What's happening
This bill prohibits male correction officers from pat frisking female inmates except in cases of immediate safety or escape risk.
Why it matters
Addresses concerns about privacy and dignity for incarcerated women. by limiting cross-gender pat frisks, which have historically been linked to trauma and allegations of sexual harassment or abuse in correctional settings.
Narrows exceptions to cases of immediate safety or escape risk. , meaning routine or convenience-based searches by male officers are no longer allowed, potentially reducing unnecessary distress and vulnerability among female inmates.
Extends protections to county jails as well as state prisons. , ensuring that the new pat frisk limitations apply broadly across New York’s correctional system and not just at the state level.
May require operational changes. such as increased staffing of female officers or updated training protocols, which could impact how correctional facilities manage searches and respond to emergent situations.
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Who cares
Female inmates in state prisons and county jails
The bill would prohibit male officers from pat frisking them except under specified immediate-safety or escape-prevention circumstances.
Male correction officers
They would need probable cause to believe a pat frisk of a female inmate is necessary to protect the immediate safety of other inmates or prison employees or to prevent escape.
State prison and county jail administrators
They would be responsible for applying the restriction on male officers pat frisking female inmates in their custody.
Headline styles
Ban Male Pat-Frisks of Women
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to correction
- Referred to correction
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
4102
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 1, 2019
Introduced by M. of A. PRETLOW -- read once and referred to the Committee on Correction
AN ACT to amend the correction law, in relation to prohibiting male correction officers from pat frisking female inmates
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 137 of the correction law is amended by adding a new subdivision 7 to read as follows:
7. No male officer of the department shall pat frisk a female inmate in the custody of the department unless such officer has probable cause to believe that a pat frisk is necessary to protect the immediate safety of other inmates or prison employees or to prevent escape.
§ 2. Section 500-k of the correction law, as amended by chapter 2 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows:
§ 500-k. Treatment of inmates. Subdivisions five [and], six and seven of section one hundred thirty-seven of this chapter, except paragraphs (d) and (e) of subdivision six of such section, relating to the treatment of inmates in state correctional facilities are applicable to inmates confined in county jails; except that the report required by paragraph (f) of subdivision six of such section shall be made to a person designated to receive such report in the rules and regulations of the state commission of correction, or in any county or city where there is a department of correction, to the head of such department.
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04344-01-9
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.