Enacts the "dialogue and decorum act" which establishes the crime of disruption or disturbance of a lawful assembly; makes such crime a class A misdemeanor.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
8334
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
December 13, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. BERGER -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Codes
AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to establishing the crime of
disruption or disturbance of a lawful assembly
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "dialogue
2 and decorum act".
3 § 2. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 240.22 to read
4 as follows:
5 § 240.22 Disruption or disturbance of a lawful assembly.
6 1. A person is guilty of disruption or disturbance of a lawful assem-
7 bly when he or she, without authority of law, willfully disturbs or
8 breaks up any assembly or meeting that is not unlawful in its character.
9 2. For purposes of this section, the following terms shall have the
10 following meanings:
11 (a) "Willfully disturbs" shall mean:
12 (i) the conduct substantially impairs the ability to conduct a lawful
13 meeting or assembly;
14 (ii) the conduct disrupting the meeting or assembly is intended to
15 cause a disruption; and
16 (iii) the conduct is in violation of the implicit customs or usage of
17 the specific kind of meeting or assembly, or the explicit rules govern-
18 ing the meeting or assembly, where the disrupting party knew or reason-
19 ably should have known such conduct was in violation.
20 (b) "Lawful assembly" shall mean a group of two or more individuals
21 who legally reserve a space or area with an institution or a munici-
22 pality by paying a fee or filing an application, and who use such space
23 or area to peacefully assemble for any purpose not expressly prohibited
24 by law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13729-03-3
A. 8334 2
1 3. Disregard of a moderator's call to order or a determination that a
2 person is in violation of the rules of an assembly or meeting shall be
3 proof of an impermissible intent to disrupt.
4 Disruption or disturbance of a lawful assembly is a class A misdemea-
5 nor.
6 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
