Senate Bill S6250

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6250
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               March 7, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes
 
 AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law, in  relation  to  permitting
   electronic  arraignment  in counties not wholly included within a city
   and to repeal article 185 of the criminal procedure law relating ther-
   eto

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Article 185 of the criminal procedure law is REPEALED and a
 new article 185 is added to read as follows:
                                ARTICLE 185
                     ALTERNATIVE METHOD OF ARRAIGNMENT
 SECTION 185.10 DEFINITION OF TERMS.
         185.20 ELECTRONIC ARRAIGNMENT.
         185.30 CONDITIONS AND LIMITATIONS ON ELECTRONIC ARRAIGNMENT.
         185.40 APPROVAL BY THE CHIEF ADMINISTRATOR OF THE COURTS.
 § 185.10 DEFINITION OF TERMS.
   AS USED IN THIS ARTICLE:
   1.  "INDEPENDENT  AUDIO-VISUAL  SYSTEM" MEANS AN ELECTRONIC SYSTEM FOR
 THE TRANSMISSION AND RECEIVING OF AUDIO AND VISUAL SIGNALS, ENCOMPASSING
 ENCODED SIGNALS, FREQUENCY DOMAIN MULTIPLEXING OR OTHER  SUITABLE  MEANS
 TO  PRECLUDE  THE  UNAUTHORIZED RECEPTION AND DECODING OF THE SIGNALS BY
 COMMERCIALLY  AVAILABLE  TELEVISION  RECEIVERS  OR   MONITORS,   CHANNEL
 CONVERTERS, OR OTHER AVAILABLE RECEIVING DEVICES.
   2.  "ELECTRONIC  ARRAIGNMENT"  MEANS  AN  ARRAIGNMENT IN WHICH VARIOUS
 PARTICIPANTS, INCLUDING THE DEFENDANT, ARE NOT PERSONALLY PRESENT IN THE
 COURT BUT IN WHICH ALL OF THE PARTICIPANTS ARE  SIMULTANEOUSLY  ABLE  TO
 SEE  AND HEAR REPRODUCTIONS OF THE VOICES AND IMAGES OF THE JUDGE, COUN-
 SELS, DEFENDANT, POLICE OFFICER AND ANY OTHER  APPROPRIATE  PARTICIPANT,
 BY MEANS OF AN INDEPENDENT AUDIO-VISUAL SYSTEM.
 § 185.20 ELECTRONIC ARRAIGNMENT.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08076-01-5
              

 S. 6250                             2
 
   NOTWITHSTANDING  THE  PROVISIONS  OF SUBDIVISION NINE OF SECTION 1.20,
 SECTIONS 110.10, 120.10, 120.40, 120.90, 140.20, 140.27, 140.40,  170.10
 AND 180.10 OF THIS CHAPTER OR ANY OTHER PROVISION OF LAW AS THEY PERTAIN
 TO A DEFENDANT'S PERSONAL APPEARANCE AT ARRAIGNMENT, IN EVERY COUNTY NOT
 WHOLLY  INCLUDED WITHIN A CITY, THE COURT IN ITS DISCRETION MAY DISPENSE
 WITH THE DEFENDANT'S PERSONAL APPEARANCE AT THE ARRAIGNMENT AND  CONDUCT
 AN ELECTRONIC ARRAIGNMENT, PROVIDED THAT:
   1.  THE  DEFENDANT  HAS  WAIVED  IN  WRITING THEIR RIGHT TO PERSONALLY
 APPEAR AT THEIR ARRAIGNMENT AND HAS CONSENTED TO  BE  ARRAIGNED  BY  THE
 ELECTRONIC ARRAIGNMENT PROCESS;
   2.  THE  PERSONAL APPEARANCE OF THE DEFENDANT AT THE ARRAIGNMENT WOULD
 RESULT IN AN UNREASONABLE DELAY IN THE PRELIMINARY PROCEEDING; AND
   3. THE CHIEF ADMINISTRATOR OF THE COURTS HAS  AUTHORIZED  THE  USE  OF
 ELECTRONIC  ARRAIGNMENTS  FOR  THE  COURT, PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF
 SECTION 185.40 OF THIS ARTICLE.
 § 185.30 CONDITIONS AND LIMITATIONS ON ELECTRONIC ARRAIGNMENT.
   WHENEVER A PERSON IS ARRAIGNED BY MEANS OF AN ELECTRONIC  ARRAIGNMENT,
 THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS AND LIMITATIONS SHALL APPLY:
   1. THE DEFENDANT MAY NOT ENTER A PLEA OF GUILTY;
   2.  NO  ELECTRONIC RECORDING OF AN ELECTRONIC ARRAIGNMENT MAY BE MADE,
 VIEWED OR INSPECTED EXCEPT AS MAY BE AUTHORIZED BY RULES  OF  THE  CHIEF
 ADMINISTRATOR OF THE COURTS; AND
   3. STENOGRAPHIC RECORDING OF THE ARRAIGNMENT SHALL BE MADE TO THE SAME
 EXTENT  AS  IF IT WERE AN ORDINARY ARRAIGNMENT RATHER THAN AN ELECTRONIC
 ARRAIGNMENT.
 § 185.40 APPROVAL BY THE CHIEF ADMINISTRATOR OF THE COURTS.
   1. THE APPROPRIATE ADMINISTRATIVE JUDGE  SHALL  SUBMIT  TO  THE  CHIEF
 ADMINISTRATOR OF THE COURTS A WRITTEN PROPOSAL FOR THE USE OF ELECTRONIC
 ARRAIGNMENTS  FOR  A PARTICULAR COURT AND THE PRECINCTS UNDER THE JURIS-
 DICTION OF THAT COURT. IF THE CHIEF ADMINISTRATOR OF THE COURTS APPROVES
 THE PROPOSAL, INSTALLATION OF AN  INDEPENDENT  AUDIO-VISUAL  SYSTEM  MAY
 BEGIN.
   2.  UPON COMPLETION OF THE INSTALLATION OF AN INDEPENDENT AUDIO-VISUAL
 SYSTEM, THE PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION SHALL INSPECT,  TEST  AND  EXAMINE
 THE INDEPENDENT AUDIO-VISUAL SYSTEM AND CERTIFY TO THE CHIEF ADMINISTRA-
 TOR  OF THE COURTS WHETHER THE SYSTEM COMPLIES WITH THE DEFINITION OF AN
 INDEPENDENT AUDIO-VISUAL SYSTEM AND  IS  TECHNICALLY  SUITABLE  FOR  THE
 CONDUCTING OF ELECTRONIC ARRAIGNMENTS AS INTENDED.
   3.  THE  USE BY A COURT OF AN APPROVED INDEPENDENT AUDIO-VISUAL SYSTEM
 FOR THE PURPOSE OF AUTHORIZED ELECTRONIC ARRAIGNMENTS, SHALL  BE  FOR  A
 PERIOD OF TWO YEARS FROM THE DATE OF AUTHORIZATION BY THE CHIEF ADMINIS-
 TRATOR OF THE COURTS.
   4.  THE CHIEF ADMINISTRATOR OF THE COURTS MAY WITHDRAW APPROVAL OF THE
 AUTHORIZATION AT ANY TIME.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.