Establishes the crimes of carjacking in first, second and third degrees, as the stealing of a motor vehicle from a person or presence of another person through the use or threatened use of force; increases penalties for causing injury to such victim, displaying a real or fake gun or using such a weapon; provides that all carjackings are violent felony offenses.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
4406
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 4, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. NORBER -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Codes
AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to carjacking
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The penal law is amended by adding a new article 161 to
2 read as follows:
3 ARTICLE 161
4 CARJACKING
5 Section 161.00 Carjacking; defined.
6 161.05 Carjacking in the third degree.
7 161.10 Carjacking in the second degree.
8 161.15 Carjacking in the first degree.
9 § 161.00 Carjacking; defined.
10 Carjacking. A person commits carjacking when, in the course of
11 committing larceny of a motor vehicle from the person or presence of
12 another person, such person uses or threatens the immediate use of phys-
13 ical force upon another person for the purpose of:
14 1. Preventing or overcoming resistance to the taking of the motor
15 vehicle or to the retention thereof immediately after the taking; or
16 2. Compelling the owner of such motor vehicle or another person to
17 deliver up the motor vehicle or to engage in other conduct which aids in
18 the commission of the larceny.
19 § 161.05 Carjacking in the third degree.
20 A person is guilty of carjacking in the third degree when such person
21 forcibly steals a motor vehicle from the person or presence of another
22 person.
23 Carjacking in the third degree is a class D felony.
24 § 161.10 Carjacking in the second degree.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08273-01-5
A. 4406 2
1 A person is guilty of carjacking in the second degree when such person
2 forcibly steals a motor vehicle from the person or presence of another
3 person and when:
4 1. Such person is aided by another person actually present; or
5 2. In the course of the commission of the crime or of immediate
6 flight therefrom, such person or another participant in the crime:
7 (a) Causes physical injury to any person who is not a participant in
8 the crime; or
9 (b) Displays what appears to be a pistol, revolver, rifle, shotgun,
10 machine gun or other firearm.
11 Carjacking in the second degree is a class C felony.
12 § 161.15 Carjacking in the first degree.
13 A person is guilty of carjacking in the first degree when such person
14 forcibly steals a motor vehicle from the person or presence of another
15 person and when, in the course of the commission of the crime or of
16 immediate flight therefrom, such person or another participant in the
17 crime:
18 1. Causes serious physical injury to any person who is not a partic-
19 ipant in the crime; or
20 2. Is armed with a deadly weapon; or
21 3. Uses or threatens the immediate use of a dangerous instrument; or
22 4. Displays what appears to be a pistol, revolver, rifle, shotgun,
23 machine gun or other firearm; except that in any prosecution under this
24 subdivision, it is an affirmative defense that such pistol, revolver,
25 rifle, shotgun, machine gun or other firearm was not a loaded weapon
26 from which a shot, readily capable of producing death or other serious
27 physical injury, could be discharged. Nothing contained in this subdi-
28 vision shall constitute a defense to a prosecution for, or preclude a
29 conviction of, carjacking in the second degree, carjacking in the third
30 degree or any other crime.
31 Carjacking in the first degree is a class B felony.
32 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 70.02 of the penal law, as separately
33 amended by chapters 764 and 765 of the laws of 2005, paragraphs (a) and
34 (c) as amended by chapter 23 of the laws of 2024, paragraph (b) as
35 amended by chapter 94 of the laws of 2020, and paragraph (d) as amended
36 by chapter 7 of the laws of 2007, is amended to read as follows:
37 1. Definition of a violent felony offense. A violent felony offense is
38 a class B violent felony offense, a class C violent felony offense, a
39 class D violent felony offense, or a class E violent felony offense,
40 defined as follows:
41 (a) Class B violent felony offenses: an attempt to commit the class
42 A-I felonies of murder in the second degree as defined in section
43 125.25, kidnapping in the first degree as defined in section 135.25, and
44 arson in the first degree as defined in section 150.20; manslaughter in
45 the first degree as defined in section 125.20, aggravated manslaughter
46 in the first degree as defined in section 125.22, rape in the first
47 degree as defined in section 130.35, a crime formerly defined in section
48 130.50, aggravated sexual abuse in the first degree as defined in
49 section 130.70, course of sexual conduct against a child in the first
50 degree as defined in section 130.75, assault in the first degree as
51 defined in section 120.10, kidnapping in the second degree as defined in
52 section 135.20, burglary in the first degree as defined in section
53 140.30, arson in the second degree as defined in section 150.15, robbery
54 in the first degree as defined in section 160.15, carjacking in the
55 first degree as defined in section 161.15, sex trafficking as defined in
56 paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdivision five of section 230.34, sex traf-
A. 4406 3
1 ficking of a child as defined in section 230.34-a, incest in the first
2 degree as defined in section 255.27, criminal possession of a weapon in
3 the first degree as defined in section 265.04, criminal use of a firearm
4 in the first degree as defined in section 265.09, criminal sale of a
5 firearm in the first degree as defined in section 265.13, aggravated
6 assault upon a police officer or a peace officer as defined in section
7 120.11, gang assault in the first degree as defined in section 120.07,
8 intimidating a victim or witness in the first degree as defined in
9 section 215.17, hindering prosecution of terrorism in the first degree
10 as defined in section 490.35, criminal possession of a chemical weapon
11 or biological weapon in the second degree as defined in section 490.40,
12 and criminal use of a chemical weapon or biological weapon in the third
13 degree as defined in section 490.47.
