Senate Bill S1551

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1551
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 13, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes
 
 AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to justification for the  use
   of deadly physical force by a police or peace officer
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1.  This act shall be known and may be cited as the "New  York
 police use of deadly force restraint act".
   §  2.    Subdivision  1 of section 35.30 of the penal law, as added by
 chapter 73 of the laws of 1968, the  opening  paragraph  as  amended  by
 chapter 511 of the laws of 2004, and paragraph (c) as amended by chapter
 843  of  the laws of 1980, is amended and a new subdivision 1-a is added
 to read as follows:
   1. A police officer or a peace officer, in the course of effecting  or
 attempting  to  effect  an  arrest,  or  of  preventing or attempting to
 prevent the escape from custody, of a person whom he or  she  reasonably
 believes  to  have committed an offense, may use physical force when and
 to the extent he or she reasonably believes  such  to  be  necessary  to
 effect the arrest, or to prevent the escape from custody, or in self-de-
 fense  or  to  defend  a  third  person  from  what he or she reasonably
 believes to be the use or imminent use of physical  force;  except  that
 deadly  physical force may be used for such purposes only when he or she
 reasonably believes that:
   (a) The offense committed by such person was[:
   (i) a felony or an attempt to commit a felony  involving  the  use  or
 attempted  use  or  threatened  imminent use of physical force against a
 person; or
   (ii) kidnapping, arson, escape in the first degree,  burglary  in  the
 first  degree  or  any  attempt  to  commit  such a crime] A FELONY THAT
 THREATENED OR RESULTED IN DEATH OR SERIOUS BODILY INJURY, IF THE OFFICER
 REASONABLY BELIEVES THAT THE PERSON WILL CAUSE DEATH OR  SERIOUS  BODILY
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD03710-01-1

 S. 1551                             2
 
 INJURY TO ANOTHER PERSON UNLESS IMMEDIATELY APPREHENDED. WHERE FEASIBLE,
 A    POLICE  OFFICER  OR PEACE OFFICER SHALL, PRIOR TO THE USE OF FORCE,
 MAKE REASONABLE EFFORTS TO IDENTIFY HIMSELF OR HERSELF AS A POLICE OFFI-
 CER  OR  PEACE OFFICER AND TO WARN THAT DEADLY FORCE MAY BE USED, UNLESS
 THE OFFICER HAS OBJECTIVELY REASONABLE GROUNDS TO BELIEVE SUCH PERSON IS
 AWARE OF THOSE FACTS; or
   (b) [The offense committed or attempted by such person  was  a  felony
 and  that,  in  the course of resisting arrest therefor or attempting to
 escape from custody, such person is armed with a firearm or deadly weap-
 on; or
   (c)] Regardless of the particular offense which is the subject of  the
 arrest  or  attempted escape, the use of deadly physical force is neces-
 sary to defend the police officer or peace  officer  or  another  person
 from  what the officer reasonably believes to be the use or imminent use
 of deadly physical force.
   1-A. A POLICE OFFICER OR PEACE OFFICER  SHALL  NOT  USE  DEADLY  FORCE
 AGAINST  A  PERSON BASED ON THE DANGER THAT SUCH PERSON POSES TO HIMSELF
 OR HERSELF, IF AN  OBJECTIVELY  REASONABLE  OFFICER  WOULD  BELIEVE  THE
 PERSON DOES NOT POSE AN IMMINENT THREAT OF DEATH OR SERIOUS BODILY INJU-
 RY TO THE POLICE OFFICER, PEACE OFFICER OR TO ANOTHER PERSON.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.