What's happening
This bill authorizes the establishment of veterans treatment courts and allows certain criminal cases to be transferred to these courts.
Why it matters
Expands access to specialized courts for veterans. By authorizing the chief court administrator to establish veterans treatment courts across New York, the bill aims to provide more veterans with access to judicial processes that understand and address the unique challenges faced by those who have served, such as PTSD, substance abuse, or difficulties reintegrating into civilian life.
Creates pathways for transferring criminal cases. The bill outlines specific procedures allowing certain criminal cases—including misdemeanors and felonies—to be moved from standard criminal courts to veterans treatment courts (or human trafficking courts), subject to the consent of district attorneys and other safeguards. This can lead to more tailored, rehabilitative justice approaches for eligible defendants.
Promotes consistency and fairness in case transfers. The law ensures that transfers across county lines or between courts require clear consent from relevant district attorneys, particularly in sensitive cases involving family or household members. This maintains prosecutorial oversight while enabling eligible veterans to access courts better equipped to address their needs.
Potential to reduce recidivism and improve outcomes. Veterans treatment courts are designed to connect defendants to treatment and recovery resources rather than focusing solely on punishment. By expanding their use and clarifying transfer procedures, the bill could help reduce repeat offenses among veterans and support their successful reentry into society.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Create Veterans Treatment Courts
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Print number 5059a
- Amend and recommit to veterans, homeland security and military affairs
- Referred to veterans, homeland security and military affairs
- Referred to veterans, homeland security and military affairs
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.
Create Veterans Treatment Courts
In Assembly Committee · Judiciary · Sponsor Sandy Galef
Full text
3 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
5059--A
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
April 5, 2019
Introduced by Sens. HOYLMAN, ADDABBO, BIAGGI, BROOKS, GOUNARDES -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Veterans, Homeland Security and Military Affairs -recommitted to the Committee on Veterans, Homeland Security and Military Affairs in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the judiciary law, in relation to authorizing the chief administrator of the courts to establish veterans treatment courts; and to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to the removal of certain actions to veterans treatment courts
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 212 of the judiciary law is amended by adding a new paragraph (aa) to read as follows:
(aa) To the extent practicable, establish such number of veterans treatment courts as may be necessary to fulfill the purposes of subdivision four of section 170.15 and subdivision three of section 180.20 of the criminal procedure law.
§ 2. Subdivision 5 of section 170.15 of the criminal procedure law, as added by chapter 191 of the laws of 2018, is amended to read as follows:
5. (a) Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, in any county outside a city having a population of one million or more, upon or after arraignment of a defendant on an information, a simplified information, a prosecutor's information or a misdemeanor complaint pending in a local criminal court, such court may, upon motion of the defendant [and after giving the district attorney an opportunity to be heard, order that the action be removed from the court in which the matter is pending to another local criminal court in the same county, or with consent of the district attorney to another court in an adjoining county, that has been designated as a human trafficking court by the
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11046-06-9
S. 5059--A 2
chief administrator of the courts, and such human trafficking court] to remove the action to a court in an adjoining county that has been designated as a human trafficking court or veterans treatment court by the chief administrator of the courts, and after giving the district attorney an opportunity to be heard and with the consent of the district attorney of the adjoining county, order that the action be removed from the court in which the matter is pending to such human trafficking court or veterans treatment court, whereupon such court may then conduct such action to [judgement] judgment or other final deposition; provided, however, that the consent of the district attorney of the county in which the action and indictment are pending shall be required before the court may order removal hereunder where the accused and the person alleged to be the victim of an offense charged are members of the same family or household as defined in subdivision one of section 530.11 of this chapter; and provided further that an order of removal issued under this subdivision shall not take effect until five days after the date the order is issued unless, prior to such effective date, the human trafficking court or veterans treatment court notifies the court that issued the order that:
i. it will not accept the action, in which event the order shall not take effect; or
ii. it will accept the action on a date prior to such effective date, in which event the order shall take effect upon such prior date.
(b) Upon providing notification pursuant to subparagraph i or ii of paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the human trafficking court or veterans treatment court shall promptly give notice to the defendant, his or her counsel, and the district attorney.
§ 3. Subdivision 4 of section 180.20 of the criminal procedure law, as added by chapter 191 of the laws of 2018, is amended to read as follows:
4. (a) Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, in any county outside a city having a population of one million or more, upon or after arraignment of a defendant on a felony complaint pending in a local criminal court having preliminary jurisdiction thereof, such court may, upon motion of the defendant and after giving the district attorney an opportunity to be heard, order that the action be removed from the court in which the matter is pending to another local criminal court in the same county, or with consent of the district attorney [to another court in] of an adjoining county, to a court in such adjoining county that has been designated as a human trafficking court or veterans treatment court by the chief administrator of the courts, and such human trafficking court or veterans treatment court may then conduct such action to judgment or other final disposition; provided, however, that the consent of the district attorney of the county in which the action is pending shall be required before the court may order removal hereunder where the accused and the person alleged to be the victim of an offense charged are members of the same family or household as defined in subdivision one of section 530.11 of this chapter; and provided further an order of removal issued under this subdivision shall not take effect until five days after the date the order is issued unless, prior to such effective date, the human trafficking court or veterans treatment court notifies the court that issued the order that:
i. it will not accept the action, in which event the order shall not take effect; or
ii. it will accept the action on a date prior to such effective date, in which event the order shall take effect upon such prior date.
