Establishes certain offenses based on homicide due to criminal sale of a controlled substance, establishes the offense of criminal sale of a controlled substance to a child in the first degree, expands the definition of controlled substances with respect to certain offenses, increases the felony classification of certain controlled substance offenses and includes electronic prescriptions and blank prescription forms in the definition of certain controlled substance offenses.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A8616
SPONSOR: Kaminsky TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to establishing certain
offenses based on homicide due to criminal sale of a controlled
substance, establishing the offense of criminal sale of a controlled
substance to a child in the first degree, expanding the definition of
controlled substances with respect to certain offenses, increasing the
felony classification of certain controlled substance offenses and
including electronic prescriptions and blank prescription forms in the
definition of certain controlled substance offenses
PURPOSE:
Establishes certain offenses based on homicide due to criminal sale of a
controlled substance and to the criminal sale of a controlled substance
to a child in the first degree.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1. The penal law is amended by adding three new sections 125.28,
125.29 and 125.30.
Section 2. Subdivision 13 of section 220.16 of the penal law, as amended
by chapter 75 of the laws of 1995, is amended and a new subdivision 14
is added.
Section 3. Subdivision 7 of section 220.18 of the penal law, as amended
by chapter 75 of the laws of 1995, is amended and a new subdivision 8 is
added.
Section 4. Subdivision 2 of section 220.21 of the penal law, as amended
by chapter 75 of the laws of 1995, is amended and a new subdivision 3 is
added.
Section 5. Subdivision 7 of section 220.41 of the penal law, as amended
by chapter 75 of the laws of 1995, is amended and a new subdivision 8 is
added.
Section 6. Subdivision 2 of section 220.43 of the penal law, as amended
by chapter 75 of the laws of 1995, is amended and a new subdivision 3 is
added.
Section 7. Section 220.48 of the penal law, as added by section 28 of
part AAA of chapter 56 of the laws of 2009, is amended.
Section 8. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 220.49.
Section 9. The closing paragraph of section 220.50 of the penal law, as
amended by chapter 627 of the laws of 1990, is amended.
Section 10. Section 220.55 of the penal law, as added by chapter 970 of
the laws of 1971, is amended.
Section 11. Subdivision 15 of section 220.00 of the penal law, as added
by chapter 118 of the laws of 1986, is amended.
Section 12. Section 220.65 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 31 of
the laws of 2014, is amended.
Section 13. This act shall take effect on the first of November next
succeeding the date upon which it shall have become a law.
JUSTIFICATION:
In 2014, Governor Cuomo launched the "Combat Heroin Campaign," which
aims to reduce the number of lives lost to substance abuse overdoses.
New York State is in the middle of an unprecedented heroin epidemic.
With record numbers of illegal drug sales each year, this issue reaches
past just heroin. There have been far too many deaths from prescription
pills and heroin, notably amongst youth in our state. We must hold those
who sell illegal substances accountable for the consequences of their
actions, especially when it leads to the death of another individual.
This includes stronger penalties and broader ability to prosecute felony
charges when illegal substances are involved.
In 1972, precedent was established on this issue. In The People of the
State of New York v. Pinckney, a defendant was found not guilty of homi-
cide and also of manslaughter, despite selling heroin, and the instru-
ments to inject heroin, to the individual who died the same day from a
heroin overdose. The County Court held, "the Penal Law does not contain
any provision whereby the sale of a dangerous drug and the means of
injecting it, thereby resulting in the death of the user, constitute the
crime of manslaughter or criminally negligent homicide."
This bill will reverse the outdated precedent and hold sellers responsi-
ble for the deaths they caused by their distribution of illegal drugs.
It will allow for the prosecution of drug dealers whose sale leads to
the death of an individual to be charged with criminally negligent homi-
cide and/or manslaughter. It will also strengthen the penalty for the
sale of illegal substances to minors, especially in the case of death.
Another important provision is to amend the weight requirements for
heroin in order to be charged with criminal possession or sale. The
average dose of heroin is just 0.03 grams, which means that even an
extremely small amount can be deadly. This bill will decrease the weight
requirements so that individuals who carry and distribute small, but
lethal, amounts of heroin can be charged with a crime.
Finally, it will include the abuse of electronic prescriptions and blank
prescription forms as punishable offenses. Currently, neither the sale
of an electronic prescription, nor the sale of a blank prescription from
a medical provider is included in the criminal sale of prescriptions
statue. The addition of these provisions will further limit the ability
for abuse from providers and patients in purchasing prescription drugs.
The scourge of illegal drug sales and usage is a complex and widespread
problem in our communities. In addition to expanding prevention and
treatment services, the penalty for selling drugs that lead to death,
especially the deaths of minors, must be strong enough to reflect the
severity of the crime. Statues must also reflect and criminalize the
full range of mechanisms through which drug dealers can acquire and sell
illegal substances. This bill will further these goals and is an impor-
tant step forward in solving the epidemic of substance abuse in our
state.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeeding the
date upon which it shall have become law.
