Senate Bill S7927

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S7927

 TITLE OF BILL :
An act to amend the election law, in relation to providing that any
district attorney who knowingly solicits, accepts or receives any
gift, service, hospitality, thing or promise, campaign donation, or
anything else of value, under any circumstance from a criminal
defendant, is guilty of a misdemeanor


 PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL :
To eliminate conflicts of interest and the appearance of a conflict of
interest between a prosecutor or district attorney and a criminal
defendant or defense attorney by prohibiting the solicitation or
acceptance of a gift, service, campaign donation or anything else of
value by a prosecutor or district attorney from a criminal defendant,
or the defendant's attorney, while he or she is prosecuting the
defendant.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :
A new section, 17-163, is added to the general election law and
provides that any prosecutor or district attorney who knowingly
solicits, accepts or receives any gift, service, loan, thing or
promise, campaign donation, or anything else of value, under any
circumstance from a criminal defendant, or the defendant's attorney,
while the prosecution of the defendant is pending, is guilty of a
              

misdemeanor.

 JUSTIFICATION :
The state, counties and cities of New York employ several hundred
elected persons to serve as prosecutors and district attorneys who
specialize in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The roles and
duties of these public officials are defined in section 1.20 of the
criminal procedure law. It is imperative that these prosecutors and
district attorneys be fair, impartial and not subject to any conflicts
of interest.

Currently, New York does not prohibit prosecutors and district
attorneys from receiving 'of value' contributions from the defendants
they are prosecuting or the defendant's attorney or the family,
employees or business partners of the defendant's attorney. The result
can lead to obvious conflicts of interest with the proper performance
of the prosecutor or district attorney's duties in the public
interest.

This proposed legislation would prohibit prosecutors and district
attorneys from soliciting, accepting or receiving any gift, service,
loan travel, entertainment, hospitality, campaign donation or anything
else of value under any circumstance from a criminal defendant they
are prosecuting or from the defendant's attorney or the family,
employees or business partners of the defendant's attorney while the
prosecution of the defendant is pending. A violation of this new
section of the election law will be a misdemeanor as provided for
under section 17-166 of the election law.

The adoption of this legislation will help alleviate any suspicion by
the public that a prosecutor or district attorney is engaged in
certain acts that are in violation of public trust. Furthermore, it
will end an obvious conflict of interest currently allowed by New York
state's election law.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
New Bill.

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :
None.
 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect immediately after having become law.