Assembly Bill A3137

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  3137

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                            January 23, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by  M.  of A. CHRISTENSEN, JAFFEE, MILLMAN, GREENE, GUNTHER,
  GALEF,  WEISENBERG,  MAYERSOHN,  DelMONTE,  PAULIN,  BENEDETTO,  BING,
  FIELDS,  ORTIZ,  PHEFFER,  SCARBOROUGH,  KOON, COOK, CLARK, O'DONNELL,
  TITONE, LANCMAN, MAGNARELLI, WRIGHT, EDDINGTON, MAISEL, ALESSI, LUPAR-
  DO, ZEBROWSKI -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of  A.    ABBATE,  BENJAMIN,
  BRADLEY,  BROOK-KRASNY,  CAMARA, COLTON, DESTITO, DINOWITZ, ESPAILLAT,
  GORDON, GOTTFRIED, HEASTIE, HYER-SPENCER, JEFFRIES,  V. LOPEZ,  MAGEE,
  MARKEY,  PERALTA,  REILLY,  N. RIVERA,  ROBINSON, ROSENTHAL, SALADINO,
  SWEENEY, TOWNS -- read once and referred to the Committee on Codes

AN ACT to amend the penal law, in  relation  to  the  infant  protection
  program

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1.  Section 260.03 of the penal law, as added by  chapter  156
of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows:
S 260.03 Abandonment of a child; defense.
  In  any  prosecution  for  abandonment of a child, pursuant to section
260.00 of this article, based upon an alleged desertion of a  child  not
more  than  [five] THIRTY days old with an intent to wholly abandon such
child, it is an affirmative defense that, with the intent that the child
be safe from physical injury and cared for in an appropriate manner, the
defendant left the child with an appropriate person  or  in  a  suitable
location  and  promptly  notified  an  appropriate person of the child's
location.
  S 2. Section 260.15 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 156 of the
laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows:
S 260.15 Endangering the welfare of a child; defense.
  In any prosecution for endangering the welfare of a child, pursuant to
section 260.10 OF THIS ARTICLE:
  1. based upon an alleged failure or refusal to provide proper  medical
care or treatment to an ill child, it is an affirmative defense that the

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD05501-01-9
              

A. 3137                             2

defendant (a) is a parent, guardian or other person legally charged with
the care or custody of such child; and (b) is a member or adherent of an
organized church or religious group the tenets of which prescribe prayer
as  the  principal treatment for illness; and (c) treated or caused such
ill child to be treated in accordance with such tenets; or
  2. based upon an alleged desertion of a child  not  more  than  [five]
THIRTY days old, it is an affirmative defense that, with the intent that
the  child  be safe from physical injury and cared for in an appropriate
manner, the defendant left the child with an appropriate person or in  a
suitable  location  and  promptly  notified an appropriate person of the
child's location.
  S 3. This act shall take effect immediately.