NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5789
SPONSOR: Chludzinski TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to sentence of imprisonment
for the offense of predatory sexual assault against a child
PURPOSE OR
GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To require a 25-year minimum prison sentence upon conviction of the
crime of predatory sexual assault against a child.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section I: amends subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 3 of
section 70.00 of Penal Law pertaining to the crime of predatory sexual
assault against a child as defined in section 130.95 of Penal Law to
require that the minimum prison sentence shall not be less than 25
years, and the maximum term shall be life imprisonment.
Section II: amends paragraph (a) of subdivision 4 of section 70.06 of
Penal Law to provide that the minimum sentence fora second felony offen-
der convicted of the class A-II felony of predatory sexual assault
against a child be not less than 25 years and the maximum term be life
imprisonment.
Section III: amends subdivision 1 of Section 70.40 of Penal Law to
require lifetime parole supervision upon the release of a person
convicted of predatory sexual assault against a child.
JUSTIFICATION:
In 2005, Jessica Lunsford, a nine-year-old girl, was abducted, sexually
assaulted and murdered by a registered sex offender living in her neigh-
borhood in Florida. As a result, Florida enacted one of the toughest
child molestation laws in the nation, by mandating a 25-year minimum
prison sentence for molesting a child less than 12 years of age.
"Jessica's Law" has been used to designate all legislation and potential
legislation in'other states modeled after this Florida law. Numerous
states have introduced similar legislation since Florida's law was
enacted with approximately 18 states enacting similar laws.
In New York State, "Jessica's Law Lite" was enacted in 2006 that creates
the class A-II felony crime of Predatory Sexual Assault Against a Child
when a person over 18 years of age commits a class B violent felony sex
offense (rape 1st, criminal sexual act 1st, aggravated sexual abuse 1st,
course of sexual conduct against a child 1st) against a child less than
13 years of age. However, the minimum prison sentence upon conviction of
this crime is only 10 to 25 years. This bill seeks to make this offense
a true "Jessica's Law" by significantly increasing the mandatory minimum
prison term to 25 years.
Although sex offender registration, GPS monitoring and implementing sex
offender "buffer-zones" are additional layers of protection that are
effective in protecting our vulnerable from sex offenders, keeping child
molesters, in prison for significantly longer periods of time, a minimum
of 25 years and a maximum of life, is the one guarantee that these pred-
ators will not strike again. Upon their release from prison, this bill
would require lifetime parole supervision for such sex offenders where a
violation of a condition of parole could result in their return, to
prison.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023/24: A.4766 - referred to Codes
2021/22: A.9091 - held for consideration in Codes
2019/20: S.383 - referred to Codes
2017/18: S.2088 - referred to Codes
2015/16: A.1686 - held for consideration in Codes
2013/14: A.6158 - held for consideration in Codes
2011/12: A.2041 - held for consideration in Codes
2009/10: A.8447 - referred to Codes
2007/08: A.5547 - held for consideration in Codes
2006: A.9471 - held for consideration in Codes
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeeding the
date in which it shall have become a law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5789
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 20, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CHLUDZINSKI -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Codes
AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to sentence of imprisonment
for the offense of predatory sexual assault against a child
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 3 of
2 section 70.00 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 107 of the laws of
3 2006, is amended to read as follows:
4 (ii) For a class A-II felony, such minimum period shall not be less
5 than three years nor more than eight years four months, except that for
6 the class A-II felony of predatory sexual assault as defined in section
7 130.95 of this chapter [or the class A-II felony of predatory sexual
8 assault against a child as defined in section 130.96 of this chapter],
9 such minimum period shall be not less than ten years nor more than twen-
10 ty-five years and for the class A-II felony of predatory sexual assault
11 against a child as defined in section 130.96 of this chapter such mini-
12 mum period shall be not less than twenty-five years and the maximum term
13 shall be life imprisonment.
14 § 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 4 of section 70.06 of the penal law,
15 as amended by chapter 107 of the laws of 2006, is amended to read as
16 follows:
17 (a) The minimum period of imprisonment for a second felony offender
18 convicted of a class A-II felony must be fixed by the court at no less
19 than six years and not to exceed twelve and one-half years and must be
20 specified in the sentence, except that for the class A-II felony of
21 predatory sexual assault as defined in section 130.95 of this chapter
22 [or the class A-II felony of predatory sexual assault against a child as
23 defined in section 130.96 of this chapter], such minimum period shall be
24 not less than ten years nor more than twenty-five years and for the
25 class A-II felony of predatory sexual assault against a child as defined
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05399-02-5
A. 5789 2
1 in section 130.96 of this chapter such minimum period shall be not less
2 than twenty-five years and the maximum term shall be life imprisonment.
3 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 70.40 of the penal law is amended by
4 adding a new paragraph (d) to read as follows:
5 (d) A person who has been paroled after serving a sentence of impri-
6 sonment for the crime of predatory sexual assault against a child as
7 defined in section 130.96 of this chapter shall be under the supervision
8 of the state board of parole for the duration of their lifetime.
9 § 4. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
10 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
