S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5066
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               March 2, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. GUNTHER -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Mental Health
 
 AN ACT to amend the executive law,  the  county  law  and  the  criminal
   procedure law, in relation to the justice center for the protection of
   people  with  special  needs  and  providing for the repeal of certain
   provisions upon expiration thereof

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Section 552 of the executive law, as added by section 3 of
 part A of chapter 501 of the  laws  of  2012,  is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   § 552. Organization of the justice center. 1. The justice center shall
 house  the  vulnerable persons' central register created in section four
 hundred ninety-two of the social services law and shall perform  all  of
 the necessary functions related to the receipt and acceptance of reports
 of allegations of reportable incidents involving vulnerable persons, the
 investigation  of  such accepted reports and the review of substantiated
 findings of abuse or  neglect,  as  defined  in  subdivision  eleven  of
 section  four hundred eighty-eight of the social services law, including
 conducting any disciplinary proceedings for  state  employees  resulting
 from such substantiated findings (for state entities bound by collective
 bargaining,  the  disciplinary  process  established  through collective
 bargaining shall govern). The justice center shall contain two  separate
 units,  headed by two distinct deputies, one responsible for the [prose-
 cution] INVESTIGATION of criminal matters and one for the  INVESTIGATION
 AND  resolution  of  non-criminal  matters. If, during an investigation,
 what appeared to be a non-criminal  matter  warrants  consideration  for
 criminal  charges, the matter shall be promptly referred to the criminal
 unit AS WELL AS THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES WITH JURISDICTION OVER SUCH
 MATTER. Information collected during such  investigations  may  only  be
 shared between such units in accordance with state and federal constitu-
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD09865-01-3
              

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 tional  protections  and  laws  and  the secrecy provisions contained in
 article one hundred ninety of the  criminal  procedure  law,  unless  so
 ordered by a court in a pending proceeding.
   2.  (a)  The justice center also shall employ a special prosecutor and
 inspector general for  the  protection  of  people  with  special  needs
 ("special  prosecutor"),  who  shall be appointed by the governor. Other
 state agencies shall be required to make facilities available for office
 space throughout the state and to assist when requested with respect  to
 the  duties  of  the office. Pursuant to the provisions of this section,
 such special prosecutor shall have the duty and power: (i)  to  investi-
 gate  and,  UPON  THE CONSENT OF A DISTRICT ATTORNEY, prosecute offenses
 involving abuse or neglect, as defined in subdivision eleven of  section
 four  hundred eighty-eight of the social services law, committed against
 vulnerable persons by  custodians  as  defined  in  subdivision  two  of
 section  four  hundred eighty-eight of the social services law; and (ii)
 to cooperate with and assist district  attorneys  and  other  local  law
 enforcement  officials in their efforts against such abuse or neglect of
 vulnerable persons.   Provided that nothing  herein  shall  DIMINISH  OR
 interfere  with the ability of district attorneys at any time to receive
 complaints, investigate [and] OR  MAINTAIN  THE  ULTIMATE  AUTHORITY  TO
 prosecute  any  OFFENSE  INVOLVING  THE  suspected abuse or neglect OF A
 VULNERABLE PERSON, or for any persons, whether a  mandated  reporter  or
 not,  to  report a complaint to a district attorney or other appropriate
 law enforcement official. The special prosecutor may request  and  shall
 receive, from any agency, department, division, board, bureau or commis-
 sion of the state, or any political subdivision thereof, cooperation and
 assistance  in  the  performance  of  his or her duties, and may provide
 technical and other assistance to any district attorney or law  enforce-
 ment  official requesting assistance in the investigation or prosecution
 of OFFENSES INVOLVING THE abuse or neglect of vulnerable persons.
   (b) The special prosecutor, OR ONE OF  HIS  OR  HER  ASSISTANTS,  DULY
 AUTHORIZED  PURSUANT  TO PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION, is empowered
 to apply for search warrants pursuant to article six hundred  ninety  of
 the  criminal procedure law, and, except in exigent circumstances, shall
 give prior notice of the application to the  district  attorney  of  the
 county  in  which  such a warrant is to be executed, and in such exigent
 circumstances shall give such notice as soon thereafter as is  practica-
 ble;  provided,  however  that  the  failure  to give notice of a search
 warrant application to a district attorney shall  not  be  a  ground  to
 suppress  the  evidence  seized in executing the warrant. [He or she may
 designate an assistant to exercise any of such powers.]
   (c) The special prosecutor or  one  of  his  or  her  assistants  DULY
 AUTHORIZED  PURSUANT  TO  PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION, may[, after
 consultation with the district attorney as to the time and place of such
 attendance or appearance,] attend in person any  term  of  [the  county]
 court  [or  supreme court] having appropriate jurisdiction, including an
 extraordinary special or trial term of the supreme  court  when  one  is
 appointed  pursuant  to  section one hundred forty-nine of the judiciary
 law, or appear before the grand jury thereof, for the purpose of  manag-
 ing  and  conducting in such court or before such jury a criminal action
 or proceeding concerned with an offense where any  conduct  constituting
 or requisite to the completion of or in any other manner related to such
 offense involved the abuse or neglect of a vulnerable person, as defined
 in subdivision eleven of section four hundred eighty-eight of the social
 services  law.  [In  such  case,  such  special prosecutor or his or her
 assistant so attending may exercise all the powers and perform  all  the
 A. 5066                             3

