N.Y.
Judiciary Law Section 216
Additional duties of the chief administrator
- certain cases
1.
The chief administrator of the courts shall designate the appropriate persons, including but not limited to district attorneys, criminal and family court clerks, corporation counsels, county attorneys, victims assistance unit staff, probation officers, warrant officers, sheriffs, police officers or any other law enforcement officials, to inform any petitioner bringing a proceeding under article eight of the family court act or a complainant in an action which would be subject to the provisions of section 530.11 of the criminal procedure law, before such proceeding or action is commenced, of the procedures available for the institution of family offense proceedings, including but not limited to the following:(a)
That there is concurrent jurisdiction with respect to family offenses in both family court and the criminal courts;(b)
That a family court proceeding is a civil proceeding and is for the purpose of attempting to keep the family unit intact. Referrals for counseling, or counseling services, are available through probation for this purpose;(c)
That a proceeding in the criminal courts is for the purpose of prosecution of the offender and can result in a criminal conviction of the offender;(d)
That a proceeding or action subject to the provisions of this section is initiated at the time of the filing of an accusatory instrument or filing a family court petition, not at the time of arrest, or request for arrest, if any;(f)
That an arrest may precede the commencement of a family court or a criminal court proceeding, but an arrest is not a requirement for commencing either proceeding.2.
No official or other person designated pursuant to subdivision one of this section shall discourage or prevent any person who wishes to file a petition or sign or initiate a proceeding in a criminal court from having access to any court for that purpose.3.
The chief administrator shall prescribe an appropriate form to implement subdivision two of this section.4.
The chief administrator of the courts shall collect data in relation to the number of cases in which the basic child support obligation, as defined in Domestic Relations Law § 240 (Custody and child support)section two hundred forty of the domestic relations law and section four hundred thirteen of the family court act, was ordered; the number of cases in which the order deviated from such basic child support obligation and the reasons therefor; the incomes of the parties; the number of children, and the amount of child support awarded pursuant to the child support standards act; and amounts of alimony or maintenance, or allocations of property included in orders or judgments that include a provision for child support pursuant to the child support standards act, and shall report such data to the temporary president of the senate, speaker of the assembly, chairpersons of the judiciary and children and families committees, and the governor on or before the first day of April of each year. In collecting such data, the chief administrator shall not disclose the identities of the parties or disclose information that would tend to reveal the identities of the parties.5.
The chief administrator of the courts, in conjunction with the division of criminal justice services, shall collect data and report every six months regarding pretrial release and detention. Such data and report shall contain information categorized by age, gender, racial and ethnic background; regarding the nature of the criminal offenses, including the top charge of each case; the number and type of charges in each defendant’s criminal record; whether a hate crime was charged; whether the prosecutor requested that the court fix bail, the amounts and forms of bail requested by the prosecutor, and the amounts and forms of bail set by the court; the number of individuals released on recognizance; the number of individuals released on non-monetary conditions, including the conditions imposed; the number of individuals committed to the custody of a sheriff prior to trial; the rates of failure to appear and rearrest; the outcome of such cases or dispositions; the length of the pretrial detention stay and any other such information as the chief administrator and the division of criminal justice services may find necessary and appropriate. Further, the chief administrator of the courts shall collect data and report every month regarding pretrial commitments to local correctional facilities. Such data shall include but not be limited to age, gender, racial and ethnic background of the principal; both beginning and end dates of pretrial commitment to the custody of the sheriff; total days of pretrial commitment to the custody of the sheriff; the type of commitment ordered by the court; the top charge at arrest and arraignment; and whether the principal had been previously released from custody in the case. Such report shall aggregate the data collected by county; court, including city, town and village courts; and judge. The data shall be aggregated in order to protect the identity of individual defendants. The report shall be released publicly and published on the websites of the office of court administration and the division of criminal justice services. The first report shall be published twelve months after this subdivision shall have become a law, and shall include data from the first six months following the enactment of this section. Reports for subsequent periods shall be published every six months thereafter; provided, however, that the pretrial detention admissions and discharges report will be published every month.6.
The chief administrator of the courts, in conjunction with the division of criminal justice services, shall collect data and report annually regarding the impact of article two hundred forty-five of the criminal procedure law. Such data and report shall contain information regarding the implementation of article two hundred forty-five of the criminal procedure law, including procedures used to implement the article, resources needed for implementation, monies received pursuant to State Finance Law § 99-HH (Criminal justice discovery compensation fund)section ninety-nine-hh of the state finance law, including the amount of money utilized for the services and expenses eligible pursuant to subdivision three of such section, information regarding cases where discovery obligations are not met, and information regarding case outcomes. The report shall be released publicly and published on the websites of the office of court administration and the division of criminal justice services. The first report shall be published eighteen months after the effective date of this section, and shall include data from the first twelve months following the enactment of this section. Reports for subsequent years shall be published annually thereafter.
Source:
Section 216 — Additional duties of the chief administrator; certain cases, https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/JUD/216 (updated Oct. 18, 2024; accessed Oct. 26, 2024).
