S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                  1423

                       2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             January 7, 2011
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sens.  GOLDEN, LARKIN -- read twice and ordered printed,
  and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes

AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law and  the  executive  law,  in
  relation to disclosure of arrest and prosecution records of applicants
  for  employment  by police departments and other law enforcement agen-
  cies

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

  Section  1.  Paragraph  (d)  of subdivision 1 of section 160.50 of the
criminal procedure law, as amended by chapter 169 of the laws  of  1994,
is amended to read as follows:
  (d)  such  records shall be made available to the person accused or to
such person's designated agent, and shall be made  available  to  (i)  a
prosecutor in any proceeding in which the accused has moved for an order
pursuant  to  section  170.56  or  210.46 of this chapter, or (ii) a law
enforcement agency upon ex parte motion in any superior court,  if  such
agency  demonstrates  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  court that justice
requires that such records be made available to it, or (iii)  any  state
or  local  officer  or  agency  with  responsibility for the issuance of
licenses to possess guns, when the accused has made application for such
a license, or (iv) the New  York  state  division  of  parole  when  the
accused is on parole supervision as a result of conditional release or a
parole  release  granted  by the New York state board of parole, and the
arrest which is the subject of the inquiry is one which  occurred  while
the  accused was under such supervision, or (v) any prospective employer
of a police officer or peace officer  as  those  terms  are  defined  in
subdivisions  thirty-three and thirty-four of section 1.20 of this chap-
ter, in relation to an application for employment as a police officer or
peace officer; provided, however, that every person who is an  applicant
for  the  position of police officer or peace officer shall be furnished
with a copy of all records obtained under this paragraph and afforded an

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD04622-01-1
              

S. 1423                             2

opportunity to make an explanation thereto, or (vi) A POLICE  DEPARTMENT
OR  OTHER  LAW  ENFORCEMENT AGENCY, IN RELATION TO AN APPLICATION BY THE
PERSON ACCUSED FOR EMPLOYMENT BY SUCH AGENCY  OR  DEPARTMENT;  PROVIDED,
HOWEVER,  THAT  EVERY  SUCH PERSON SHALL BE FURNISHED WITH A COPY OF ALL
RECORDS OBTAINED UNDER THIS PARAGRAPH AND  AFFORDED  AN  OPPORTUNITY  TO
MAKE AN EXPLANATION THERETO, OR (VII) the probation department responsi-
ble  for supervision of the accused when the arrest which is the subject
of the inquiry is one which occurred while the accused  was  under  such
supervision; and
  S  2. Paragraph (d) of subdivision 1 of section 160.55 of the criminal
procedure law, as amended by chapter 476 of the laws of 2009, is amended
to read as follows:
  (d) the records referred to in paragraph (c) of this subdivision shall
be made available to the person accused or to such  person's  designated
agent, and shall be made available to (i) a prosecutor in any proceeding
in  which  the accused has moved for an order pursuant to section 170.56
or 210.46 of this chapter, or (ii) a  law  enforcement  agency  upon  ex
parte  motion  in any superior court, if such agency demonstrates to the
satisfaction of the court that justice requires  that  such  records  be
made available to it, or (iii) any state or local officer or agency with
responsibility  for  the  issuance of licenses to possess guns, when the
accused has made application for such a license, or (iv)  the  New  York
state division of parole when the accused is under parole supervision as
a  result  of  conditional  release or parole release granted by the New
York state board of parole and the arrest which is the  subject  of  the
inquiry  is  one  which occurred while the accused was under such super-
vision, or (v) the probation department responsible for  supervision  of
the  accused  when the arrest which is the subject of the inquiry is one
which occurred while the accused was under such supervision, or  (vi)  a
police  agency,  probation department, sheriff's office, district attor-
ney's office, department of correction of any  municipality  and  parole
department,  for  law  enforcement purposes, upon arrest in instances in
which the individual  stands  convicted  of  harassment  in  the  second
degree, as defined in section 240.26 of the penal law, committed against
a member of the same family or household as the defendant, as defined in
subdivision one of section 530.11 of this chapter, and determined pursu-
ant  to  subdivision eight-a of section 170.10 of this title; OR (VII) A
POLICE DEPARTMENT OR OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY,  IN  RELATION  TO  AN
APPLICATION  BY  THE  PERSON  ACCUSED  FOR  EMPLOYMENT BY SUCH AGENCY OR
DEPARTMENT; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT EVERY SUCH PERSON SHALL BE FURNISHED
WITH A COPY OF ALL RECORDS OBTAINED UNDER THIS PARAGRAPH AND AFFORDED AN
OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE AN EXPLANATION THERETO; and
  S 3. Subdivision 16 of section 296 of the executive law, as separately
amended by section 3 of part N and section 14 of part AAA of chapter  56
of the laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows:
  16.  It  shall  be an unlawful discriminatory practice, unless specif-
ically required or permitted by statute, for any person, agency, bureau,
corporation or association, including the state and any political subdi-
vision thereof, to make any inquiry about, whether in any form of appli-
cation or  otherwise,  or  to  act  upon  adversely  to  the  individual
involved,  any arrest or criminal accusation of such individual not then
pending against that individual which was followed by a  termination  of
that  criminal  action  or  proceeding  in  favor of such individual, as
defined in subdivision two of section 160.50 of the  criminal  procedure
law,  or  by a youthful offender adjudication, as defined in subdivision
one of section 720.35 of the criminal procedure law, or by a  conviction

S. 1423                             3

for a violation sealed pursuant to section 160.55 of the criminal proce-
dure  law  or by a conviction which is sealed pursuant to section 160.58
of the criminal procedure law, in connection with the licensing, employ-
ment  or  providing of credit or insurance to such individual; provided,
further, that  no  person  shall  be  required  to  divulge  information
pertaining  to  any arrest or criminal accusation of such individual not
then pending against that individual which was followed by a termination
of that criminal action or proceeding in favor of  such  individual,  as
defined  in  subdivision two of section 160.50 of the criminal procedure
law, or by a youthful offender adjudication, as defined  in  subdivision
one  of section 720.35 of the criminal procedure law, or by a conviction
for a violation sealed pursuant to section 160.55 of the criminal proce-
dure law, or by a conviction which is sealed pursuant to section  160.58
of  the criminal procedure law. The provisions of this subdivision shall
not apply to the licensing activities of governmental bodies in relation
to the regulation of guns, firearms  and  other  deadly  weapons  or  in
relation  to  an application for employment as a police officer or peace
officer as those terms are  defined  in  subdivisions  thirty-three  and
thirty-four of section 1.20 of the criminal procedure law OR IN RELATION
TO  AN APPLICATION   FOR EMPLOYMENT FOR ANY POSITION IN A POLICE DEPART-
MENT  OR  OTHER  LAW  ENFORCEMENT  AGENCY;  provided  further  that  the
provisions  of  this  subdivision  shall not apply to an application for
employment or membership in any law enforcement agency with  respect  to
any  arrest  or  criminal  accusation  which  was followed by a youthful
offender adjudication, as defined in subdivision one of  section  720.35
of the criminal procedure law, or by a conviction for a violation sealed
pursuant  to  section  160.55  of  the  criminal  procedure law, or by a
conviction which is sealed pursuant to section 160.58  of  the  criminal
procedure law.
  S  4.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
have become a law.