Bill Text: NY S09039 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Prohibits the use of the term "excited delirium" as a diagnosis, label, or cause of death on death certificates, autopsy reports, police reports or any report, policy or procedure by a public agency or contractor; prohibits the use of excited delirium as an affirmative defense in a civil case or as a defense in a criminal case; defines excited delirium.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-04-11 - REFERRED TO HEALTH [S09039 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-S09039-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 9039 IN SENATE April 11, 2024 ___________ Introduced by Sen. BROUK -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health AN ACT to amend the public health law, the county law, the executive law, the civil practice law and rules, the criminal procedure law and the labor law, in relation to prohibiting the use of the term excited delirium as a diagnosis, label, or cause of death The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 4 of section 4141 of the public health law is 2 amended by adding a new paragraph (e) to read as follows: 3 (e) No death certificate shall cite excited delirium as a diagnosis, 4 label, cause of death, or contributing factor to any death. For the 5 purposes of this paragraph, the term "excited delirium" shall mean a 6 term used to describe a person's state of agitation, excitability, para- 7 noia, extreme aggression, physical violence, and apparent immunity to 8 pain that is not listed in the most current version of the Diagnostic 9 and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or for which the court finds 10 there is insufficient scientific evidence or diagnostic criteria to be 11 recognized as a medical condition. Excited delirium also includes 12 excited delirium syndrome, excited delirium, hyperactive delirium, 13 agitated delirium, and exhaustive mania. 14 § 2. Section 677 of the county law is amended by adding a new subdivi- 15 sion 2-a to read as follows: 16 2-a. No report of any autopsy or other examination shall cite excited 17 delirium as a cause or means or manner of death. For the purposes of 18 this subdivision, the term "excited delirium" shall mean a term used to 19 describe a person's state of agitation, excitability, paranoia, extreme 20 aggression, physical violence, and apparent immunity to pain that is not 21 listed in the most current version of the Diagnostic and Statistical 22 Manual of Mental Disorders, or for which the court finds there is insuf- 23 ficient scientific evidence or diagnostic criteria to be recognized as a 24 medical condition. Excited delirium also includes excited delirium 25 syndrome, excited delirium, hyperactive delirium, agitated delirium, and 26 exhaustive mania. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD13987-03-4S. 9039 2 1 § 3. The executive law is amended by adding a new section 837-y to 2 read as follows: 3 § 837-y. Prohibition of use of excited delirium. 1. No report by a law 4 enforcement officer or peace officer shall reference excited delirium in 5 such report. 6 2. No law enforcement officer or peace officer shall take any action 7 with respect to an individual in response to such individual being diag- 8 nosed or labeled as having or being in a state of excited delirium. No 9 training shall be provided that requires, encourages, or permits any 10 action in response to an individual being diagnosed or labeled as having 11 or being in a state of excited delirium. 12 3. For the purposes of this section, "excited delirium" shall mean a 13 term used to describe a person's state of agitation, excitability, para- 14 noia, extreme aggression, physical violence, and apparent immunity to 15 pain that is not listed in the most current version of the Diagnostic 16 and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or for which the court finds 17 there is insufficient scientific evidence or diagnostic criteria to be 18 recognized as a medical condition. Excited delirium also includes 19 excited delirium syndrome, excited delirium, hyperactive delirium, 20 agitated delirium, and exhaustive mania. 21 § 4. Subdivision (b) of section 3018 of the civil practice law and 22 rules, as amended by chapter 504 of the laws of 1980, is amended to read 23 as follows: 24 (b) Affirmative defenses. A party shall plead all matters which if not 25 pleaded would be likely to take the adverse party by surprise or would 26 raise issues of fact not appearing on the face of a prior pleading such 27 as arbitration and award, collateral estoppel, culpable conduct claimed 28 in diminution of damages as set forth in article fourteen-A of this 29 chapter, discharge in bankruptcy, facts showing illegality either by 30 statute or common law, fraud, infancy or other disability of the party 31 defending, payment, release, res judicata, statute of frauds, or statute 32 of limitation; provided, however, that a party shall not use excited 33 delirium as a basis for an affirmative defense. For the purposes of 34 this subdivision, "excited delirium" shall mean a term used to describe 35 a person's state of agitation, excitability, paranoia, extreme 36 aggression, physical violence, and apparent immunity to pain that is not 37 listed in the most current version of the Diagnostic and Statistical 38 Manual of Mental Disorders, or for which the court finds there is insuf- 39 ficient scientific evidence or diagnostic criteria to be recognized as a 40 medical condition. Excited delirium also includes excited delirium 41 syndrome, excited delirium, hyperactive delirium, agitated delirium, and 42 exhaustive mania. The application of this subdivision shall not be 43 confined to the instances enumerated. 