STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1919 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 18, 2019 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. HAWLEY, CROUCH, McDONOUGH, PALUMBO, RAIA -- read once and referred to the Committee on Codes AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to murder in the first degree The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The opening paragraph and subdivision 1 of section 125.27 2 of the penal law, the opening paragraph as added by chapter 367 of the 3 laws of 1974, subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 1 of the laws of 1995, 4 subparagraph (ii-a) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 as added by chap- 5 ter 1 of the laws of 2013, subparagraph (vii) of paragraph (a) of subdi- 6 vision 1 as amended by chapter 264 of the laws of 2003 and subparagraph 7 (xii) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 as amended and subparagraph 8 (xiii) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 as added by chapter 300 of the 9 laws of 2001, is amended and a new subdivision 1-a is added to read as 10 follows: 11 1. A person is guilty of murder in the first degree when[: 12 ~~1. With~~], with intent to cause the death of another person, he causes 13 the death of such person or of a third person; and 14 (a) Either: 15 (i) the intended victim was a police officer as defined in subdivision 16 34 of section 1.20 of the criminal procedure law who was at the time of 17 the killing engaged in the course of performing his official duties, and 18 the defendant knew or reasonably should have known that the intended 19 victim was a police officer; or 20 (ii) the intended victim was a peace officer as defined in paragraph a 21 of subdivision twenty-one, subdivision twenty-three, twenty-four or 22 sixty-two (employees of the division for youth) of section 2.10 of the 23 criminal procedure law who was at the time of the killing engaged in the 24 course of performing his official duties, and the defendant knew or 25 reasonably should have known that the intended victim was such a EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD02115-01-9

A. 1919 2 1 uniformed court officer, parole officer, probation officer, or employee 2 of the division for youth; or 3 (ii-a) the intended victim was a firefighter, emergency medical tech- 4 nician, ambulance driver, paramedic, physician or registered nurse 5 involved in a first response team, or any other individual who, in the 6 course of official duties, performs emergency response activities and 7 was engaged in such activities at the time of killing and the defendant 8 knew or reasonably should have known that the intended victim was such 9 firefighter, emergency medical technician, ambulance driver, paramedic, 10 physician or registered nurse; or 11 (iii) the intended victim was an employee of a state correctional 12 institution or was an employee of a local correctional facility as 13 defined in subdivision two of section forty of the correction law, who 14 was at the time of the killing engaged in the course of performing his 15 official duties, and the defendant knew or reasonably should have known 16 that the intended victim was an employee of a state correctional insti- 17 tution or a local correctional facility; or 18 (iv) at the time of the commission of the killing, the defendant was 19 confined in a state correctional institution or was otherwise in custody 20 upon a sentence for the term of his natural life, or upon a sentence 21 commuted to one of natural life, or upon a sentence for an indeterminate 22 term the minimum of which was at least fifteen years and the maximum of 23 which was natural life, or at the time of the commission of the killing, 24 the defendant had escaped from such confinement or custody while serving 25 such a sentence and had not yet been returned to such confinement or 26 custody; or 27 (v) the intended victim was a witness to a crime committed on a prior 28 occasion and the death was caused for the purpose of preventing the 29 intended victim's testimony in any criminal action or proceeding whether 30 or not such action or proceeding had been commenced, or the intended 31 victim had previously testified in a criminal action or proceeding and 32 the killing was committed for the purpose of exacting retribution for 33 such prior testimony, or the intended victim was an immediate family 34 member of a witness to a crime committed on a prior occasion and the 35 killing was committed for the purpose of preventing or influencing the 36 testimony of such witness, or the intended victim was an immediate fami- 37 ly member of a witness who had previously testified in a criminal action 38 or proceeding and the killing was committed for the purpose of exacting 39 retribution upon such witness for such prior testimony. As used in this 40 subparagraph "immediate family member" means a husband, wife, father, 41 mother, daughter, son, brother, sister, stepparent, grandparent, step- 42 child or grandchild; or 43 (vi) the defendant committed the killing or procured commission of the 44 killing pursuant to an agreement with a person other than the intended 45 victim to commit the same for the receipt, or in expectation of the 46 receipt, of anything of pecuniary value from a party to the agreement or 47 from a person other than the intended victim acting at the direction of 48 a party to such agreement; or 49 (vii) the victim was killed while the defendant was in the course of 50 committing or attempting to commit and in furtherance of robbery, 51 burglary in the first degree or second degree, kidnapping in the first 52 degree, arson in the first degree or second degree, rape in the first 53 degree, criminal sexual act in the first degree, sexual abuse in the 54 first degree, aggravated sexual abuse in the first degree or escape in 55 the first degree, or in the course of and furtherance of immediate 56 flight after committing or attempting to commit any such crime or in the

A. 1919 3 1 course of and furtherance of immediate flight after attempting to commit 2 the crime of murder in the second degree; provided however, the victim 3 is not a participant in one of the aforementioned crimes and, provided 4 further that, unless the defendant's criminal liability under this 5 subparagraph is based upon the defendant having commanded another person 6 to cause the death of the victim or intended victim pursuant to section 7 20.00 of this chapter, this subparagraph shall not apply where the 8 defendant's criminal liability is based upon the conduct of another 9 pursuant to section 20.00 of this chapter; or 10 (viii) as part of the same criminal transaction, the defendant, with 11 intent to cause serious physical injury to or the death of an additional 12 person or persons, causes the death of an additional person or persons; 13 provided, however, the victim is not a participant in the criminal tran- 14 saction; or 15 (ix) prior to committing the killing, the defendant had been convicted 16 of murder as defined in this section or section 125.25 of this article, 17 or had been convicted in another jurisdiction of an offense which, if 18 committed in this state, would constitute a violation of either of such 19 sections; or 20 (x) the defendant acted in an especially cruel and wanton manner 21 pursuant to a course of conduct intended to inflict and inflicting 22 torture upon the victim prior to the victim's death. As used in this 23 subparagraph, "torture" means the intentional and depraved infliction of 24 extreme physical pain; "depraved" means the defendant relished the 25 infliction of extreme physical pain upon the victim evidencing debase- 26 ment or perversion or that the defendant evidenced a sense of pleasure 27 in the infliction of extreme physical pain; or 28 (xi) the defendant intentionally caused the death of two or more addi- 29 tional persons within the state in separate criminal transactions within 30 a period of twenty-four months when committed in a similar fashion or 31 pursuant to a common scheme or plan; or 32 (xii) the intended victim was a judge as defined in subdivision twen- 33 ty-three of section 1.20 of the criminal procedure law and the defendant 34 killed such victim because such victim was, at the time of the killing, 35 a judge; or 36 (xiii) the victim was killed in furtherance of an act of terrorism, as 37 defined in paragraph (b) of subdivision one of section 490.05 of this 38 chapter; and 39 (b) The defendant was more than eighteen years old at the time of the 40 commission of the crime. 41 1-a. A person is guilty of murder in the first degree when, acting 42 either alone or with one or more other persons, he or she commits or 43 attempts to commit rape in the first degree as defined under section 44 130.35 of this title, criminal sexual act in the first degree as defined 45 under section 130.50 of this title, sexual abuse in the first degree as 46 defined under section 130.65 of this title, or in the course of and 47 furtherance of immediate flight after committing or attempting to commit 48 any such crimes, he or she, or another participant if there be any, 49 causes the death of a person other than one of the participants, and the 50 deceased person is found to have been administered any unlawfully 51 controlled substance or any preparation, compound, mixture or substance 52 that requires a prescription to obtain as defined under section 130.90 53 of this title. 54 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

Relates to murder in the first degree

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