 duties  in  respect  of  such  actions or proceedings which the district
 attorney would otherwise  be  authorized  or  required  to  exercise  or
 perform.]
   §  2.  Subdivision  1  of section 700 of the county law, as amended by
 chapter 560 of the laws of 1991, is amended to read as follows:
   1. Except as provided in section seven hundred one of this chapter, it
 shall be the duty of every district attorney to conduct, OR CAUSE TO  BE
 CONDUCTED,  all  prosecutions  for crimes and offenses cognizable by the
 courts of the county for which he or she  shall  have  been  elected  or
 appointed;  except  when  the place of trial of an indictment is changed
 from one county to another, it shall be the duty of the district  attor-
 ney  of the county where the indictment is found to conduct the trial of
 the indictment so removed, and it shall be  the  duty  of  the  district
 attorney  of the county to which such trial is changed to assist in such
 trial upon the request of the district attorney of the county where  the
 indictment  was  found.  He  or  she  shall  perform such additional and
 related duties as may be prescribed by law and directed by the board  of
 supervisors.
   § 3. Section 702 of the county law is amended by adding a new subdivi-
 sion 8 to read as follows:
   8.  NOTWITHSTANDING  ANY PROVISION OF LAW WITH RESPECT TO THE REQUIRE-
 MENTS OF RESIDENCE OR NUMBER OF APPOINTMENTS, A  DISTRICT  ATTORNEY  MAY
 APPOINT  THE SPECIAL PROSECUTOR AND/OR ONE OR MORE OF HIS OR HER ASSIST-
 ANTS EMPLOYED BY THE JUSTICE CENTER FOR THE PROTECTION  OF  PEOPLE  WITH
 SPECIAL  NEEDS  AS  SPECIAL ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEYS WITH RESPECT TO
 ANY INVESTIGATION OR PROSECUTION INVOLVING ABUSE OR NEGLECT, AS  DEFINED
 IN SUBDIVISION ELEVEN OF SECTION FOUR HUNDRED EIGHTY-EIGHT OF THE SOCIAL
 SERVICES  LAW,  COMMITTED  AGAINST A VULNERABLE PERSON BY A CUSTODIAN AS
 DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION FOUR HUNDRED EIGHTY-EIGHT  OF  THE
 SOCIAL  SERVICES  LAW.  NOTHING  HEREIN SHALL LIMIT THE DURATION OF SUCH
 APPOINTMENT, PROVIDED HOWEVER, THAT SUCH APPOINTMENT MAY BE RESCINDED AT
 ANY TIME BY THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY.
   § 4. Subdivision 32 of section 1.20 of the criminal procedure law,  as
 amended  by  section 2 of part PPP of chapter 59 of the laws of 2017, is
 amended to read as follows:
   32. "District  attorney"  means  a  district  attorney,  an  assistant
 district  attorney  or a special district attorney, and, where appropri-
 ate, the attorney general,  an  assistant  attorney  general,  a  deputy
 attorney  general,  a  special  deputy  attorney general, or the special
 prosecutor and inspector general  for  the  protection  of  people  with
 special  needs  or  his or her assistants when acting [pursuant to their
 duties] in [matters arising under] ACCORDANCE WITH article twenty of the
 executive law, or the inspector general of New York  for  transportation
 or  his  or  her  deputies when acting pursuant to article four-B of the
 executive law.
   § 5. Subdivision 34 of section 1.20 of the criminal procedure  law  is
 amended by adding a new paragraph (w) to read as follows:
   (W)  A  SWORN  INVESTIGATOR  EMPLOYED  BY  THE  JUSTICE CENTER FOR THE
 PROTECTION OF PEOPLE WITH SPECIAL NEEDS.
   § 6. Subdivision 34 of section 1.20 of the criminal procedure  law  is
 amended by adding a new paragraph (w) to read as follows:
   (W)  A  SWORN  INVESTIGATOR  EMPLOYED  BY  THE  JUSTICE CENTER FOR THE
 PROTECTION OF PEOPLE WITH SPECIAL NEEDS WHERE SUCH DEPARTMENT  OR  FORCE
 IS  CERTIFIED  IN  ACCORDANCE  WITH  PARAGRAPH (D) OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF
 SECTION EIGHT HUNDRED FORTY-SIX-H OF THE EXECUTIVE LAW.
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   § 7. This act shall take effect immediately,  provided,  however  that
 section five of this act shall expire and be deemed repealed on the same
 date  as  section 13 of part BBB of chapter 59 of the laws of 2021 takes
 effect, when upon such date the provisions of section six  of  this  act
 shall take effect.