NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A1906
SPONSOR: Glick TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to establishing the crime of
assault of a protester in the first, second, and third degrees
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this legislation is to establish the crime of assault of
a protester in the first, second, and third degrees.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one amends the penal law by adding new section 120.80, estab-
lishing the crime of assault of a protester in the third degree.
Section two amends the penal law by adding new section 120.85, estab-
lishing the crime of assault of a protester in the second degree.
Section three amends the penal law by adding new section 120.90, estab-
lishing the crime of assault of a protester in the first degree.
Section four makes the term of imprisonment for assault of a protester
in the first degree run consecutive to any other term of imprisonment.
Section five adds assault of a prisoner in the first and second degrees
to the list of violent felonies.
Section six sets the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Both federal and New York State constitutions protect the freedom of
peaceful assembly. There is a growing trend of protesters being
assaulted as they exercise their right to protest. These assaults
commonly take the form of the attacker using a motor vehicle as a weapon
to crash into protesters. A number of recent cases of assaults on
protesters in New York have led to misdemeanor charges. The added crimes
of assaulting protesters established in this bill carry harsher penal-
ties than assaults under 120.00, 120.05, and 120.10 of the penal code,
ensuring that individuals who assault others as they exercise their
right to protest may be charged and sentenced accordingly.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2021-22: A.7037 Referred to Codes
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeeding the
date on which it shall have become a law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1906
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 23, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. GLICK -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Codes
AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to establishing the crime of
assault of a protester in the first, second, and third degrees
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 120.80 to
2 read as follows:
3 § 120.80 Assault of a protester in the third degree.
4 A person is guilty of assault of a protester in the third degree when,
5 with intent to cause physical injury to another person who is engaged in
6 protest activities, he or she causes such injury to such person or to a
7 third person.
8 For the purposes of this section, "protest activities" shall mean
9 peaceful picketing or other peaceful demonstration, protected from legal
10 prohibition by the federal and state constitutions.
11 Assault of a protester in the third degree is a class E felony.
12 § 2. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 120.85 to read
13 as follows:
14 § 120.85 Assault of a protester in the second degree.
15 A person is guilty of assault of a protester in the second degree
16 when:
17 1. With intent to cause serious physical injury to another person who
18 is engaged in protest activities, he or she causes such injury to such
19 person or to a third person; or
20 2. With intent to cause physical injury to another person who is
21 engaged in protest activities, he or she causes such injury to such
22 person or to a third person by means of a deadly weapon or a dangerous
23 instrument.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03180-01-3
A. 1906 2
1 For the purposes of this section, "protest activities" shall mean
2 peaceful picketing or other peaceful demonstration, protected from legal
3 prohibition by the federal and state constitutions.
4 Assault of a protester in the second degree is a class C felony.
5 § 3. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 120.90 to read
6 as follows:
7 § 120.90 Assault of a protester in the first degree.
8 A person is guilty of assault of a protester in the first degree when,
9 with intent to cause serious physical injury to another person who is
10 engaged in protest activities, he or she causes such injury to such
11 person or to a third person by means of a deadly weapon or a dangerous
12 instrument.
13 For the purposes of this section, "protest activities" shall mean
14 peaceful picketing or other peaceful demonstration, protected from legal
15 prohibition by the federal and state constitutions.
16 Assault of a protester in the first degree is a class B felony.
17 § 4. The opening paragraph of subdivision 1 of section 70.25 of the
18 penal law, as amended by chapter 372 of the laws of 1981, is amended and
19 a new subdivision 6 is added to read as follows:
20 Except as provided in subdivisions two, two-a [and], five, and six of
21 this section, when multiple sentences of imprisonment are imposed on a
22 person at the same time, or when a person who is subject to any undisc-
23 harged term of imprisonment imposed at a previous time by a court of
24 this state is sentenced to an additional term of imprisonment, the
25 sentence or sentences imposed by the court shall run either concurrently
26 or consecutively with respect to each other and the undischarged term or
27 terms in such manner as the court directs at the time of sentence. If
28 the court does not specify the manner in which a sentence imposed by it
29 is to run, the sentence shall run as follows:
30 6. When a person is convicted of assault of a protester in the first
31 degree, as defined in section 120.90 of this chapter, any term of impri-
32 sonment which may be imposed as a sentence upon such conviction shall
33 run consecutively to any undischarged term of imprisonment to which the
34 defendant was subject and for which he was confined at the time of the
35 assault.
