Senate Bill S407

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    407
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 4, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. GALLIVAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Crime Victims,  Crime  and
   Correction
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the  executive law and the penal law, in relation to
   clemency

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 15 of the executive law, as added by chapter 545 of
 the laws of 1971, is amended to read as follows:
   § 15. Power  of governor to grant reprieves, commutations and pardons.
 The governor has power to grant  reprieves,  commutations  and  pardons,
 after conviction, for all offenses, except treason, MURDER, CRIMES WHERE
 THE  DEFENDANT IS SENTENCED TO LIFE IMPRISONMENT WITHOUT PAROLE OR WHERE
 THE DEFENDANT ACTING EITHER ALONE OR WITH ONE  OR  MORE  OTHER  PERSONS,
 COMMITS OR ATTEMPTS TO COMMIT ROBBERY, BURGLARY, KIDNAPPING, ARSON, RAPE
 IN  THE  FIRST  DEGREE,  CRIMINAL SEXUAL ACT IN THE FIRST DEGREE, SEXUAL
 ABUSE IN THE FIRST DEGREE, AGGRAVATED SEXUAL ABUSE, ESCAPE IN THE  FIRST
 DEGREE,  OR  ESCAPE  IN  THE SECOND DEGREE, AND, IN THE COURSE OF AND IN
 FURTHERANCE OF SUCH CRIME OR OF IMMEDIATE FLIGHT THEREFROM, HE  OR  SHE,
 OR  ANOTHER PARTICIPANT, IF THERE BE ANY, INTENTIONALLY CAUSES THE DEATH
 OF: A POLICE OFFICER AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION  THIRTY-FOUR  OF  SECTION
 1.20  OF THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE LAW; A PEACE OFFICER AS DEFINED IN PARA-
 GRAPH A OF SUBDIVISION TWENTY-ONE, SUBDIVISION TWENTY-THREE, TWENTY-FOUR
 OR SIXTY-TWO (EMPLOYEES OF THE DIVISION FOR YOUTH) OF  SECTION  2.10  OF
 THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE LAW; A FIREFIGHTER; EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIAN,
 AMBULANCE DRIVER, PARAMEDIC, PHYSICIAN OR REGISTERED NURSE INVOLVED IN A
 FIRST RESPONSE TEAM, OR ANY OTHER INDIVIDUAL WHO, IN THE COURSE OF OFFI-
 CIAL  DUTIES,  PERFORMS  EMERGENCY  RESPONSE;  OR AN EMPLOYEE OF A STATE
 CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION OR WAS AN  EMPLOYEE  OF  A  LOCAL  CORRECTIONAL
 FACILITY  AS  DEFINED  IN  SUBDIVISION  TWO  OF  SECTION  FORTY  OF  THE
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD02541-01-3
 S. 407                              2
 
 CORRECTION LAW, WHEN SUCH PERSON WAS ENGAGED IN THE COURSE OF PERFORMING
 THEIR OFFICIAL DUTIES, and cases of impeachment, upon  such  conditions,
 and with such restrictions and limitations, as he OR SHE may think prop-
 er, subject to the regulations provided in this article.
   §  2.  Subdivision  5 of section 70.00 of the penal law, as amended by
 section 40-a of part WWW of chapter 59 of the laws of 2017,  is  amended
 to read as follows:
   5.   Life  imprisonment  without  parole.  Notwithstanding  any  other
 provision of law, a defendant sentenced  to  life  imprisonment  without
 parole  shall  not be or become eligible for COMMUTATION, PARDON, parole
 or conditional release. For purposes of commitment  and  custody,  other
 than parole and conditional release, such sentence shall be deemed to be
 an  indeterminate  sentence. A defendant may be sentenced to life impri-
 sonment without parole upon conviction for the crime of  murder  in  the
 first degree as defined in section 125.27 of this chapter and in accord-
 ance  with  the  procedures  provided by law for imposing a sentence for
 such crime. A defendant who was eighteen years of age or  older  at  the
 time  of the commission of the crime must be sentenced to life imprison-
 ment without parole upon  conviction  for  the  crime  of  terrorism  as
 defined  in  section 490.25 of this chapter, where the specified offense
 the defendant committed is a class A-I felony;  the  crime  of  criminal
 possession of a chemical weapon or biological weapon in the first degree
 as  defined  in section 490.45 of this chapter; or the crime of criminal
 use of a chemical weapon or biological weapon in  the  first  degree  as
 defined in section 490.55 of this chapter; provided, however, that noth-
 ing  in  this  subdivision shall preclude or prevent a sentence of death
 when the defendant is also convicted of the crime of murder in the first
 degree as defined in section 125.27 of this chapter. A defendant who was
 seventeen years of age or younger at the time of the commission  of  the
 crime  may be sentenced, in accordance with law, to the applicable inde-
 terminate sentence with a maximum term of life imprisonment. A defendant
 must be sentenced to life imprisonment without  parole  upon  conviction
 for  the  crime of murder in the second degree as defined in subdivision
 five of section 125.25 of this chapter or for the  crime  of  aggravated
 murder  as defined in subdivision one of section 125.26 of this chapter.
 A defendant may be sentenced to life imprisonment  without  parole  upon
 conviction  for the crime of aggravated murder as defined in subdivision
 two of section 125.26 of this chapter.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the  same  date  and  in  the  same
 manner  as  a  chapter  of  the  laws  of 2023 proposing an amendment to
 section 4 of article IV of the  constitution,  relating  to  prohibiting
 persons  convicted  of  murder  or sentenced to life without parole from
 being eligible for commutation of sentence, takes effect.