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Article 720 - NY Criminal Procedure Law

• NY Laws ›
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• Part 3 ›
• Title U ›
• Article 720

S 720.10 Youthful offender procedure; definition of terms.
  As  used  in  this  article,  the  following  terms have the following
  meanings:
    1. "Youth" means a person charged with a crime alleged  to  have  been
  committed  when he was at least sixteen years old and less than nineteen
  years old or a person charged with being a juvenile offender as  defined
  in subdivision forty-two of section 1.20 of this chapter.
    2.  "Eligible  youth"  means  a  youth  who  is eligible to be found a
  youthful offender. Every youth is so eligible unless:
    (a) the conviction to be replaced by a youthful  offender  finding  is
  for  (i)  a  class  A-I or class A-II felony, or (ii) an armed felony as
  defined in subdivision forty-one of section 1.20, except as provided  in
  subdivision  three,  or  (iii) rape in the first degree, criminal sexual
  act in the first degree, or aggravated sexual abuse, except as  provided
  in subdivision three, or
    (b)  such  youth  has  previously  been  convicted and sentenced for a
  felony, or
    (c) such youth has previously been  adjudicated  a  youthful  offender
  following  conviction  of  a  felony or has been adjudicated on or after
  September first, nineteen hundred seventy-eight  a  juvenile  delinquent
  who  committed  a  designated  felony act as defined in the family court
  act.
    3. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision two, a youth who  has
  been  convicted  of  an  armed  felony  offense  or of rape in the first
  degree, criminal sexual act in the first degree,  or  aggravated  sexual
  abuse  is  an eligible youth if the court determines that one or more of
  the following factors exist:  (i)  mitigating  circumstances  that  bear
  directly upon the manner in which the crime was committed; or (ii) where
  the defendant was not the sole participant in the crime, the defendant's
  participation   was  relatively  minor  although  not  so  minor  as  to
  constitute a defense to the prosecution. Where the court determines that
  the eligible youth is a  youthful  offender,  the  court  shall  make  a
  statement  on  the  record  of  the  reasons  for  its  determination, a
  transcript of which shall be forwarded to the state division of criminal
  justice services, to be  kept  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of
  subdivision  three  of  section  eight  hundred  thirty-seven-a  of  the
  executive law.
    4. "Youthful offender finding" means a finding,  substituted  for  the
  conviction  of  an  eligible youth, pursuant to a determination that the
  eligible youth is a youthful offender.
    5. "Youthful offender sentence" means  the  sentence  imposed  upon  a
  youthful offender finding.
    6.  "Youthful offender adjudication". A youthful offender adjudication
  is comprised of a youthful offender finding and  the  youthful  offender
  sentence imposed thereon and is completed by imposition and entry of the
  youthful offender sentence.

S 720.15 Youthful offender procedure; sealing of accusatory instrument;
               privacy of proceedings; preliminary instructions to jury.
    1. When an accusatory instrument against an apparently eligible  youth
  is  filed with a court, it shall be filed as a sealed instrument, though
  only with respect to the public.
    2. When a youth is initially arraigned upon an accusatory  instrument,
  such  arraignment  and  all proceedings in the action thereafter may, in
  the discretion of  the  court  and  with  the  defendant's  consent,  be
  conducted in private.
    3.  The  provisions  of  subdivisions  one  and  two  of  this section
  requiring or authorizing the accusatory instrument filed against a youth
  to be sealed, and the arraignment and all proceedings in the  action  to
  be  conducted  in  private  shall not apply in connection with a pending
  charge of committing any felony offense as defined in the penal law. The
  provisions of subdivision one requiring the accusatory instrument  filed
  against  a  youth  to  be  sealed  shall  not apply where such youth has
  previously been adjudicated a youthful offender or convicted of a crime.
    4. Notwithstanding any provision in this  article,  a  person  charged
  with  prostitution  as  defined  in  section  230.00 of the penal law or
  loitering for the purposes of prostitution as defined in subdivision two
  of section 240.37 of the penal law, provided that the  person  does  not
  stand   charged   with  loitering  for  the  purpose  of  patronizing  a
  prostitute, and such person is  aged  sixteen  or  seventeen  when  such
  offense  occurred,  regardless  of  whether such person (i) had prior to
  commencement of trial or entry of a plea of guilty been convicted  of  a
  crime  or  found  a  youthful  offender,  or  (ii)  subsequent  to  such
  conviction for prostitution or loitering for prostitution  is  convicted
  of  a crime or found a youthful offender, the provisions of subdivisions
  one and two of this section  requiring  or  authorizing  the  accusatory
  instrument  filed  against a youth to be sealed, and the arraignment and
  all proceedings in the action to be conducted in private shall apply.

