What's happening
This bill increases penalties for falsely reporting incidents that result in injury or death to emergency responders or others.
Why it matters
Expands criminal liability. for making false emergency reports that lead to physical injury or death, not just to emergency responders but also to civilians affected by emergency response actions, increasing the consequences for "swatting" and similar dangerous hoaxes.
Specifically includes volunteer emergency workers. (firefighters and ambulance workers) under enhanced protections, recognizing the risks faced by both paid and volunteer responders and ensuring penalties apply equally when they are harmed.
Closes loopholes by updating degree classifications. The bill amends existing law so that if a false report leads to injury or death as a result of actions taken by emergency personnel, the offense is escalated to a higher degree with more severe penalties, even if the original report would have been a lower-degree crime.
Aims to deter dangerous false reporting. by highlighting and penalizing the real-world harms these hoaxes can cause—not just public panic but also the risk of serious injury or death to those responding or affected by emergency actions.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Tougher Penalties for False Reports
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
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History
- Referred to codes
Full text
3 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
7338
IN SENATE
January 8, 2018
Introduced by Sen. GOLDEN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes
AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to falsely reporting an incident
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivisions 2 and 3 of section 240.55 of the penal law, subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 561 of the laws 1999, and subdivision 3 as added by chapter 301 of the laws of 2001 and as renumbered by chapter 302 of the laws of 2001, are amended and a new subdivision 4 is added to read as follows:
2. Reports, by word or action, to any official or quasi-official agency or organization having the function of dealing with emergencies involving danger to life or property, an alleged occurrence or impending occurrence of a fire, explosion, or the release of a hazardous substance which did not in fact occur or does not in fact exist; [or]
3. Knowing the information reported, conveyed or circulated to be false or baseless and under circumstances in which it is likely public alarm or inconvenience will result, he or she initiates or circulates a report or warning of an alleged occurrence or an impending occurrence of a fire, an explosion, or the release of a hazardous substance upon any private premises[.]; or
4. Commits the crime of falsely reporting an incident in the third degree as defined in subdivisions two and three of section 240.50 of this article and another person suffers physical injury as a result of the action undertaken by an employee or member of any official or quasi-official agency or organization having the function of dealing with emergencies involving danger to life or property; or who is a volunteer firefighter with a fire department, fire company, or any unit thereof as defined in the volunteer firefighters' benefit law; or who is a volunteer ambulance worker with a volunteer ambulance corporation or any unit thereof as defined in the volunteer ambulance workers' benefit law in response to such false report.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14080-02-8
S. 7338 2
§ 2. Section 240.60 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 528 of the laws of 1995, subdivision 5 as added by chapter 561 of the laws of 1999 and subdivision 6 and the closing paragraph as amended by chapter 301 of the laws of 2001, is amended to read as follows: § 240.60 Falsely reporting an incident in the first degree.
A person is guilty of falsely reporting an incident in the first degree when he or she:
1. commits the crime of falsely reporting an incident in the second degree as defined in section 240.55 of this article, and has previously been convicted of that crime; or
2. commits the crime of falsely reporting an incident in the third degree as defined in subdivisions one and two of section 240.50 of this article or falsely reporting an incident in the second degree as defined in subdivisions one and two of section 240.55 of this article and another person who is an employee or member of any official or quasi-official agency having the function of dealing with emergencies involving danger to life or property; or who is a volunteer firefighter with a fire department, fire company, or any unit thereof as defined in the volunteer firefighters' benefit law; or who is a volunteer ambulance worker with a volunteer ambulance corporation or any unit thereof as defined in the volunteer ambulance workers' benefit law suffers serious physical injury or is killed in the performance of his or her official duties in traveling to or working at or returning to a firehouse, police station, quarters or other base facility from the location identified in such report; or
3. commits the crime of falsely reporting an incident in the third degree as defined in subdivisions one and two of section 240.50 of this article or falsely reporting an incident in the second degree as defined in subdivisions one and two of section 240.55 of this article and another person suffers serious physical injury or is killed as a result of any vehicular or other accident involving any emergency vehicle which is responding to, operating at, or returning from the location identified in such report.
