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History
- Referred to crime victims, crime and correction
- Referred to crime victims, crime and correction
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S4965
Title of bill
An act to amend the correction law, in relation to notice of transfer of sex offender to psychiatric hospital
Purpose
To notify the former prosecuting district attorney of a sex offender when such prisoner is transferred from prison to a psychiatric hospital.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 amends paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section 508 of the correction law providing that where a prisoner is a sex offender, as defined by this chapter, the jailer or warden shall notify the district attorney who prosecuted the sex offender of the transfer to the psychiatric hospital.
Section 2 is the effective date.
Justification
In 2014 the most notorious sex offender in Oswego County History, Raymond Younis, was moved out of the maximum security unit at the Marcy Psychiatric Center to a less secure facility in St Lawrence County. Younis had plead guilty in 1998 to 86 counts of sexual abuse involving 17 boys. Authorities say there were even more victims. He is described as the most prolific child molester ever prosecuted in Oswego County. Yet, the office responsible for prosecuting his crimes was never notified of Younis' release to the other facility. Once the Oswego County District Attorney became aware of the plan to release Younis, he immediately called upon the state attorney general to have Younis committed to a more secure psychiatric facility.
The St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center offers a special sex offender treatment program. However, in an article chronicling Younis' release, a spokesperson for the State Office of Mental Health describes the facility as being "equal to a medium security prison." Even if this location is a proper facility for Younis, District Attorneys should be kept apprised of attempts to move convicted sex offenders to psychiatric facilities. This legislation requires that all district attorneys who prosecuted the sex offender are notified when the individual is transferred to a psychiatric hospital. This is a laudable objective and for all of these reasons it is imperative that this bill is enacted.
Prior legislative history
New bill.
Fiscal implications
Minimal.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.