Categorizes the assault of an individual responsible for local parking enforcement performing his or her lawful duties under such position as a class D felony.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5891
SPONSOR: Fahy TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to categorizing the assault
of an individual responsible for local parking enforcement as a class D
felony
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
The purpose of this bill is to create a penal law offense (class D felo-
ny) for assaults committed against individuals responsible for local
parking enforcement, such as parking service officers and traffic safety
aides.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends section 120.05 of the Penal Law by adding a new subdi-
vision (15). Subdivision (15) adds intent to cause physical injury to an
individual Whose duties include enforcing local parking laws, ordi-
nances, and/or regulations, while such individual is performing his or
lawful duties under such a position as an offense considered to be
assault in the second degree.
Section 2 sets the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
There are very few New York State laws that help protect the safety of
parking officers serving localities outside of New York City. Individ-
uals responsible for local parking enforcement, such as parking service
officers and traffic safety aides, provide a vital service in maintain-
ing the safety of roadways for vehicles and pedestrians, as well as help
ensure the quality of life for residents by ticketing vehicles impermis-
sibly parked on certain roadways or, at times, blocking critical munici-
pal infrastructure, such as fire hydrants.
There has been an uptick in reported assaults committed against parking
enforcement officers. Within a four month timespan, the City of Albany
saw an upwards of 30 reported incidents of violence or intended violence
committed against Parking Service Officers and Traffic Safety Aides
employed by the Albany Parking Authority. This legislation would help
remedy that issue by categorizing the assault of an individual responsi-
ble for local parking enforcement as a class D felony, thus, increasing
the criminal consequences for occurrences of assault.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New Bill
FISCAL IMPLICATION:
None to the State.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
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
________________________________________________________________________
5891
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 24, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. FAHY -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Codes
AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to categorizing the assault
of an individual responsible for local parking enforcement as a class
D felony
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 14 of section 120.05 of the penal law, as added
2 by chapter 268 of the laws of 2016, is amended and a new subdivision 15
3 is added to read as follows:
4 14. With intent to prevent or obstruct a process server, as defined in
5 section eighty-nine-t of the general business law, from performing a
6 lawful duty pursuant to article three of the civil practice law and
7 rules, or intentionally, as retaliation against such a process server
8 for the performance of the process server's duties pursuant to such
9 article, including by means of releasing or failing to control an animal
10 evincing the actor's intent that the animal prevent or obstruct the
11 lawful duty of the process server or as retaliation against the process
12 server, he or she causes physical injury to such process server[.]; or
13 15. With intent to cause physical injury, he or she causes such injury
14 to an individual whose duties include the enforcement of local parking
15 laws, ordinances and/or regulations, while such individual is performing
16 his or her lawful duties under such position.
17 § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
18 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10035-01-3