36 § 5. Paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdivision 1 of section 70.02 of the
37 penal law, paragraph (a) as amended by chapter 189 of the laws of 2018
38 and paragraph (b) as amended by chapter 94 of the laws of 2020, are
39 amended to read as follows:
40 (a) Class B violent felony offenses: an attempt to commit the class
41 A-I felonies of murder in the second degree as defined in section
42 125.25, kidnapping in the first degree as defined in section 135.25, and
43 arson in the first degree as defined in section 150.20; manslaughter in
44 the first degree as defined in section 125.20, aggravated manslaughter
45 in the first degree as defined in section 125.22, rape in the first
46 degree as defined in section 130.35, criminal sexual act in the first
47 degree as defined in section 130.50, aggravated sexual abuse in the
48 first degree as defined in section 130.70, course of sexual conduct
49 against a child in the first degree as defined in section 130.75;
50 assault in the first degree as defined in section 120.10, kidnapping in
51 the second degree as defined in section 135.20, burglary in the first
52 degree as defined in section 140.30, arson in the second degree as
53 defined in section 150.15, robbery in the first degree as defined in
54 section 160.15, sex trafficking as defined in paragraphs (a) and (b) of
55 subdivision five of section 230.34, sex trafficking of a child as
56 defined in section 230.34-a, incest in the first degree as defined in
A. 1906 3
1 section 255.27, criminal possession of a weapon in the first degree as
2 defined in section 265.04, criminal use of a firearm in the first degree
3 as defined in section 265.09, criminal sale of a firearm in the first
4 degree as defined in section 265.13, aggravated assault upon a police
5 officer or a peace officer as defined in section 120.11, gang assault in
6 the first degree as defined in section 120.07, assault of a protester in
7 the first degree as defined in section 120.90, intimidating a victim or
8 witness in the first degree as defined in section 215.17, hindering
9 prosecution of terrorism in the first degree as defined in section
10 490.35, criminal possession of a chemical weapon or biological weapon in
11 the second degree as defined in section 490.40, and criminal use of a
12 chemical weapon or biological weapon in the third degree as defined in
13 section 490.47.
14 (b) Class C violent felony offenses: an attempt to commit any of the
15 class B felonies set forth in paragraph (a) of this subdivision; aggra-
16 vated criminally negligent homicide as defined in section 125.11, aggra-
17 vated manslaughter in the second degree as defined in section 125.21,
18 aggravated sexual abuse in the second degree as defined in section
19 130.67, assault on a peace officer, police officer, firefighter or emer-
20 gency medical services professional as defined in section 120.08,
21 assault on a judge as defined in section 120.09, gang assault in the
22 second degree as defined in section 120.06, assault of a protester in
23 the second degree as defined in section 120.85, strangulation in the
24 first degree as defined in section 121.13, aggravated strangulation as
25 defined in section 121.13-a, burglary in the second degree as defined in
26 section 140.25, robbery in the second degree as defined in section
27 160.10, criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree as defined
28 in section 265.03, criminal use of a firearm in the second degree as
29 defined in section 265.08, criminal sale of a firearm in the second
30 degree as defined in section 265.12, criminal sale of a firearm with the
31 aid of a minor as defined in section 265.14, aggravated criminal
32 possession of a weapon as defined in section 265.19, soliciting or
33 providing support for an act of terrorism in the first degree as defined
34 in section 490.15, hindering prosecution of terrorism in the second
35 degree as defined in section 490.30, and criminal possession of a chemi-
36 cal weapon or biological weapon in the third degree as defined in
37 section 490.37.
38 § 6. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
39 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
