Relates to the former crime of loitering for the purpose of engaging in a prostitution offense; expunges criminal records for persons previously convicted of such crime; directs the chief administrator of the courts to provide information regarding such expungement; adds language to identify that the crime of loitering for the purpose of engaging in a prostitution offense is no longer in law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
588
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY(Prefiled)
January 8, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. PAULIN, SEAWRIGHT, EPSTEIN, DINOWITZ, HEVESI,
GONZALEZ-ROJAS, JACOBSON, DAVILA, SIMON, STECK, LEE, WEPRIN, KELLES,
BORES, ROSENTHAL -- read once and referred to the Committee on Codes
AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to the former
crime of loitering for the purpose of engaging in a prostitution
offense and expunging criminal records for persons previously
convicted of such crime
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 160.50 of the criminal procedure law is amended by
2 adding a new subdivision 6 to read as follows:
3 6. (a) A conviction for an offense described in former section 240.37
4 of the penal law as such section was in effect on February first, two
5 thousand twenty-one shall, on and after the effective date of this
6 subdivision, in accordance with the provisions of this paragraph, be
7 vacated and dismissed, and all records of such conviction or convictions
8 and related to such conviction or convictions shall be expunged, as
9 described in subdivision forty-five of section 1.20 of this chapter, and
10 the matter shall be considered terminated in favor of the accused and
11 deemed a nullity, having been rendered by this paragraph legally inval-
12 id. All such records for an offense described in this paragraph where
13 the conviction was entered on or before the effective date of the chap-
14 ter of the laws of two thousand twenty-five that added this subdivision
15 shall be expunged promptly and, in any event, no later than one year
16 after such effective date.
17 (b) Commencing upon the effective date of this subdivision:
18 (i) the chief administrator of the courts shall promptly notify the
19 commissioner of the division of criminal justice services and the heads
20 of all appropriate police departments, district attorney's offices and
21 other law enforcement agencies of all convictions that have been vacated
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02100-01-5
A. 588 2
1 and dismissed pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subdivision and that all
2 records related to such convictions shall be expunged and the matter
3 shall be considered terminated in favor of the accused and deemed a
4 nullity, having been rendered legally invalid. Upon receipt of notifi-
5 cation of such vacatur, dismissal and expungement, all records relating
6 to such conviction or convictions, or the criminal action or proceeding,
7 as the case may be, shall be marked as expunged by conspicuously indi-
8 cating on the face of the record and on each page or at the beginning of
9 the digitized file of the record that the record has been designated as
10 expunged. Upon the written request of the individual whose case has been
11 expunged or their designated agent, such records shall be destroyed.
12 Such records and papers shall not be made available to any person,
13 except the individual whose case has been expunged or such person's
14 designated agent; and
15 (ii) where automatic vacatur, dismissal, and expungement, including
16 record destruction if requested, is required by this subdivision but any
17 record of the court system in this state has not yet been updated to
18 reflect same:
19 (A) notwithstanding any other provision of law except as provided in
20 paragraph (d) of subdivision one of this section and paragraph (e) of
21 subdivision four of section eight hundred thirty-seven of the executive
22 law:
23 (1) when the division of criminal justice services conducts a search
24 of its criminal history records, maintained pursuant to subdivision six
25 of section eight hundred thirty-seven of the executive law, and returns
26 a report thereon, all references to a conviction for an offense
27 described in paragraph (k) of subdivision three of this section shall be
28 excluded from such report; and
29 (2) the chief administrator of the courts shall develop and promulgate
30 rules as may be necessary to ensure that no written or electronic report
31 of a criminal history record search conducted by the office of court
32 administration contains information relating to a conviction for an
33 offense described in paragraph (k) of subdivision three of this section;
34 and
35 (B) where court records relevant to such matter cannot be located or
36 have been destroyed, and a person or the person's attorney presents to
37 an appropriate court employee a fingerprint record of the New York state
38 division of criminal justice services, or a copy of a court disposition
39 record or other relevant court record, which indicates that a criminal
40 action or proceeding against such person was terminated by conviction of
41 an offense described in paragraph (k) of subdivision three of this
42 section, then promptly, and in any event within thirty days after such
43 notice to such court employee, the chief administrator of the courts or
44 such chief administrator's designee shall assure that such vacatur,
45 dismissal, and expungement, including record destruction if requested,
46 have been completed in accordance with subparagraph (i) of this para-
47 graph.
48 (c) Vacatur, dismissal and expungement as set forth in this subdivi-
49 sion shall be without prejudice to any person or such person's attorney
50 seeking further relief pursuant to article four hundred forty of this
51 chapter or any other law. Nothing in this section is intended or shall
52 be interpreted to diminish or abrogate any right or remedy otherwise
53 available to any person.
54 (d) The office of court administration, in conjunction with the divi-
55 sion of criminal justice services, shall develop an affirmative informa-
56 tion campaign and widely disseminate to the public, through its website,
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1 public service announcements and other means, in multiple languages and
2 through multiple outlets, information concerning the expungement and
3 vacatur of loitering for the purposes of prostitution convictions estab-
4 lished by the chapter of the laws of two thousand twenty-five that added
5 this subdivision, including, but not limited to, the automatic expunge-
6 ment of certain past convictions, the means by which an individual may
7 file a motion for vacatur, dismissal and expungement of certain past
8 convictions, and the impact of such changes on such person's criminal
9 history records.
10 § 2. The opening paragraph of subdivision 1, subdivision 2 and para-
11 graph (a) of subdivision 3 of section 170.80 of the criminal procedure
12 law, the opening paragraph of subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 23 of
13 the laws of 2021, and subdivision 2 as amended and paragraph (a) of
14 subdivision 3 as added by chapter 402 of the laws of 2014, are amended
15 to read as follows:
16 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, at any time at or after
17 arraignment on a charge of prostitution pursuant to section 230.00 of
18 the penal law, except where, after consultation with counsel, a knowing
19 and voluntary plea of guilty has been entered to such charge, any judge
20 or justice hearing any stage of such case may, upon consent of the
21 defendant after consultation with counsel:
22 2. In the event of a conviction by plea or verdict to such charge or
23 charges of prostitution [or loitering for the purposes of prostitution]
24 as described in subdivision one of this section, the court must find
25 that the person is a youthful offender for the purpose of such charge
26 and proceed in accordance with article seven hundred twenty of this
27 chapter, provided, however, that the available sentence shall be the
28 sentence that may be imposed for a violation as defined in subdivision
29 three of section 10.00 of the penal law. In such case, the records of
30 the investigation and proceedings relating to such charge shall be
31 sealed in accordance with section 720.35 of this chapter.
32 (a) When a charge of prostitution [or loitering for the purposes of
33 prostitution] has been conditionally converted to a person in need of
34 supervision proceeding pursuant to subdivision one of this section, the
35 defendant shall be deemed a "sexually exploited child" as defined in
36 subdivision one of section four hundred forty-seven-a of the social
37 services law and therefore shall not be considered an adult for purposes
38 related to the charges in the person in need of supervision proceeding.
39 Sections seven hundred eighty-one, seven hundred eighty-two, seven
40 hundred eighty-two-a, seven hundred eighty-three and seven hundred
41 eighty-four of the family court act shall apply to any proceeding condi-
42 tionally converted under this section.
43 § 3. Subparagraph (iv) of paragraph (k) of subdivision 3 of section
44 160.50 of the criminal procedure law, as amended by chapter 92 of the
45 laws of 2021, is amended to read as follows:
46 (iv) the conviction was for an offense defined in former section
47 240.37 of the penal law; or
48 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
