What's happening
This bill creates criminal penalties for damaging military monuments, making desecration a class A misdemeanor in New York.
Why it matters
Expands criminal law to specifically protect military monuments. , meaning anyone who damages these monuments without authorization can be prosecuted even if other property damage laws might not apply—highlighting the state's particular interest in honoring military service and history.
Defines "military monument" broadly. to include any property erected to honor current or former armed forces members or commemorate military actions, so the law would cover a wide range of memorials, from small plaques to large statues or memorial parks.
Establishes targeted community service requirements for offenders. , including potential mandatory repair or maintenance work on military monuments as a condition of probation or discharge, reflecting a restorative justice approach and aiming to directly address the harm caused.
Signals heightened societal value and protection for military history. , which may influence public attitudes and governmental priorities around preservation, potentially impacting future funding, maintenance, or even the way new monuments are considered or constructed.
Albany, before your first meeting.
Every bill that moved yesterday, summarized in a sentence and ranked by impact. The Albany Scorecard follows on Sundays.
Free. Unsubscribe in one click. Want alerts on specific bills? Create an account.
Who cares
Current and former armed forces members
The bill would make intentional, unauthorized damage to monuments honoring military members or commemorating military actions or battles a class A misdemeanor.
Prosecutors
The bill would create a specific military monument desecration offense covering damage to real or personal property maintained as such a monument.
Courts and defendants
For convictions or attempted offenses resulting in probation or conditional discharge, the bill would provide for community service where appropriate, including military monument maintenance and repair, subject to the defendant’s consent to the service terms.
Military monument maintenance workers and service contractors
The bill would extend community service provisions to military monuments while retaining protections against displacing workers, impairing service contracts or assigning service at establishments involved in strikes or lockouts.
Headline styles
Criminalize Defacing Military Monuments
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Referred to codes
- Referred to codes
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1891
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 17, 2019
Introduced by M. of A. ZEBROWSKI, ABBATE, HEVESI, SCHIMMINGER, LUPARDO, GALEF, L. ROSENTHAL, GUNTHER, CUSICK -- read once and referred to the Committee on Codes
AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to providing certain criminal penalties for damage to military monuments
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 145.24 to read as follows: § 145.24 Desecration of a military monument.
A person is guilty of desecration of a military monument when with intent to damage property, and having no right to do so nor any reasonable ground to believe that he or she has such right, he or she damages any real or personal property maintained as a military monument. A "military monument", for the purposes of this section, is any monument that was erected with the intent to honor a current or former member or members of the armed forces or to mark or commemorate a past military action or battle.
Desecration of a military monument is a class A misdemeanor.
§ 2. Section 60.29 of the penal law, as added by chapter 165 of the laws of 1997, is amended to read as follows: § 60.29 Authorized disposition; cemetery or military monument dese-
cration.
When a person is convicted of an offense defined in section 145.22 [or], 145.23 or 145.24 of this chapter or of an attempt to commit such an offense, and the sentence imposed by the court for such conviction includes a sentence of probation or conditional discharge, such sentence shall, where appropriate, be in accordance with paragraph (h) of subdivision two of section 65.10 of this [article] title as such section relates to cemetery or military monument crime.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06150-01-9
A. 1891 2
§ 3. Paragraph (h) of subdivision 2 of section 65.10 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 508 of the laws of 2001, is amended to read as follows:
(h) Perform services for a public or not-for-profit corporation, association, institution or agency, including but not limited to services for the division of substance abuse services, services in an appropriate community program for removal of graffiti from public or private property, including any property damaged in the underlying offense, or services for the maintenance and repair of real or personal property maintained as a cemetery plot, grave, burial place or other place of interment of human remains or a military monument. Provided however, that the performance of any such services shall not result in the displacement of employed workers or in the impairment of existing contracts for services, nor shall the performance of any such services be required or permitted in any establishment involved in any labor strike or lockout. The court may establish provisions for the early termination of a sentence of probation or conditional discharge pursuant to the provisions of subdivision three of section 410.90 of the criminal procedure law after such services have been completed. Such sentence may only be imposed upon conviction of a misdemeanor, violation, or class D or class E felony, or a youthful offender finding replacing any such conviction, where the defendant has consented to the amount and conditions of such service;
§ 4. 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.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.