Establishes crime of aggravated criminal conduct to provide more severe penalties for persons who have committed 3 or more qualifying misdemeanors or felonies within ten years of the present class A misdemeanor offense.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A7493
SPONSOR: Pretlow TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the criminal procedure law and the penal law, in
relation to aggravated criminal conduct
PURPOSE:
To enhance public safety by providing appropriately severe punishment
for those who repeatedly commit misdemeanor crimes. Specifically, the
bill would strengthen existing law by creating the crime of aggravated
criminal conduct, thereby enabling courts to impose felony sanctions on
persistent misdemeanor offenders.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Sections 1 and 3 of the bill would amend section 180.60(8) and
190.30(3-a) of the Criminal Procedure Law respectively, to include crim-
inal history records among the types of records that are admissible in
hearings upon felony complaints and grand jury proceedings. In order to
be admissible, such records must be certified by a person designated by
the commissioner of the division of criminal justice services as the
person to certify such records.
Section 2 would amend section 190.30(2-a) of the Criminal Procedure Law
to provide that electronic transmissions of criminal history records are
admissible in hearings upon felony complaints and grand jury proceedings
under certain conditions.
Section 4 would amend the Penal Law by adding a new section 240.75,
which would create the new crime of Aggravated Criminal Conduct, an E
felony. A person would commit the crime of Aggravated Criminal Conduct
when he or she: (1) commits an A misdemeanor defined in the Penal Law;
and (2) has been previously subjected to three or more qualifying misde-
meanor or felony convictions within the preceding ten years.
For purposes of determining whether a person has been previously
subjected to three or more qualifying misdemeanor or felony convictions
within the preceding ten years, the following conditions would apply:
(1) each conviction must have been for a felony, a class A misdemeanor
defined in the Penal Law, or a crime in another jurisdiction for which a
sentence of at least one year was and is authorized in New York; (2)
sentence must have been imposed on each of the prior convictions before
commission of the present misdemeanor offense; (3) a suspended sentence,
suspended execution of sentence, sentence of probation, sentence of
parole supervision, and sentence of conditional or unconditional
discharge are deemed to be..a sentence; (4) each sentence must have been
imposed not more than ten years before the commission of the present
offense except that periods of time spent in confinement toll the ten
year limitation; (5) an offense for which a defendant has been pardoned
on the ground of innocence is not deemed to be a previous conviction;
and (6) prior convictions for which concurrent sentences were imposed
are deemed to be only one conviction.
Section 5 provides that the act shall take effect immediately.
EXISTING LAW:
Under current law, although offenders who commit multiple felonies
reasonably receive enhanced penalties for their repeated felony conduct,
offenders who commit multiple misdemeanors generally do not.
JUSTIFICATION:
Public safety is better protected and promoted by requiring persistent
offenders to serve enhanced sentences. While there have been historic
decreases in crime across New York State since 1995, repeat misdemean-
ants continue to plague our streets and communities, often receiving
little or no punishment for the offenses they commit. While current law
adequately recognizes the harm caused by repeat felony offenders by
mandating enhanced penalties, it does not adequately address the problem
of misdemeanor recidivism.
A significant majority of those convicted of misdemeanors every year
have at least one prior conviction, and disturbingly large minority had
more than ten prior convictions. Although some of these offenders have
criminal histories dating back to the 1970s, few have received meaning-
ful sanctions. Regrettably, current law has afforded these offenders a
license to commit misdemeanor offenses virtually without penalty. For
many of these offenders, crime is a way of life. Their rap sheets are
their resumes and, although their crimes are not traditional felony
crimes, the constant and repetitive nature of their offenses can be
equally damaging to society.
Law-abiding citizens should not be forced to endure the crimes of chron-
ic misdemeanor offenders. The bill, therefore, creates the new felony
offense of aggravated criminal conduct and punishes appropriately those
who repeatedly commit misdemeanor offenses. Under the bill, an offender
who commits his or her fourth misdemeanor (or felony) after having been
previously convicted of three or more misdemeanors (or felonies) within
the previous ten years will be punished as an E felon and will face up
to four years in state prison. Recognizing the challenges prosecutors
may face ensuring that repeat misdemeanor cases are handled properly, .
the bill also provides that criminal history records, when certified by
a person designated by the Commissioner of the Division of Criminal
Justice Services as the person to certify such records, including elec-
tronic transmissions of such records, are admissible in felony hearings
and grand jury proceedings.
It is clear that the current system that has allowed persistent misde-
meanor offenders to commit their crimes with minimal or meaningless
sanctions is intolerable. Like repeat felons, repeat misdemeanor offen-
ders must face enhanced penalties commensurate with their conduct.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
01/03/24 A4479 referred to codes
02/16/23 A4479 referred to codes
2013-14 A580 referred to codes.
2012 A2551 referred to codes
2010 A4388 referred to codes S.3229 of 2005-06, Passed Senate 2005,
2006.
