Provides that being eighteen years old or more, while in the course of committing rape in the first, second or third degree, criminal sexual act in the first, second or third degree, sexual abuse in the first degree, aggravated sexual abuse in the first, second, third or fourth degree, or incest in the first, second or third degree, against a person less than eighteen years old, such defendant intentionally causes the death of such person.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5783
SPONSOR: Chludzinski TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to enacting "Paula's law"
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
"Paula's Law" is designed to ensure that persons who molest and then
murder a child under the age of eighteen will never be released from
prison.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section I: establishes the short title of this act, "Paula's law".
Section II: states that in enacting this bill, it is the intent of the
legislature to expand "Joan's Law."
Section III: amends Subdivision 5 of § 125.25 of the penal law, expand-
ing the age range of victims protected under Joan's law from under 14
years-old to under 18 years old.
Section IV: establishes the effective date
JUSTIFICATION:
Currently, in New York State, there is no parole available to those who
sexually assault a child under age 14 and leads to the child's death.
This legislation, named for Paula Bohovesky, would expand that age range
to a child under the age of eighteen. In 1980, sixteen-year-old Bohove-
sky was attacked and killed by Richard LaBarbera, now 66, and Robert
McCain, now 56, as she was walking home from the library where she
worked part-time in Pearl River. Both LaBarbera and McCain were
convicted and sentenced to 25 years to life for the murder. In May 2019,
a parole board voted to release LaBarbera that July. McCain had an
interview with the Board of Parole the week of June 10 and was eventual-
ly denied parole on June 24, 2019; his next parole hearing will be in
June 2021. This legislation would prevent the parole of anyone who sexu-
ally assaults and murders a child under 18 years old. This is an expan-
sion of "Joan's Law" which was enacted in 2004 and denied parole in
these circumstances for child victims under the age of fourteen. Joan
D'Alessandro was 7 years old and disappeared after delivering Girl Scout
cookies to the Hillsdale home of a high school science teacher who later
confessed to her murder. Which claims are in vestigated or how those
investigations are handled should never be at the discretion of the
legislative or executive branches of government, and certainly not at
the discretion of the accused. This bill will ensure swift justice will
be taken in the future.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023/24: A.4661 - held for consideration in Codes
2021/22: A.6017 - held for consideration in Codes
2019/20: A.8524 - referred to Codes
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeeding.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5783
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 20, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CHLUDZINSKI -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Codes
AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to enacting "Paula's law"
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
2 "Paula's law".
3 § 2. Legislative intent. This act is an expansion of "Joan's Law",
4 enacted in 2004, which denies parole in these circumstances for child
5 victims under the age of fourteen. This act expands upon "Joan's Law" by
6 including child victims under the age of eighteen.
7 § 3. Subdivision 5 of section 125.25 of the penal law, as amended by
8 chapter 23 of the laws of 2024, is amended to read as follows:
9 5. Being eighteen years old or more, while in the course of committing
10 rape in the first, second or third degree, a crime formerly defined in
11 section 130.50, 130.45 or 130.40 of this title, the crime of sexual
12 abuse in the first degree, aggravated sexual abuse in the first, second,
13 third or fourth degree, or incest in the first, second or third degree,
14 against a person less than [fourteen] eighteen years old, [he or she]
15 such defendant intentionally causes the death of such person.
16 § 4. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
17 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.
LBD03456-01-5
