S2261-2013 - NY Senate Open Legislation - Defenses against patronizing a prostitute

Establishes an affirmative defense against patronizing a prostitute.

Sponsor: KLEIN

Co-sponsor(s): BALL, GOLDEN

Committee: CODES
Law Section: Penal Law
Law: Amd S230.07, Pen L

S2261-2013 Actions

Mar 27, 2013: referred to codes
Mar 26, 2013: DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY
Mar 26, 2013: PASSED SENATE
Mar 21, 2013: ADVANCED TO THIRD READING
Mar 20, 2013: 2ND REPORT CAL.
Mar 19, 2013: 1ST REPORT CAL.256
Jan 15, 2013: REFERRED TO CODES

S2261-2013 Meetings

Codes: Mar 19, 2013

S2261-2013 Calendars

Active List: Mar 26, 2013 , Floor Calendar: Mar 20, 2013 , Floor Calendar: Mar 21, 2013 , Floor Calendar: Mar 24, 2013 , Floor Calendar: Mar 25, 2013 , Floor Calendar: Mar 26, 2013

S2261-2013 Votes

VOTE: COMMITTEE VOTE: - Codes - Mar 19, 2013

Ayes (16): Nozzolio, Boyle, DeFrancisco, Flanagan, Fuschillo, Gallivan, Golden, Lanza, O'Mara, Smith, Squadron, Perkins, Espaillat, Hoylman, Sampson, O'Brien

VOTE: FLOOR VOTE: - Mar 26, 2013

Ayes (59): Adams, Addabbo, Avella, Ball, Bonacic, Boyle, Breslin, Carlucci, DeFrancisco, Dilan, Espaillat, Farley, Flanagan, Fuschillo, Gallivan, Gianaris, Gipson, Golden, Griffo, Grisanti, Hassell-Thomps, Hoylman, Kennedy, Klein, Krueger, Lanza, Larkin, Latimer, LaValle, Libous, Little, Marcellino, Marchione, Martins, Maziarz, Nozzolio, O'Brien, O'Mara, Parker, Peralta, Perkins, Ranzenhofer, Ritchie, Rivera, Robach, Sampson, Sanders, Savino, Serrano, Seward, Skelos, Smith, Squadron, Stavisky, Stewart-Cousin, Tkaczyk, Valesky, Young, Zeldin
Nays (1): Montgomery
Excused (3): Diaz, Felder, Hannon

S2261-2013 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S2261

TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the penal law, in relation to defenses
against patronizing a prostitute

PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:  To shift the burden of proof to
those who commit the crime of either patronizing a prostitute in the
first degree or second degree by making it an affirmative defense that
the defendant did not reasonably believe that the person patronized
was less than the age specified in current law.

CURRENT LAW:  Section 230.07 of the penal law provides that it is a
defense to the crime of patronizing a prostitute in the first or
second degree that the defendant did not have reasonable grounds to
believe that the person patronized was less than the age specified for
such crimes.

SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Amends section 230.07 of the penal law, by providing that
it shall be an affirmative defense to the crime of patronizing a
prostitute in the, first or second degree that the defendant did not
have reasonable grounds to believe that the person patronized was less
than the age specified for such crimes.

Section 2: Immediate effective date.

JUSTIFICATION:  Currently, it is a defense to the crime of patronizing
a prostitute in either the first or second degree that the defendant
did not have reasonable grounds to believe that the person was less
than the age specified. It is a valid defense if a defendant merely
asserts that there was no reasonable way to know that the person
patronized was younger than fourteen years old. In such cases, the
prosecutor has the burden of proving that the defendant did have
reasonable grounds to believe that the person patronized was younger
than the age specified in statute.

This legislation will change the current law by shifting the burden of
proof onto the defendant. The defendant will have to prove that he or
she did not have reasonable grounds to believe that the person
patronized was younger than fourteen years old. The intention of this
legislation is to create a system that will make it more difficult for
people to patronize child prostitutes.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:  2010 - Referred to Codes; Passed Senate
S.8109.  2012 - Referred to Codes; Passed Senate S. 618

FISCAL IMPLICATION: None.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately.

S2261-2013 Text


                      S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
  ________________________________________________________________________

                                    2261

                         2013-2014 Regular Sessions

                              I N  SENATE

                              January 15, 2013
                                 ___________

  Introduced  by  Sen.  KLEIN  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
    printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes

  AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to defenses against patroniz-
    ing a prostitute

    THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
  BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


    Section  1.  Section 230.07 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 74
  of the laws of 2007, is amended to read as follows:

  S 230.07 Patronizing a prostitute; defense.
    In any prosecution for patronizing a prostitute in the first or second
  degrees, it is [a] AN AFFIRMATIVE defense that  the  defendant  did  not
  have reasonable grounds to believe that the person was less than the age
  specified.
    S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.






   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD06598-01-3

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S2261-2013: Defenses against patronizing a prostitute