Provides that conviction of assault on a social services worker which prevents them from performing a lawful duty is a felony.
Summary
S04006 would amend New York’s penal law to add social services workers to the list of protected public-service personnel covered by the felony assault statute. Under current law, assaulting a peace officer, police officer, firefighter, or emergency medical services professional with intent to prevent them from performing a lawful duty is a class C felony if the assault causes serious physical injury. The bill extends that same felony treatment to assaults on social services workers when the assault is committed with the intent to stop them from carrying out their lawful duties and results in serious physical injury.
The measure is narrowly focused on one section of the penal law and does not create a new offense category; instead, it expands an existing aggravated assault provision. If enacted, it would increase criminal liability for assaults against social services workers by placing them in the same protected class as first responders and related emergency personnel under section 120.08. The bill would take effect 90 days after becoming law.
Impact
The bill would amend Penal Law section 120.08 to include social services workers among the occupations protected by the felony assault statute, making serious-injury assaults on those workers a class C felony when committed to prevent performance of lawful duties. This would affect criminal prosecutions and sentencing in cases involving attacks on social workers and similar public-facing human services staff, while leaving the underlying structure of the statute intact.
Sentiment
The available record shows no committee transcript, vote tally, or recorded opposition, so there is no documented debate to indicate broad support or criticism. Based on the bill’s text and caption, the measure appears to be framed as a worker-protection and public-safety bill, suggesting a generally protective and punitive approach toward assaults on social services personnel.
Contention
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials. Potential areas of debate, if raised, would likely concern whether social services workers should be grouped with police, firefighters, and emergency medical personnel for felony-assault purposes, and whether expanding felony exposure is the appropriate response to workplace violence against human services staff.
Enacts the "first responders assault prevention act" which increases the offense classification for assault on a peace officer, police officer, firefighter or emergency medical services professional from a class C felony to a class B felony.
Adds employees of the office of children and family services to the list of public employees for which prevention of duties constitutes assault in the second degree.