Penal Law
S 496.01 Definitions. For the purposes of this article, "scheme" means any plan, pattern, device, contrivance, or course of action. S 496.02 Corrupting the government in the fourth degree. A person is guilty of corrupting the government in the fourth degree when, being a public servant, or acting in concert with a public servant, he or she engages in a scheme constituting a systematic ongoing course of conduct with intent to defraud the state or one or more political subdivisions of the state or one or more governmental instrumentalities within the state to obtain property, actual services or other resources, or obtain property, actual services or other resources from the state, or any political subdivision or governmental instrumentality of the state by false or fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises, and thereby wrongfully obtains such property, actual services or other resources. Corrupting the government in the fourth degree is a class E felony. S 496.03 Corrupting the government in the third degree. A person is guilty of corrupting the government in the third degree when, being a public servant, or acting in concert with a public servant, he or she engages in a scheme constituting a systematic ongoing course of conduct with intent to defraud the state or one or more political subdivisions of the state or one or more governmental instrumentalities within the state to obtain property, actual services or other resources, or obtain property, actual services or other resources from the state, or any political subdivision or governmental instrumentality of the state by false or fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises, and thereby wrongfully obtains such property, actual services or other resources with a value in excess of one thousand dollars. Corrupting the government in the third degree is a class D felony. S 496.04 Corrupting the government in the second degree. A person is guilty of corrupting the government in the second degree when, being a public servant, or acting in concert with a public servant, he or she engages in a scheme constituting a systematic ongoing course of conduct with intent to defraud the state or one or more political subdivisions of the state or one or more governmental instrumentalities within the state to obtain property, actual services or other resources, or obtain property, actual services or other resources from the state, or any political subdivision or governmental instrumentality of the state by false or fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises, and thereby wrongfully obtains such property, actual services or other resources with a value in excess of twenty thousand dollars. Corrupting the government in the second degree is a class C felony. S 496.05 Corrupting the government in the first degree. A person is guilty of corrupting the government in the first degree when, being a public servant, or acting in concert with a public servant, he or she engages in a scheme constituting a systematic ongoing course of conduct with intent to defraud the state or one or more political subdivisions of the state or one or more governmental instrumentalities within the state to obtain property, actual services or other resources, or to obtain property, actual services or other resources from the state, or any political subdivision or governmental instrumentality of the state by false or fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises, and thereby wrongfully obtains such property, actual services or other resources with a value in excess of one hundred thousand dollars. Corrupting the government in the first degree is a class B felony. S 496.06 Public corruption. 1. A person commits the crime of public corruption when: (a) (i) being a public servant he or she commits a specified offense through the use of his or her public office, or (ii) being a person acting in concert with such public servant he or she commits a specified offense, and (b) the state or any political subdivision thereof or any governmental instrumentality within the state is the owner of the property. 2. A "specified offense" is an offense defined by any of the following provisions of this chapter: section 155.25 (petit larceny); section 155.30 (grand larceny in the fourth degree); section 155.35 (grand larceny in the third degree); section 155.40 (grand larceny in the second degree); section 155.42 (grand larceny in the first degree); section 190.60 (scheme to defraud in the second degree); or section 190.65 (scheme to defraud in the first degree). S 496.07 Sentencing. When a person is convicted of the crime of public corruption pursuant to section 496.06 of this article and the specified offense is a class C, D or E felony, the crime shall be deemed to be one category higher than the specified offense the defendant committed, or one category higher than the offense level applicable to the defendant's conviction for an attempt or conspiracy to commit a specified offense, whichever is applicable. Top of Page