, other than a
    13  search conducted solely for the internal recordkeeping or  case  manage-
    14  ment  purposes  of  the  judiciary  or for a bona fide research purpose,
    15  contains information relating to an undisposed  case.  For  purposes  of
    16  this  paragraph,  "undisposed  case"  shall  mean  a  criminal action or
    17  proceeding, other than a criminal action or proceeding for a  class  A-I
    18  felony,  a  violent  felony  offense  as defined in section 70.02 of the
    19  penal law, a sex offense as defined in article one hundred thirty of the
    20  penal law, or an offense as defined in section 255.25, 255.26 or  255.27
    21  or article two hundred sixty-three of the penal law, for which:
    22    (i) no conviction or imposition of sentence or other final disposition
    23  has been recorded; and
    24    (ii) no entry has been made in the division's criminal history records
    25  for  a  period  of  at  least  five years preceding the issuance of such
    26  report; and
    27    (iii) no warrant is outstanding.
    28    Nothing contained in this paragraph  shall  be  deemed  to  permit  or
    29  require  the release, disclosure or other dissemination by the office of
    30  court administration of criminal history  record  information  that  has
    31  been sealed in accordance with law.
    32    §  3. The commissioner of the division of criminal justice services is
    33  authorized to direct that records of any action or proceeding terminated
    34  in favor of the accused, as defined by section 160.50  of  the  criminal
    35  procedure law, on or after September 1, 1976 and before November 1, 1991
    36  maintained by the division of criminal justice services be sealed in the
    37  manner provided for by section 160.50 of the criminal procedure law. The
    38  commissioner  of  the  division  of criminal justice services is further
    39  authorized to direct that records of any action or proceeding terminated
    40  by a conviction for a traffic infraction or a violation,  other  than  a
    41  violation of loitering as described in paragraph (d) of subdivision 1 of
    42  section  160.10  of  the penal law or the violation of operating a motor
    43  vehicle while ability impaired as described in subdivision 1 of  section
    44  1192  of  the  vehicle and traffic law on or after September 1, 1980 and
    45  before November 1, 1991 maintained by the division of  criminal  justice
    46  services  be  sealed in the manner provided for by section 160.55 of the
    47  criminal procedure law.
    48    § 4. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
    49  it shall have become a law and  shall  apply  to  searches  of  criminal
    50  history records conducted on or after such date; provided, however, that
    51  prior to such effective date, the division of criminal justice services,
    52  in consultation with the state administrator of the unified court system
    53  as  well  as  any  other  public or private agency, shall undertake such
    54  measures as may be necessary and  appropriate  to  update  its  criminal
    55  history  records with respect to criminal cases and arrest incidents for
    56  which no final disposition has been reported.