S 720.20 Youthful offender determination; when and how made;
                procedure thereupon.
  1.  Upon conviction of an eligible youth, the court must order a
pre-sentence investigation of the defendant.  After receipt of a written
report of the investigation and at the time of pronouncing sentence the
court must determine whether or not the eligible youth is a youthful
offender.  Such determination shall be in accordance with the following
criteria:
  (a)  If in the opinion of the court the interest of justice would be
served by relieving the eligible youth from the onus of a criminal
record and by not imposing an indeterminate term of imprisonment of more
than four years, the court may, in its discretion, find the eligible
youth is a youthful offender; and
  (b)  Where the conviction is had in a local criminal court and the
eligible youth had not prior to commencement of trial or entry of a plea
of guilty been convicted of a crime or found a youthful offender, the
court must find he is a youthful offender.
  2.  Where an eligible youth is convicted of two or more crimes set
forth in separate counts of an accusatory instrument or set forth in two
or more accusatory instruments consolidated for trial purposes, the
court must not find him a youthful offender with respect to any such
conviction pursuant to subdivision one of this section unless it finds
him a youthful offender with respect to all such convictions.
  3.  Upon determining that an eligible youth is a youthful offender,
the court must direct that the conviction be deemed vacated and replaced
by a youthful offender finding; and the court must sentence the
defendant pursuant to section 60.02 of the penal law.
  4.  Upon determining that an eligible youth is not a youthful
offender, the court must order the accusatory instrument unsealed and
continue the action to judgment pursuant to the ordinary rules governing
criminal prosecutions.

 S 720.25 Youthful offender adjudication; certain exemptions.
   Notwithstanding any inconsistent provisions of law:
   1.  where  the  court  is required to find that a person is a youthful
 offender pursuant to section 170.80 of this chapter, the fact that  such
 person  has  previously  been  convicted  of  a  crime  or adjudicated a
 youthful offender shall not prevent such person from being adjudicated a
 youthful offender as required by such section; and
   2. a youthful offender adjudication pursuant to section 170.80 of this
 chapter shall not be considered in determining whether a  person  is  an
 eligible  youth,  or  in determining whether to find a person a youthful
 offender, in any subsequent youthful offender adjudication.

S 720.30 Youthful offender adjudication; post-judgment motions and
                appeal.
  The provisions of this chapter, governing the making and determination
of post-judgment motions and the taking and determination of appeals in
criminal cases, apply to post-judgment motions and appeals with respect
to youthful offender adjudications wherever such provisions can
reasonably be so applied.

