BILL NUMBER: S231

SPONSOR: TEDISCO
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the penal law, in relation to sentence of imprisonment
for the offense of predatory sexual assault against a child

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To require a 25 year minimum prison sentence upon conviction of the
crime of predatory sexual assault against a child.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Amends subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 3 of
section 70.00 of Penal Law pertaining to the crime of predatory sexual
assault against a child as defined in section 130.95 of Penal Law to
require that the minimum prison sentence shall not be less than 25 years
and the maximum term shall be life imprisonment.

              

Section 2: Amends paragraph (a) of subdivision 4 of section 70.06 of
Penal Law to provide that the minimum sentence for a second felony
offender convicted of the class A-II felony of predatory sexual assault
against a child be not less than 25 years and the maximum term be life
imprisonment.

Section 3: Amends subdivision 1 of Section 70.40 of Penal Law to require
lifetime parole supervision upon the release of a person convicted of
predatory sexual assault against a child.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

In 2005, Jessica Lunsford, a nine-year-old girl, was abducted, sexually
assaulted and murdered by a registered sex offender living in her neigh-
borhood in Florida. As a result, Florida enacted one of the toughest
child molestation laws in the nation, by mandating a 25-year minimum
prison sentence for molesting a child less than 12 years of age.
"Jessica's Law" has been used to designate all legislation and potential
legislation in other states modeled after this Florida law. Numerous
states have introduced similar legislation since Florida's law was
enacted with approximately 18 states enacting similar laws.

In New York State, "Jessica's Law Lite" was enacted in 2006 that creates
the class A-II felony crime of Predatory Sexual Assault Against a Child
when a person over 18 years of age commits a class B violent felony sex
offense (rape 1st, criminal sexual act 1st, aggravated sexual abuse 1st,
course of sexual conduct against a child 1st) against a child less than
13 years of age. However, the minimum prison sentence upon conviction of
this crime is only 10 to 25 years.  This bill seeks to make this offense
a true "Jessica's Law" by significantly increasing the mandatory minimum
prison term to 25 years.

Although sex offender registration, GPS monitoring and implementing sex
offender "buffer-zones" are additional layers of protection that are
effective in protecting our vulnerable from sex offenders, keeping child
molesters, in prison for significantly longer periods of time, a minimum
of 25 years and a maximum of life, is the one guarantee that these pred-
ators will not strike again. Upon their release from prison, this bill
would require lifetime parole supervision for such sex offenders where a
violation of a condition of parole could result in their return to pris-
on.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

01/08/15: S.1083 REFERRED TO CODES
01/06/16: S.1083 REFERRED TO CODES
01/12/17: S.2088 REFERRED TO CODES
01/03/18: S.2088 REFERRED TO CODES
01/09/19: S.383 REFERRED TO CODES
01/08/20: S.383 REFERRED TO CODES

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Undetermined

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first day of November next succeeding
the date on which it shall have become a law.