NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A6709
SPONSOR: Solages TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to the criminal sale of a
controlled substance to a person less than fourteen years of age
PURPOSE:
To amend the penal law to provide that the sale of controlled substances
to minors under 14 may be prosecuted as a more serious offense.
SUMMARY:
Section 1. Amends Section 220.48 of the penal law, as added by section
28 of part AAA of chapter 56 of the laws of 2009.
Section 2. Amends the penal law by adding a new section 220.49.
Section 3. Sets the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
There has been a recent increase in drug use, especially opiate based
substances, by young adults and teenagers. There has also been an
increase in overdose cases and overdose deaths. Some young people start
experimenting in their teenage years with addicting prescription drugs
and opiate based prescription drugs. Nassau County recently experienced
a crisis when middle school children thirteen and fourteen years old
started a search to buy heroin, as was later detected by a review of
their computer's Internet history. To hold dealers accountable in this
case, we need an additional criminal sanction for drug dealers that sell
to young children.
Drug use has become more prevalent among young students. While this bill
alone will not solve this epidemic, the passage of this bill will create
another tool to help in the battle to protect our children. Drug dealers
prey upon our young people and must be dealt with harshly in appropriate
circumstances. This bill is intended to punish those who profit from the
enterprise of selling these drugs to our children. It is widely recog-
nized that the combination of education, treatment, and enforcement is
the most effective way to protect our youngsters from narcotics
addiction. This bill provides substantial assistance to law enforcement
in the crucially important element of enforcement.
RACIAL JUSTICE IMPACT:
TBD.
GENDER JUSTICE IMPACT:
TBD.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2021-22: A6502; referred to codes.
2019-20: A2453; referred to codes.
2017-18: A3981; referred to codes.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it
shall have become a law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6709
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
May 5, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. SOLAGES -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Codes
AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to the criminal sale of a
controlled substance to a person less than fourteen years of age
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 220.48 of the penal law, as added by section 28 of
2 part AAA of chapter 56 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read as
3 follows:
4 § 220.48 Criminal sale of a controlled substance to a child in the
5 second degree.
6 A person is guilty of criminal sale of a controlled substance to a
7 child in the second degree when, being over twenty-one years old, he or
8 she knowingly and unlawfully sells a controlled substance in violation
9 of section 220.34 or 220.39 of this article to a person less than seven-
10 teen years old.
11 Criminal sale of a controlled substance to a child in the second
12 degree is a class B felony.
13 § 2. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 220.49 to read
14 as follows:
15 § 220.49 Criminal sale of a controlled substance to a child in the first
16 degree.
17 A person is guilty of criminal sale of a controlled substance to a
18 child in the first degree when, being over eighteen years old, he or she
19 knowingly and unlawfully sells a controlled substance in violation of
20 section 220.34 or 220.39 of this article to a person less than fourteen
21 years old.
22 Criminal sale of a controlled substance to a child in the first degree
23 is a class A-II felony.
24 § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
25 it shall have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09158-01-3
