NY State Senate Bill 2019-S3551

Senate Bill S3551

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Establishes a cause of action for injunction and damages for unlawful surveillance; damages for injuries sustained by reason of unlawful surveillance

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Codes Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2020	referred to codes
Feb 08, 2019	referred to codes

2019-S3551 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Codes
Law Section:: Civil Rights Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §51, Civ Rts L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2015-2016: S5225
2017-2018: S1057

2019-S3551 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes a cause of action to prevent and restrict unlawful surveillance; allows recovery of damages for injuries sustained by reason of unlawful surveillance; provides the jury may award exemplary damages.

2019-S3551 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S3551

SPONSOR: CARLUCCI
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the civil rights law, in relation to establishing a
cause of action for injunction and damages for unlawful surveillance

 
PURPOSE OF BILL:

To allow victims of unlawful surveillance, a crime under the penal law,
a civil cause of action to seek injunctive relief and damages when their
privacy is violated.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section one amends section 21 of the civil rights law, numbering the
existing provision as subsection 1 and creating a subsection 2 that
creates a civil cause of action to allow for injunctive relief and
damages when individuals act in a way that would violate the existing
criminal prohibition on unlawful surveillance.

Section two defines the effective date as the one hundred eightieth day
after it shall become a law.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The crime of unlawful surveillance occurs when an individual inten-
tionally uses or installs an imaging device to surreptitiously view,
broadcast or record a person in an intimate situation when such person
has a reasonable expectation of privacy, without such person's knowledge
or consent Often, this surveillance captures individuals in private
spaces such as changing rooms, bathrooms, bedrooms, or hotel rooms when
they are unclothed or engaging in sexual activity.  In New York State,
the vast majority of crimes that have victims have a counterpart under
civil law that allows victims to sue for damages.  Victims of assault,
theft, and rape all have a civil recourse yet victims of unlawful
surveillance do not. This means that victims of unlawful surveillance
are not able to seek injunctive relief to prevent the spread of the
recorded images nor are they able to seek damages when these images are
exploited.

This bill would allow victims of unlawful surveillance to bring an
action in civil court for relief and/or damages. Victims would be able
to seek injunctive relief, such as a temporary restraining order, in
civil court to prevent the spread of the images. Obtaining an emergency
order in civil court can be done quickly, even while a criminal case is
pending, and is the best chance an individual may have to stop or
prevent the spread of the images. Additionally, the ability to sue for
damages allows victims to be made whole again in a way not afforded by
the criminal law,

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2017-18: S1057 - CODES
2015-16: S5225/A3576 - Codes/judiciary
Relates to Chapter 193 of 2014 (A.2053C/S.1982C of 2014).

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it
shall become a law.

2019-S3551 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   3551
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 8, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. CARLUCCI -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes
 
 AN ACT to amend the civil rights law,  in  relation  to  establishing  a
   cause of action for injunction and damages for unlawful surveillance
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 51 of the civil rights law, as amended  by  chapter
 674 of the laws of 1995, is amended to read as follows:
   § 51. Action for injunction and for damages. 1. Any person whose name,
 portrait,  picture  or  voice  is used within this state for advertising
 purposes or for the purposes of trade without the written consent  first
 obtained  as  above  provided  may  maintain  an equitable action in the
 supreme court of this state against the person, firm or  corporation  so
 using  his name, portrait, picture or voice, to prevent and restrain the
 use thereof; and may also sue  and  recover  damages  for  any  injuries
 sustained by reason of such use and if the defendant shall have knowing-
 ly used such person's name, portrait, picture or voice in such manner as
 is  forbidden  or declared to be unlawful by section fifty of this arti-
 cle, the jury, in its discretion, may award exemplary damages. But noth-
 ing contained in this article shall be so construed as  to  prevent  any
 person,  firm  or corporation from selling or otherwise transferring any
 material containing such name, portrait, picture or  voice  in  whatever
 medium  to  any user of such name, portrait, picture or voice, or to any
 third party for sale or transfer directly or indirectly to such a  user,
 for use in a manner lawful under this article; nothing contained in this
 article  shall  be so construed as to prevent any person, firm or corpo-
 ration, practicing the profession of photography, from exhibiting in  or
 about  his or its establishment specimens of the work of such establish-
 ment, unless the same is continued by such person, firm  or  corporation
 after  written  notice  objecting  thereto  has been given by the person
 portrayed; and nothing contained in this article shall be  so  construed
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD06305-01-9