S 720.35 Youthful offender adjudication; effect thereof; records.
1.  A  youthful  offender adjudication is not a judgment of conviction
for  a  crime  or  any  other  offense,  and  does  not  operate  as   a
disqualification  of  any  person  so  adjudged to hold public office or
public employment or to receive any license granted by public  authority
but  shall  be  deemed a conviction only for the purposes of transfer of
supervision and custody pursuant to section two hundred fifty-nine-m  of
the executive law. A defendant for whom a youthful offender adjudication
was substituted, who was originally charged with prostitution as defined
in  section  230.00  of  the  penal law or loitering for the purposes of
prostitution as defined in subdivision two  of  section  240.37  of  the
penal law provided that the person does not stand charged with loitering
for  the  purpose  of patronizing a prostitute, for an offense allegedly
committed when he or she was sixteen or seventeen years of age, shall be
deemed a "sexually exploited child" as defined  in  subdivision  one  of
section  four  hundred  forty-seven-a  of  the  social  services law and
therefore shall not be considered an adult for purposes related  to  the
charges  in  the  youthful  offender  proceeding  or  a proceeding under
section 170.80 of this chapter.
  2. Except where specifically required or permitted by statute or  upon
specific  authorization  of  the court, all official records and papers,
whether on file with the court, a  police  agency  or  the  division  of
criminal  justice services, relating to a case involving a youth who has
been adjudicated a youthful offender, are confidential and  may  not  be
made available to any person or public or private agency, other than the
designated  educational  official of the public or private elementary or
secondary school in which the youth is enrolled as  a  student  provided
that  such  local  educational official shall only have made available a
notice of such adjudication and shall  not  have  access  to  any  other
official records and papers, such youth or such youth's designated agent
(but  only where the official records and papers sought are on file with
a court and request therefor is  made  to  that  court  or  to  a  clerk
thereof),  an  institution  to  which such youth has been committed, the
department of corrections and  community  supervision  and  a  probation
department  of this state that requires such official records and papers
for the purpose of carrying out duties specifically authorized  by  law;
provided,  however, that information regarding an order of protection or
temporary order of protection issued pursuant to section 530.12 of  this
chapter or a warrant issued in connection therewith may be maintained on
the  statewide  automated  order  of  protection  and  warrant  registry
established  pursuant  to  section  two  hundred  twenty-one-a  of   the
executive  law  during  the  period  that  such  order  of protection or
temporary order of protection is in full  force  and  effect  or  during
which such warrant may be executed. Such confidential information may be
made  available  pursuant  to  law  only for purposes of adjudicating or
enforcing such order of protection or temporary order of protection and,
where provided to a  designated  educational  official,  as  defined  in
section 380.90 of this chapter, for purposes related to the execution of
the  student's  educational  plan,  where  applicable, successful school
adjustment and reentry into the community. Such  notification  shall  be
kept  separate and apart from such student's school records and shall be
accessible  only  by   the   designated   educational   official.   Such
notification shall not be part of such student's permanent school record
and  shall not be appended to or included in any documentation regarding
such student and shall be destroyed at such time as such student  is  no
longer   enrolled  in  the  school  district.  At  no  time  shall  such
notification be used for any purpose other than those specified in  this
subdivision.
  3. If a youth who has been adjudicated a youthful offender is enrolled
as  a  student in a public or private elementary or secondary school the
court that has adjudicated  the  youth  as  a  youthful  offender  shall
provide  notification of such adjudication to the designated educational
official  of  the  school  in which such youth is enrolled as a student.
Such notification shall be used by the designated  educational  official
only  for purposes related to the execution of the student's educational
plan, where applicable, successful school adjustment  and  reentry  into
the  community.  Such notification shall be kept separate and apart from
such student's school records  and  shall  be  accessible  only  by  the
designated  educational official. Such notification shall not be part of
such student's permanent school record and shall not be appended  to  or
included  in  any  documentation  regarding  such  student  and shall be
destroyed at such time as such student is  no  longer  enrolled  in  the
school  district.  At  no  time  shall such notification be used for any
purpose other than those specified in this subdivision.
  4. Notwithstanding subdivision two of this section, whenever a  person
is  adjudicated  a youthful offender and the conviction that was vacated
and replaced by the youthful offender finding was for a sex  offense  as
that  term  is  defined  in  article  ten of the mental hygiene law, all
records pertaining  to  the  youthful  offender  adjudication  shall  be
included  in  those  records  and  reports  that  may be obtained by the
commissioner of mental  health  or  the  commissioner  of  developmental
disabilities,  as  appropriate;  the case review panel; and the attorney
general pursuant to section 10.05 of the mental hygiene law.

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