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History
- Referred to codes
Companion bill
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Increases penalties for criminal use of a firearm in the first degree when committing a drug related felony offense
In Assembly Committee · Codes · Sponsor Thomas McKevitt
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to increasing penalties for criminal use of a firearm in the first degree when committing a drug related felony offense
Purpose
To increase penalties when a firearm is used in a drug related felony offense.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 amends § 265.09 of the Penal Law to include committing any drug related offense as defined in sections 220.31, 220.34, 220.39, 220.41, 220.43, 220.44 and 220.48 of this chapter and provides that the possession element of the crime may be fulfilled by an unloaded deadly weapon. This section further amends § 265.09 of the Penal Law to increase the additional consecutive sentence from the current five to ten years, and adds any drug related felony offense where the person is convicted of such crime displays and loaded or unloaded weapon from which a shot, readily capable of producing death or other serious injury may be discharged or displays what appears to be a pistol, revolver, rifle, shotgun, machine gun or other firearm. The additional sentence shall be imposed by the court regardless of the nature and circumstances of the crime and the history and character of the defendant. The district attorney of any jurisdiction shall be prohibited from dismissing this offense in the course of a plea bargain.
Section 2 provides the effective date.
Existing law
Section 265.09 of the Penal Law currently provides a person is guilty of criminal use of a firearm in the first degree when he commits any class B violent felony offense as defined in § 70.02(1)(a) of the Penal Law and he either possesses a loaded deadly weapon, or displays what appears to be a firearm.
This bill adds the felony offenses defined in §§ 220.31, 220.34, 220.39, 220.41, 220.43, 220.44, 220.48 of the Penal Law and provides that the weapon does not have to be loaded to be guilty of the crime of criminal use of a firearm. Additional sentencing is also required.
Justification
Violence from drug related crimes is an increasing problem which must be deterred. This bill will increase penalties as well as broaden the definition to include a crime committed with an unloaded weapon.
Prior legislative history
A.5766 of 2014- Referred to Codes A.7545 of 2012- Held for consideration in Codes
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it shall have become law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.