14 (b) Class C violent felony offenses: an attempt to commit any of the
15 class B felonies set forth in paragraph (a) of this subdivision; aggra-
16 vated criminally negligent homicide as defined in section 125.11, aggra-
17 vated manslaughter in the second degree as defined in section 125.21,
18 aggravated sexual abuse in the second degree as defined in section
19 130.67, assault on a peace officer, police officer, firefighter or emer-
20 gency medical services professional as defined in section 120.08,
21 assault on a judge as defined in section 120.09, gang assault in the
22 second degree as defined in section 120.06, strangulation in the first
23 degree as defined in section 121.13, aggravated strangulation as defined
24 in section 121.13-a, burglary in the second degree as defined in section
25 140.25, robbery in the second degree as defined in section 160.10,
26 carjacking in the second degree as defined in section 161.10, criminal
27 possession of a weapon in the second degree as defined in section
28 265.03, criminal use of a firearm in the second degree as defined in
29 section 265.08, criminal sale of a firearm in the second degree as
30 defined in section 265.12, criminal sale of a firearm with the aid of a
31 minor as defined in section 265.14, aggravated criminal possession of a
32 weapon as defined in section 265.19, soliciting or providing support for
33 an act of terrorism in the first degree as defined in section 490.15,
34 hindering prosecution of terrorism in the second degree as defined in
35 section 490.30, and criminal possession of a chemical weapon or biolog-
36 ical weapon in the third degree as defined in section 490.37.
37 (c) Class D violent felony offenses: an attempt to commit any of the
38 class C felonies set forth in paragraph (b); reckless assault of a child
39 as defined in section 120.02, assault in the second degree as defined in
40 section 120.05, menacing a police officer or peace officer as defined in
41 section 120.18, stalking in the first degree, as defined in subdivision
42 one of section 120.60, strangulation in the second degree as defined in
43 section 121.12, rape in the second degree as defined in section 130.30,
44 a crime formerly defined in section 130.45, sexual abuse in the first
45 degree as defined in section 130.65, course of sexual conduct against a
46 child in the second degree as defined in section 130.80, aggravated
47 sexual abuse in the third degree as defined in section 130.66, facili-
48 tating a sex offense with a controlled substance as defined in section
49 130.90, labor trafficking as defined in paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdi-
50 vision three of section 135.35, carjacking in the third degree as
51 defined in section 161.05, criminal possession of a weapon in the third
52 degree as defined in subdivision five, six, seven, eight, nine or ten of
53 section 265.02, criminal sale of a firearm in the third degree as
54 defined in section 265.11, intimidating a victim or witness in the
55 second degree as defined in section 215.16, soliciting or providing
56 support for an act of terrorism in the second degree as defined in
A. 4406 4
1 section 490.10, and making a terroristic threat as defined in section
2 490.20, falsely reporting an incident in the first degree as defined in
3 section 240.60, placing a false bomb or hazardous substance in the first
4 degree as defined in section 240.62, placing a false bomb or hazardous
5 substance in a sports stadium or arena, mass transportation facility or
6 enclosed shopping mall as defined in section 240.63, aggravated unper-
7 mitted use of indoor pyrotechnics in the first degree as defined in
8 section 405.18, and criminal manufacture, sale, or transport of an unde-
9 tectable firearm, rifle or shotgun as defined in section 265.50.
10 (d) Class E violent felony offenses: an attempt to commit any of the
11 felonies of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree as
12 defined in subdivision five, six, seven or eight of section 265.02 as a
13 lesser included offense of that section as defined in section 220.20 of
14 the criminal procedure law, persistent sexual abuse as defined in
15 section 130.53, aggravated sexual abuse in the fourth degree as defined
16 in section 130.65-a, falsely reporting an incident in the second degree
17 as defined in section 240.55 and placing a false bomb or hazardous
18 substance in the second degree as defined in section 240.61.
19 § 3. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
20 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