[4.] An emergency vehicle as referred to in this subdivision [three of this section] shall include any vehicle operated by any employee or member of any official or quasi-official agency having the function of dealing with emergencies involving danger to life or property and shall include, but not necessarily be limited to, an emergency vehicle which is operated by a volunteer firefighter with a fire department, fire company, or any unit thereof as defined in the volunteer firefighters' benefit law; or by a volunteer ambulance worker with a volunteer ambulance corporation, or any unit thereof as defined in the volunteer ambulance workers' benefit law[.]; or
4. commits the crime of falsely reporting an incident in the third degree as defined in subdivisions two and three of section 240.50 of this article and another person suffers serious physical injury or death as a result of the action undertaken by an employee or member of any official or quasi-official agency or organization having the function of dealing with emergencies involving danger to life or property; or who is a volunteer firefighter with a fire department, fire company, or any unit thereof as defined in the volunteer firefighters' benefit law; or who is a volunteer ambulance worker with a volunteer ambulance corporation or any unit thereof as defined in the volunteer ambulance workers' benefit law in response to such false report; or
5. [Knowing] knowing the information reported, conveyed or circulated to be false or baseless and under circumstances in which it is likely
S. 7338 3
public alarm or inconvenience will result, [he or she] initiates or circulates a report or warning of an alleged occurrence or an impending occurrence of a fire, an explosion, or the release of a hazardous substance upon school grounds and it is likely that persons are present on said grounds[.]; or
6. [Knowing] knowing the information reported, conveyed or circulated to be false or baseless and under circumstances in which it is likely public alarm or inconvenience will result, [he or she] initiates or circulates a report or warning of an alleged occurrence or impending occurrence of a fire, explosion or the release of a hazardous substance in or upon a sports stadium or arena, mass transportation facility, enclosed shopping mall, any public building or any public place, and it is likely that persons are present. For purposes of this subdivision, the terms "sports stadium or arena, mass transportation facility or enclosed shopping mall" shall have their natural meaning and the term "public building" shall have the meaning set forth in section four hundred one of the executive law.
Falsely reporting an incident in the first degree is a class D felony.
§ 3. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to falsely reporting an incident
Purpose or general idea of bill
To make the false report of an incident which results in injury to another as a result of actions undertaken by any agencies which deal with dangers to life and property, falsely reporting an incident in the third degree. And when such false reporting in results in serious injury or death, falsely reporting an incident in the first degree.
Summary of provisions
Section one adds a new subdivision 4 to section 240.55 of the penal law which provides that a person commits the crime of falsely reporting an incident in the third degree when another person suffers physical injury as a result of the action undertaken by any member of any official or quasi official agency or organization which deals with dangers to life or property; or who is a volunteer firefighter with a fire department, fire company, or any unit as defined in the volunteer firefighters bene- fit law; or who is a volunteer ambulance worker with a volunteer ambu- lance corporation or any unit defined in the volunteer ambulance workers benefit law in response to a false report.
Section two provides that a person is guilty of falsely reporting an incident in the first degree when he or she commits the crime of falsely reporting an incident in the 3rd degree as defined in subdivisions two and three of section 240.55 of this article and another person suffers serious physical injury or death as a result of the action undertaken by an employee or member of any official or quasi official agency or organ- ization which deals with dangers to life or property; or who is a volun- teer firefighter with a fire department, fire company, or 'any unit as defined in the volunteer firefighters benefit law; or who is a volunteer ambulance worker with a volunteer ambulance corporation or any unit defined in the volunteer ambulance workers benefit law in response to a false report.
Section three provides that this law shall take effect on the first of November next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
Existing law
New law
Justification
The phenomenon known as "swatting" occurs when a disgruntled individual calls in a false report of violence to law enforcement authorities. When emergency operators receive such calls, they are trained to act swiftly and, if the situation so warrants, with deadly force in order to prevent loss of life.
A recent incidence of swatting in Kansas illustrates the danger of these false reports. An online argument between players of the popular game Call of Duty turned deadly when one player gave a fake address to a player with whom he was arguing. The false report led a heavily armed SWAT team to descend on the home of an unsuspecting Wichita family. The false report ultimately resulted in the death of the father of the Wichita family, when he was shot to death by police.
It is vital that the State of New York be proactive when it comes to combating false reporting that undermines both the security and safety of our citizens. With this change to the law we can ensure that should any similar incident take place in our state, the penalty will fit the crime.
Prior legislative history
New bill
Fiscal implications
None to the state.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeeding the date on which 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.