What's happening
This bill creates the crime of "coercive control," making it a felony to severely restrict a family or household member's freedom or finances through intimidation or force.
Why it matters
Addresses Non-Physical Abuse. By criminalizing coercive control, the bill recognizes that abuse can take forms beyond physical violence, including manipulation, isolation, and control over finances. This could offer legal protection to victims who may otherwise struggle to prove harm under current laws focused on physical acts.
Empowers Victims in Close Relationships. The law specifically targets abusive conduct within families or households, acknowledging the unique vulnerabilities faced by partners, relatives, and cohabitating individuals who often have intertwined lives and finances.
Sets Legal Boundaries for Consent and Control. By defining lack of consent as stemming from force or fear of further restriction, the bill clarifies the threshold for criminal behavior, ensuring that only genuinely coercive, non-consensual patterns of conduct are prosecutable.
Includes Safeguards for Legitimate Arrangements. The legislation exempts legal guardianships, powers of attorney, and parental authority over minors, aiming to prevent prosecution of those acting within established, lawful authority, and focusing enforcement on abusive misuse of power.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Outlaw Coercive Control Abuse
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to codes
- 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.
Make Coercive Control Illegal
In Senate Committee · Codes · Sponsor Kevin S. Parker
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
8904
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
December 30, 2019
Introduced by M. of A. HEVESI -- read once and referred to the Committee on Codes
AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to establishing the crime of coercive control
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 135.80 to read as follows: § 135.80 Coercive control.
A person is guilty of coercive control when he or she engages in a course of conduct against a member of his or her same family or household, as defined in section 530.11 of the criminal procedure law, without the victim's consent, which results in limiting or restricting, in full or in part, the victim's behavior, movement, associations or access to or use of his or her own finances or financial information. For the purposes of this section, lack of consent results from forcible compulsion, as defined in subdivision eight of section 130.00 of this title, or from fear that refusal to consent will result in further actions limiting or restricting the victim's behavior, movement, associations or access to or use of his or her own finances or financial information. This section shall not apply to actions taken pursuant to a legal arrangement granting one person power or authority over another person, including, but not limited to, power of attorney arrangements as defined in paragraph (j) of subdivision two of section 5-1501 of the general obligations law, guardians of the property or person as defined in subdivisions (c) and (d) of section 83.03 of the mental hygiene law, or parental control of a minor child.
Coercive control is a class E felony.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11291-01-9
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.