What's happening
This bill amends New York penal law to establish that individuals under arrest or in custody cannot legally consent to sex with law enforcement officers.
Why it matters
Closes a legal loophole that previously allowed law enforcement officers to claim sexual encounters with individuals in their custody were consensual, strengthening protections for people under arrest or detention.
Shifts the legal standard by automatically defining individuals under arrest, detention, or custody as incapable of consenting to sex with law enforcement, reducing ambiguity and the burden on victims to prove lack of consent.
Addresses power imbalances and the potential for coercion or abuse by police, reinforcing that the custodial relationship makes true consent impossible, which could help deter misconduct and improve accountability.
Aligns treatment of law enforcement with existing rules for other authority figures (like healthcare providers or corrections officers), signaling a broader commitment to safeguarding vulnerable individuals from sexual exploitation.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Ban Police-Custody Consent
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Committed to rules
- Advanced to third reading
- 2nd report cal.
- 1st report cal.631
- Referred to codes
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Ban Police-Custody Consent
In Senate Committee · Codes · Sponsor Edward Braunstein
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
7708
IN SENATE
February 9, 2018
Introduced by Sen. LANZA -- 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 establishing incapacity to consent when a person is under arrest, in detention or otherwise in actual custody
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 3 of section 130.05 of the penal law is amended by adding a new paragraph (j) to read as follows:
(j) under arrest, in detention or otherwise in the actual custody of a police officer, peace officer or other law enforcement official and the actor is a police officer, peace officer or other law enforcement official who either: (i) is responsible for effecting the arrest of such person or maintaining such person in detention or actual custody; or (ii) knows, or reasonably should know, that such person is under such arrest, detention or actual custody.
§ 2. Subdivision 4 of section 130.10 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 205 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
4. In any prosecution under this article in which the victim's lack of consent is based solely on his or her incapacity to consent because he or she was less than seventeen years old, mentally disabled, a client or patient and the actor is a health care provider, under arrest, in detention or otherwise in actual custody of law enforcement under the circumstances described in paragraph (j) of subdivision three of section 130.05 of this article, or committed to the care and custody or supervision of the state department of corrections and community supervision or a hospital and the actor is an employee, it shall be a defense that the defendant was married to the victim as defined in subdivision four of section 130.00 of this article.
§ 3. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13726-04-8
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 estab- lishing incapacity to consent when a person is under arrest, in detention or otherwise in actual custody
Purpose or general idea of bill
Relates to establishing incapacity to consent when a person is under arrest, detention or otherwise in actual custody.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1 of the bill amends Subdivision 3 of Section 130.05 of the Penal Law by adding a new paragraph (j) to establish an incapacity to consent when a person is under arrest, detention or otherwise in the actual custody of a police officer, peace officer or other law enforce- ment official and the actor is a police officer, peace officer or other law enforcement official who is responsible for effecting the arrest of such person or maintaining such person in detention or actual custody; or knows or reasonably should know, that such person is under such arrest, detention or actual custody.
Section 2 of the bill amends Subdivision 4 of Section 130.10 of the Penal Law to establish a similar incapacity to consent when the victim is under seventeen years of age, mentally disabled, or is a client or patient and the actor is a health care provider.
Justification
On September 15, 2017, two Brooklyn detectives allegedly forced an 18 year-old woman to perform sex acts in exchange for being released with- out being charged. The officers, attempting to use a loophole in the state penal code, have claimed that the sex was consensual.
While state law prohibits sexual contact between corrections officers and parole officers and those in their custody, the penal code does not include a similar provision for police officers. This bill would amend state law to ensure that incidents of sexual contact between a police officer and someone under arrest, temporarily detained, or otherwise subject to law enforcement activity would also be prohibited under the penal code.
Prior legislative history
This is a new bill.
Fiscal impact
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall become a law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.