New York Assembly Bill A10735

New York 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 3/27/26
• Refer: 3/27/26

Caption

Establishes the offense of obstructing a police officer or peace officer

Summary

A10735 would add a new section to the New York Penal Law creating the offense of obstructing a police officer or peace officer. Under the bill, a person commits the offense when they intentionally interfere with, inhibit, or attempt to interfere with or inhibit an officer from performing lawful duties. The bill specifically identifies conduct such as spitting on an officer, throwing or spilling items including snow or ice, and pushing, shoving, kicking, or otherwise physically impeding an officer as examples of covered conduct. The proposed offense would be classified as a class E felony. The bill would take effect 30 days after becoming law. In practical terms, it would expand the Penal Law by creating a distinct felony offense focused on physical interference with police and peace officers, supplementing existing laws that may already address assault, harassment, or obstruction-related conduct.

Impact

If enacted, this bill would amend the New York Penal Law by adding a new felony offense at section 195.09. It would give prosecutors a specific charge for intentional physical interference with police officers and peace officers while they are performing lawful duties, including spitting, throwing substances, or physically impeding an officer. The change would affect individuals accused of such conduct, law enforcement agencies, and the criminal justice system by creating an additional basis for arrest, prosecution, and sentencing as a class E felony.

Sentiment

The available record shows the bill was introduced and referred to the Assembly Committee on Codes, but there are no committee transcripts or recorded votes provided. As a result, there is no direct evidence of support or opposition from debate. Based on the bill text alone, the measure appears to reflect a law-and-order approach aimed at protecting officers from physical interference, but the legislative sentiment cannot be fully assessed from the available materials.

Contention

No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials because there are no committee transcripts or votes. Potential areas of debate, based on the bill text, could include whether the conduct described is already covered by existing criminal statutes, whether creating a separate class E felony is proportionate, and whether the language is broad enough to capture intentional interference without sweeping in protected or incidental conduct. Any such concerns are inferential rather than recorded in the available history.