44 § 5. The civil practice law and rules is amended by adding a new 45 section 4551 to read as follows: 46 § 4551. Excited delirium. 1. Evidence that a plaintiff, or decedent on 47 whose behalf a wrongful death action has been filed, suffered from 48 excited delirium shall be inadmissible, including but not limited to 49 evidence presented by expert witnesses; provided, however, that this 50 section shall not be construed to limit the ability of a defendant to 51 describe the factual circumstances surrounding the subject of the 52 action, including the behavior of a plaintiff, or decedent on whose 53 behalf a wrongful death action has been filed, so long as no diagnosis, 54 cause of death, or label fitting the definition of excited delirium is 55 used.S. 9039 3 1 2. For the purposes of this section, "excited delirium" shall mean a 2 term used to describe a person's state of agitation, excitability, para- 3 noia, extreme aggression, physical violence, and apparent immunity to 4 pain that is not listed in the most current version of the Diagnostic 5 and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or for which the court finds 6 there is insufficient scientific evidence or diagnostic criteria to be 7 recognized as a medical condition. Excited delirium also includes 8 excited delirium syndrome, excited delirium, hyperactive delirium, 9 agitated delirium, and exhaustive mania. 10 § 6. The criminal procedure law is amended by adding a new section 11 60.80 to read as follows: 12 § 60.80 Rules of evidence; excited delirium. 13 1. Excited delirium shall not be used as a defense in a prosecution 14 for any criminal offense. 15 2. Evidence that an alleged victim of a crime suffered from excited 16 delirium shall be inadmissible by a defendant in a criminal proceeding, 17 including but not limited to evidence presented by expert witnesses. 18 3. This section shall not be construed to limit the ability of a 19 defendant to describe the factual circumstances surrounding the subject 20 of a criminal proceeding, including the behavior of an alleged victim, 21 so long as no diagnosis, cause of death, or label fitting the definition 22 of excited delirium is used. 23 4. For the purposes of this section, "excited delirium" shall mean a 24 term used to describe a person's state of agitation, excitability, para- 25 noia, extreme aggression, physical violence, and apparent immunity to 26 pain that is not listed in the most current version of the Diagnostic 27 and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or for which the court finds 28 there is insufficient scientific evidence or diagnostic criteria to be 29 recognized as a medical condition. Excited delirium also includes 30 excited delirium syndrome, excited delirium, hyperactive delirium, 31 agitated delirium, and exhaustive mania. 32 § 7. The labor law is amended by adding a new section 203-g to read as 33 follows: 34 § 203-g. Prohibition of use of excited delirium. 1. As used in this 35 section: 36 (a) "Contractor" means any person, firm, partnership, corporation, 37 association, company, organization or other similar entity, or any 38 combination thereof, including any subcontractor thereof, that employs 39 employees to perform work pursuant to an agreement with a public agency. 40 (b) "Public agency" means the state, and any department, agency, 41 board, bureau, commission, division, council or office of the state or 42 any political subdivision thereof, as defined in section one hundred of 43 the general municipal law, a municipal corporation as defined in section 44 sixty-six of the general construction law and any district thereof, a 45 public benefit corporation, or local or state authority as defined in 46 section two of the public authorities law, and any other entity author- 47 ized and empowered to enter into any contract or arrangement to conduct 48 economic development activity on behalf of any such public agency. 49 (c) "Excited delirium" means a term used to describe a person's state 50 of agitation, excitability, paranoia, extreme aggression, physical 51 violence, and apparent immunity to pain that is not listed in the most 52 current version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental 53 Disorders, or for which the court finds there is insufficient scientific 54 evidence or diagnostic criteria to be recognized as a medical condition. 55 Excited delirium also includes excited delirium syndrome, excited deli- 56 rium, hyperactive delirium, agitated delirium, and exhaustive mania.S. 9039 4 1 2. No employee of a public agency or contractor or employee of a 2 contractor shall issue a diagnosis of excited delirium, report excited 3 delirium as a cause of death or a contributing factor to a death, or 4 conduct any trainings or share materials attesting to the validity of 5 excited delirium as a cause of death. 6 3. No public agency or contractor shall adopt or maintain any policy 7 or procedure, including but not limited to police manuals and trainings, 8 that acknowledges the validity of the diagnosis, cause of death, or 9 label of excited delirium. 10 § 8. This act shall take effect immediately.