Relates to preventing defendants from making any profit from their crimes; includes instances where defendant pleads not responsible by reason of mental disease or defect.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A6975
SPONSOR: Lavine TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the executive law, in relation to a
defendant profiting from his or her crime
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill amends subdivisions 1 and 2 of § 632-a of the
Executive Law which. prohibits a defendant who is found or takes a plea
of not responsible by reason of mental disease or defect from deriving a
profit from his or her crime.
Section 2 is the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION: In the summer of 1977, a series of murders of young
women in New York left the city paralyzed with fear and created a media
frenzy. Before the investigation was complete, news had spread that
publishers were offering to pay a huge sum of money for the rights to
the killer's story. In response, the New York legislature passed Execu-
tive Law § 632a, popularly deemed the "Son of Sam" law.
The Son of Sam law was designed to prevent criminals from profiting from
their crimes through the commercial exploitation of their stories. The
law was intended to "ensure that monies received by the criminal under
such circumstances, first be made available to recompense the victims of
that crime for their loss and suffering."
To achieve that goal, the law required that any entity contracting with
anyone accused or convicted of a crime supply a copy of the contract to
the Crime Victims Compensation Board and pay the board any income earned
pursuant to that contract. The money would remain in escrow for five
years, during which time a victim could bring a civil action against his
or her alleged perpetrator. If the civil action was successful, the
funds would be used to satisfy any judgment rendered. If no actions were
pending after five years, the board would then be required to pay the
escrow funds to the accused,
This law has proved so popular that more than 40 states and the federal
government now have Son of Sam laws. However, the the New York statute
has one significant flaw which should be remedied. If a notorious crimi-
nal is found, or takes a plea of not responsible by reason of mental
disease or defect he or she will fall outside the reach of the statute.
This is more important than ever because famous criminals are trading on
their notoriety like never before. The emergence of an underground trade
in objects associated with crime, especially murder is perhaps the most
sickening development so far. These objects, known as "murder memorabi-
lia" or "murderabilia," include manufactured items representative of
criminals or crimes, such as murderer trading cards or figurines, and
non-manufactured items associated with the criminals or crimes them-
selves. Letters and paintings by inmates are especially popular, and
items like hair and fingernail clippings from criminals also provide
easy objects for criminals to cultivate and sell. Charles Manson is
probably the most popular figure in murderabilia, followed by such infa-
mous criminals as John Wayne Gacy, Richard "Nightstalker" Ramirez, and
cannibal Jeffrey Dahmer. Buyers are plentiful in this macabre industry.
What was once an underground practice has entered the mainstream through
the help of Internet auction sites like eBay and Yahoo. Sites dedicated
solely to the trade and collection of such items have also developed,
permitting dealers and buyers to enter into anonymous transactions and
avoid scrutiny by an unsuspecting public. They have also allowed inmates
to skirt prison rules prohibiting transactions outside the prison walls
by enabling agents to easily sell the paraphernalia on their behalf. Had
any of these men been prosecuted in New York and been found, or taken a
plea of, not responsible by reason of mental disease or defect he would
have fallen beyond the protection of 5632-a of the Executive Law.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 2005-06: Passed Senate 2007-08: Passed
Senate 2009-10: Senate Crime Victims, Crime & Corrections Committee
2011-12: Passed Senate
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately.