 S. 3551                             2
 
 as  to  prevent  any  person,  firm  or corporation from using the name,
 portrait, picture or voice of any manufacturer or dealer  in  connection
 with the goods, wares and merchandise manufactured, produced or dealt in
 by  him  which  he  has  sold  or  disposed of with such name, portrait,
 picture or voice used in connection therewith; or from using  the  name,
 portrait,  picture  or  voice  of  any  author,  composer  or  artist in
 connection with his literary, musical or artistic productions  which  he
 has  sold or disposed of with such name, portrait, picture or voice used
 in connection therewith.   Nothing contained in this  section  shall  be
 construed  to  prohibit  the  copyright  owner of a sound recording from
 disposing of, dealing in, licensing or selling that sound  recording  to
 any  party,  if  the  right to dispose of, deal in, license or sell such
 sound recording has been conferred by contract or other written document
 by such living person or the holder of such right. Nothing contained  in
 the  foregoing  sentence  shall be deemed to abrogate or otherwise limit
 any rights or remedies otherwise conferred by federal law or state law.
   2. (A) ANY PERSON WHO IS A  SUBJECT  OF  UNLAWFUL  SURVEILLANCE  BY  A
 PERSON  MAY  MAINTAIN  AN  EQUITABLE ACTION IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THIS
 STATE AGAINST THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR THE  UNLAWFUL  SURVEILLANCE  TO
 PREVENT  AND  RESTRAIN  SUCH  SURVEILLANCE  AND MAY ALSO SUE AND RECOVER
 DAMAGES FOR ANY INJURIES SUSTAINED BY REASON OF  SUCH  SURVEILLANCE  AND
 THE JURY, IN ITS DISCRETION, MAY AWARD EXEMPLARY DAMAGES.
   (B)  A  PERSON  IS  A  SUBJECT  OF  UNLAWFUL SURVEILLANCE WHEN ANOTHER
 PERSON:
   (1) FOR SUCH OTHER PERSON'S OWN, OR ANOTHER PERSON'S AMUSEMENT, ENTER-
 TAINMENT, OR PROFIT, OR FOR  THE  PURPOSE  OF  DEGRADING  OR  ABUSING  A
 PERSON, THE PERSON INTENTIONALLY USES OR INSTALLS, OR PERMITS THE UTILI-
 ZATION  OR  INSTALLATION  OF  AN IMAGING DEVICE TO SURREPTITIOUSLY VIEW,
 BROADCAST OR RECORD A PERSON DRESSING OR UNDRESSING  OR  THE  SEXUAL  OR
 OTHER INTIMATE PARTS OF SUCH PERSON AT A PLACE AND TIME WHEN SUCH PERSON
 HAS A REASONABLE EXPECTATION OF PRIVACY, WITHOUT SUCH PERSON'S KNOWLEDGE
 OR CONSENT; OR
   (2) FOR SUCH OTHER PERSON'S OWN, OR ANOTHER PERSON'S SEXUAL AROUSAL OR
 SEXUAL  GRATIFICATION,  THE  PERSON  INTENTIONALLY  USES OR INSTALLS, OR
 PERMITS THE UTILIZATION OR INSTALLATION OF AN IMAGING DEVICE TO  SURREP-
 TITIOUSLY  VIEW,  BROADCAST OR RECORD A PERSON DRESSING OR UNDRESSING OR
 THE SEXUAL OR OTHER INTIMATE PARTS OF SUCH PERSON AT A  PLACE  AND  TIME
 WHEN  SUCH  PERSON HAS A REASONABLE EXPECTATION OF PRIVACY, WITHOUT SUCH
 PERSON'S KNOWLEDGE OR CONSENT; OR
   (3) (I) FOR NO LEGITIMATE PURPOSE,  A  PERSON  INTENTIONALLY  USES  OR
 INSTALLS,  OR  PERMITS  THE  UTILIZATION  OR  INSTALLATION OF AN IMAGING
 DEVICE TO SURREPTITIOUSLY VIEW,  BROADCAST  OR  RECORD  A  PERSON  IN  A
 BEDROOM,  CHANGING ROOM, FITTING ROOM, RESTROOM, TOILET, BATHROOM, WASH-
 ROOM, SHOWER TO ANY ROOM ASSIGNED TO GUESTS OR PATRONS IN A MOTEL, HOTEL
 OR INN, WITHOUT SUCH PERSON'S KNOWLEDGE OR CONSENT.
   (II) FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVISION, WHEN A PERSON USES OR INSTALLS,
 OR PERMITS THE UTILIZATION OR INSTALLATION OF AN  IMAGING  DEVICE  IN  A
 BEDROOM,  CHANGING ROOM, FITTING ROOM, RESTROOM, TOILET, BATHROOM, WASH-
 ROOM, SHOWER OR ANY ROOM ASSIGNED TO GUESTS OR PATRONS IN A HOTEL, MOTEL
 OR INN, THERE IS A REBUTTABLE PRESUMPTION THAT SUCH PERSON DID SO FOR NO
 LEGITIMATE PURPOSE; OR
   (4) WITHOUT THE KNOWLEDGE OR CONSENT OF  A  PERSON,  A  PERSON  INTEN-
 TIONALLY USES OR INSTALLS, OR PERMITS THE UTILIZATION OR INSTALLATION OF
 AN  IMAGING  DEVICE  TO SURREPTITIOUSLY VIEW, BROADCAST OR RECORD, UNDER
 THE CLOTHING BEING WORN BY SUCH PERSON, THE  SEXUAL  OR  OTHER  INTIMATE
 PARTS OF SUCH PERSON; OR

 S. 3551                             3
 
   (5) FOR SUCH OTHER PERSON'S OWN, OR ANOTHER PERSON'S AMUSEMENT, ENTER-
 TAINMENT, PROFIT, SEXUAL AROUSAL OR GRATIFICATION, OR FOR THE PURPOSE OF
 DEGRADING OR ABUSING A PERSON, THE PERSON INTENTIONALLY USES OR INSTALLS
 OR  PERMITS  THE  UTILIZATION  OR  INSTALLATION  OF AN IMAGING DEVICE TO
 SURREPTITIOUSLY  VIEW,  BROADCAST,  OR RECORD ANOTHER PERSON IN AN IDEN-
 TIFIABLE MANNER ENGAGING IN SEXUAL CONDUCT, IN THE SAME IMAGE  WITH  THE
 SEXUAL  OR  INTIMATE  PART OF ANY OTHER PERSON, AT A PLACE AND TIME WHEN
 SUCH PERSON HAS A REASONABLE EXPECTATION OF PRIVACY,  AND  WITHOUT  SUCH
 PERSON'S KNOWLEDGE OR CONSENT.
   (6)  FOR  PURPOSES  OF  THIS SUBDIVISION "PERSON" SHALL MEAN A PERSON,
 FIRM OR CORPORATION.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
 it shall have become a law.

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