Senate Bill S908

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    908
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 8, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  GALLIVAN, BORRELLO, PALUMBO, RHOADS -- 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, SUCH DEFEND-
 ANT,  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 PARAGRAPH 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  OFFICIAL  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
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD02886-01-5
 S. 908                              2
 
 FORTY OF THE 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] SUCH
 PERSON  may  think  proper,  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 immediately.