01/12/15 referred to codes
01/06/16 referred to codes
2017/2018 A 2151 referred to codes
2017/2018 S2405 committed to rules
2019-2020 A4626 referred to codes
2022 01/05/22 A3211 referred to codes
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
It is not anticipated that this legislation will have any significant
fiscal impact.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that section
four of this act shall take effect on the first of November next
succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7493
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 28, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. PRETLOW -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Codes
AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law and the penal law, in
relation to aggravated criminal conduct
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 8 of section 180.60 of the criminal procedure
2 law, as amended by chapter 307 of the laws of 1975, is amended to read
3 as follows:
4 8. Upon such a hearing, only non-hearsay evidence is admissible to
5 demonstrate reasonable cause to believe that the defendant committed a
6 felony; except that reports of experts and technicians in professional
7 and scientific fields and sworn statements, forms or records of the
8 kinds specified in subdivisions two [and], three and three-a of section
9 190.30 are admissible to the same extent as in a grand jury proceeding,
10 unless the court determines, upon application of the defendant, that
11 such hearsay evidence is, under the particular circumstances of the
12 case, not sufficiently reliable, in which case the court shall require
13 that the witness testify in person and be subject to cross-examination.
14 § 2. Subdivision 2-a of section 190.30 of the criminal procedure law,
15 as amended by chapter 453 of the laws of 1999, is amended to read as
16 follows:
17 2-a. When the electronic transmission of a certified report, form or
18 record, or certified copy thereof, of the kind described in subdivision
19 two or three-a of this section or a sworn statement or copy thereof, of
20 the kind described in subdivision three of this section results in a
21 written document, such written document may be received in such grand
22 jury proceeding provided that: (a) a transmittal memorandum completed by
23 the person sending the report, form or record contains a certification
24 that the report, form or record has not been altered and a description
25 of the report, form or record specifying the number of pages; and (b)
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10536-01-5
A. 7493 2
1 the person who receives the electronically transmitted document certi-
2 fies that such document and transmittal memorandum were so received; and
3 (c) a certified report, form or record or a certified copy or sworn
4 statement or sworn copy thereof is filed with the court within twenty
5 days following arraignment upon the indictment; and (d) where such writ-
6 ten document is a sworn statement or sworn copy thereof of the kind
7 described in subdivision three of this section, such sworn statement or
8 sworn copy thereof is also provided to the defendant or [his] such
9 defendant's counsel within twenty days following arraignment upon the
10 indictment.
11 § 3. Subdivision 3-a of section 190.30 of the criminal procedure law,
12 as added by chapter 453 of the laws of 1999, is amended to read as
13 follows:
14 3-a. A sex offender registration form, sex offender registration
15 continuation/supplemental form, sex offender registry address verifica-
16 tion form, sex offender change of address form, criminal history record,
17 or a copy of such form or record, maintained by the division of criminal
18 justice services concerning an individual who is the subject of a grand
19 jury proceeding, may, when certified by a person designated by the
20 commissioner of the division of criminal justice services as the person
21 to certify such forms or records, as a true copy thereof, be received in
22 such grand jury proceeding as evidence of the facts stated therein.
23 § 4. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 240.80 to read
24 as follows:
25 § 240.80 Aggravated criminal conduct.
26 1. A person is guilty of aggravated criminal conduct when such person
27 commits a class A misdemeanor defined in this chapter after having been
28 previously subjected to three or more qualifying misdemeanor or felony
29 convictions within the preceding ten years.
30 2. The provisions of section 200.60 of the criminal procedure law
31 shall apply to any prosecution under this section.
32 3. For the purposes of this section, in determining whether a person
33 has been previously subjected to three or more qualifying misdemeanor or
34 felony convictions within the preceding ten years, the following crite-
35 ria shall apply:
36 (a) Each conviction must have been in this state of a class A misde-
37 meanor defined in this chapter or of a felony, or of a crime in any
38 other jurisdiction for which a sentence to a term of imprisonment of at
39 least one year or a sentence of death was authorized and is authorized
40 in this state irrespective of whether such sentence was imposed;
41 (b) Sentence upon each such prior conviction must have been imposed
42 before commission of the present misdemeanor;
43 (c) Suspended sentence, suspended execution of sentence, sentence of
44 probation, sentence of parole supervision, and sentence of conditional
45 discharge or of unconditional discharge shall be deemed to be a
46 sentence;
47 (d) Except as provided in paragraph (e) of this subdivision, each
48 sentence must have been imposed not more than ten years before commis-
49 sion of the present misdemeanor;
50 (e) In calculating the ten year period under paragraph (d) of this
51 subdivision, any period of time during which the defendant was incarcer-
52 ated for any reason between the time of commission of any of the previ-
53 ous convictions and the time of commission of the present misdemeanor
54 shall be excluded and such ten year period shall be extended by a period
55 or periods equal to the time served;
A. 7493 3
1 (f) An offense for which the defendant has been pardoned on the ground
2 of innocence shall not be deemed a previous misdemeanor or felony
3 conviction;
4 (g) When multiple sentences for two or more convictions were imposed
5 at the same time, all convictions shall be deemed to constitute only one
6 conviction.
7 4. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to preclude a
8 prosecution or conviction for any other offense, a necessary element of
9 which is a previous conviction for an offense.
10 Aggravated criminal conduct is a class E felony.
11 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
12 section four of this act shall take effect on the first of November next
13 succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