S. 5059--A 3
(b) Upon providing notification pursuant to subparagraph i or ii of paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the human trafficking court or veterans treatment court shall promptly give notice to the defendant, his or her counsel and the district attorney.
§ 4. The criminal procedure law is amended by adding a new section 230.21 to read as follows: § 230.21 Removal of action to an adjoining county.
1. In any county outside a city having a population of one million or more, the court may, upon motion of the defendant and after giving the district attorney an opportunity to be heard, and with consent of the district attorney of an adjoining county that has a superior court designated a human trafficking court or veterans treatment court by the chief administrator of the courts, order that the indictment and action be removed from the court in which the matter is pending to such human trafficking court or veterans treatment court, whereupon such court may then conduct such action to judgment or other final disposition; provided, however, that the consent of the district attorney of the county in which the action and indictment are pending shall be required before the court may order removal hereunder where the accused and the person alleged to be the victim of an offense charged are members of the same family or household as defined in subdivision one of section 530.11 of this chapter; and provided further that an order of removal issued under this subdivision shall not take effect until five days after the date the order is issued unless, prior to such effective date, the human trafficking court or veterans treatment court notifies the court that issued the order that:
(a) it will not accept the action, in which event the order shall not take effect, or
(b) it will accept the action on a date prior to such effective date, in which event the order shall take effect upon such prior date.
2. Upon providing notification pursuant to paragraph (a) or (b) of subdivision one of this section, the human trafficking court or veterans treatment court shall promptly give notice to the defendant, his or her counsel and the district attorney of both counties.
§ 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the judiciary law, in relation to authorizing the chief administrator of the courts to establish veterans treatment courts; and to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to the removal of certain actions to veterans treatment courts
Purpose or general idea of bill
The bill will immediately and dramatically increase the number of coun- ties in which veterans charged with criminal offenses have access to the proven benefits of a veterans treatment court. Moreover, this act also calls for the establishment of such number of veteran treatment courts as may be necessary to fulfill the act's purpose to help provide all veterans in the state with access to such courts.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1 of the bill amends section 212 of the Judiciary Law (Functions of the chief administrator of the courts) to allow for the establishment of such a number of veteran treatment courts as may be necessary to fulfill the purpose of this act.
Read the full memo (793 words)
Section 2 of the bill amends section 170.15 of the Criminal Procedure Law (Removal of action from one local criminal court to another) to authorize the removal of a misdemeanor action from a local criminal court to a veterans treatment court in an adjoining county, with the consent of the District Attorney from the receiving county. The bill also requires the consent of the originating county's District Attorney before the court may order removal to a veterans treatment court or human trafficking court in an adjoining county where the accused and victim are family or from the same household.
Section 3 of the bill amends section 180.20 of the Criminal Procedure Law (Proceedings upon felony complaint; removal of action from one local criminal court to another) to authorize the removal of a felony action from a local criminal court to a veterans treatment court in an adjoin- ing county, with the consent of the District Attorney from the receiving county. The bill also requires the consent of the originating county's District Attorney before the court may order removal to a veterans treatment court or human trafficking court in an adjoining county where the accused and victim are family or from the same household.
Section 4 of the bill amends the Criminal Procedure law by adding section 230.21 (Removal of action to an adjoining county) to authorize the removal of a felony action from a superior court to a human traf- ficking or veterans treatment court in an adjoining county, with the consent of the District Attorney from the receiving county. The bill also requires the consent of the originating county's District Attorney before the court may order removal to a veterans treatment court or human trafficking court in an adjoining county where the accused and victim are family or from the same household.
Section 5 of the bill is the effective date. JUSTIFICATION: New York owes an enduring debt to the brave men and women who have served in our nation's armed forces. We must not fail to recognize that when our veterans return from service, their transition to civilian life is not always an easy one and can be marked by depression, other forms of mental illness and substance abuse. In addition, studies have shown that trauma a soldier suffers while deployed is a major contributing factor to low level, but often, persistent, criminal activity.
New York stands in the vanguard for treating veterans who have engaged in criminal conduct following their return to civilian life. In 2008, the nation's first veterans treatment court was started in Buffalo city court. While New York now has thirty-five veterans treatment courts, not all of New York's veterans live in a county that currently has such a court.
In order to broaden the availability of veteran treatment courts to all veterans, this act would authorize the transfer of a criminal case against a veteran where the charges are pending in a criminal court in a county that does not have a veterans treatment court to a veterans treatment court in an adjoining county.
Following the successful "drug hub courts" and "human traffic inter- vention court" models, the process would be triggered by an application by the defendant to the court. After giving the District Attorney of the originating county an opportunity to be heard, and with the consent of the receiving county's District Attorney, the court may order the removal of the action to a veterans treatment court in an adjoining county. The consent of the originating District Attorney would also be required in cases where the accused and victim are family or from the same household.
Legislative history
None, new bill.
Fiscal implications
To be determined.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.