N.Y. Executive Law § 621: Definitions

§ 621. Definitions. For the purposes of this article:

1. "Office" shall mean the office of victim services.

2. "Claimant" shall mean the person filing a claim pursuant to this

article.

3. "Crime" shall mean (a) an act committed in New York state which

would, if committed by a mentally competent criminally responsible

adult, who has no legal exemption or defense, constitute a crime as

defined in and proscribed by law, regardless of whether any suspect was

arrested, charged, apprehended or prosecuted for the commission of the

act or whether the claimant has interacted with a criminal justice

agency investigating such act; or

(b) an act committed outside the state of New York against a resident

of the state of New York which would be compensable had it occurred

within the state of New York and which occurred in a state which does

not have an eligible crime victim compensation program as such term is

defined in the federal victims of crime act of 1984; or

(c) an act of terrorism, as defined in section 2331 of title 18,

United States Code, committed outside of the United States against a

resident of New York state.

4. "Family", when used with reference to a person, shall mean (a) any

person related to such person within the third degree of consanguinity

or affinity, (b) any person maintaining a sexual relationship with such

person, or (c) any person residing in the same household with such

person.

5. "Victim" shall mean (a) a person who suffers personal physical

injury as a direct result of a crime; (b) a person who is the victim of

either the crime of (1) unlawful imprisonment in the first degree as

defined in section 135.10 of the penal law, (2) kidnapping in the second

degree as defined in section 135.20 of the penal law, (3) kidnapping in

the first degree as defined in section 135.25 of the penal law, (4)

menacing in the first degree as defined in section 120.13 of the penal

law, (5) criminal obstruction of breathing or blood circulation as

defined in section 121.11 of the penal law, (6) harassment in the second

degree as defined in section 240.26 of the penal law, (7) harassment in

the first degree as defined in section 240.25 of the penal law, (8)

aggravated harassment in the second degree as defined in subdivision

three or five of section 240.30 of the penal law, (9) aggravated

harassment in the first degree as defined in subdivision two of section

240.31 of the penal law, (10) criminal contempt in the first degree as

defined in subdivision (b) or subdivision (c) of section 215.51 of the

penal law, (11) stalking in the fourth, third, second or first degree as

defined in sections 120.45, 120.50, 120.55 and 120.60 of the penal law,

(12) labor trafficking as defined in section 135.35 of the penal law,

(13) sex trafficking as defined in section 230.34 of the penal law; or

(14) sex trafficking of a child as defined in section 230.34-a of the

penal law; a vulnerable elderly person or an incompetent or physically

disabled person as defined in section 260.31 of the penal law who incurs

a loss of savings as defined in subdivision twenty-four of this section;

or a person who has had a frivolous lawsuit filed against them.

6. "Representative" shall mean one who represents or stands in the

place of another person, including but not limited to an agent, an

assignee, an attorney, a guardian, a committee, a conservator, a

partner, a receiver, an administrator, an executor or an heir of another

person, or a parent of a minor.

7. "Good samaritan" shall mean a person who, other than a law

enforcement officer, acts in good faith (a) to apprehend a person who

has committed a crime in his presence or who has in fact committed a

felony, (b) to prevent a crime or an attempted crime from occurring, or

(c) to aid a law enforcement officer in effecting an arrest.

8. "Essential personal property" shall mean articles of personal

property necessary and essential to the health, welfare or safety of the

victim.

9. "Elderly victim" shall mean a person sixty years of age or older

who suffers loss, or damage as a direct result of a crime.

10. "Disabled victim" shall mean a person who has a physical, mental

or medical impairment, as evidenced by medical records, which prevents

the exercise of a normal bodily function at the time of the crime.

11. For purposes of this article "child victim" shall mean a person

less than eighteen years of age who suffers physical, mental or

emotional injury, or loss or damage, as a direct result of a crime or

any violation listed in subdivision twelve of section six hundred

thirty-one of this article, or as a result of witnessing a crime or any

violation listed in subdivision twelve of section six hundred thirty-one

of this article.

12. "Frivolous lawsuit" shall mean a lawsuit brought by the individual

who committed a crime against the victim of the crime, found to be

frivolous, meritless and commenced to harass, intimidate or menace the

victim by a court and costs were imposed upon the plaintiff pursuant to

section eighty-three hundred three-a of the civil practice law and

rules.

13. "Crime scene cleanup" shall mean removing, or attempting to remove

from the crime scene, blood, dirt, stains, debris, odors, or other

impurities caused by the crime or the processing of the crime scene and

the repair or replacement of permanent fixtures and floor coverings,

soiled, damaged, or rendered unusable or uncleanable by the crime, the

processing of the crime scene, or by being taken into evidence.

14. "Securing a crime scene" shall mean taking immediate, emergency

steps to return the residence where the crime occurred to the level of

safety present prior to the crime. It shall include, but not be limited

to, the repair or replacement of doors, windows, screens and locks or

other points of entry damaged or rendered unusable by the crime.

15. "Livery" shall mean a for-hire vehicle duly licensed by the

appropriate local licensing authority, designed to carry no more than

five passengers for direct cash payment by such passenger and which is

affiliated with a livery car base. The term "livery" shall not include a

vehicle driven by a "black car operator", as defined in section one

hundred sixty-cc of this chapter.

16. "Livery car base" shall mean a central facility, wherever located,

that dispatches the livery operator to both pick-up and discharge

passengers in the state.

17. "Livery operator" shall mean the registered owner of a livery, or

a driver designated by such registered owner to operate the registered

owner's livery as the registered owner's authorized designee, whose

status as a livery operator victim arose out of and in the course of

providing services while affiliated with a livery car base. The term

"livery operator" shall not include a "black car operator", as defined

in section one hundred sixty-cc of this chapter.

18. "Livery operator victim" shall mean a livery operator homicide

victim or a livery operator assault victim.

19. "Livery operator assault victim" shall mean a livery operator who

is the victim of a violent felony offense, as defined in subdivision one

of section 70.02 of the penal law, which offense directly results in a

serious physical injury, as defined in subdivision ten of section 10.00

of the penal law.

20. "Livery operator homicide victim" shall mean a livery operator who

is the victim of a homicide, as defined in article one hundred

twenty-five of the penal law.

21. "Local licensing authority" shall mean the governmental agency in

the state, if any, that is authorized to license a livery and/or a

livery car base.

22. "Financial counselling" shall mean financial services provided by

an experienced financial counsellor or adviser which may include, but

are not limited to: analysis of a victim's financial situation such as

income producing capacity and crime related financial obligations,

assistance with restructuring budget and debt, assistance in accessing

insurance, public assistance and other benefits, assistance in

completing the financial aspects of victim impact statements, and

assistance in settling estates and handling guardianship matters.

23. "Relocation expenses" shall mean the cost of relocating a crime

victim, when relocation is necessary for the health or safety of the

victim. An award for relocation expenses of a victim shall include the

reasonable cost of moving and transportation expenses for (a) the

victim, which may include the relocation expenses of their spouse and

any other person dependent for his or her principal support upon the

victim or spouse who lives in the same residence as the victim, or (b)

if the victim is a child victim eligible for such an award pursuant to

this article, the child victim, which may include the relocation

expenses of their parent, stepparent, guardian and any other person

dependent for his or her principal support upon such parent, stepparent,

and guardian who lives in the same residence as the child victim.

24. "Loss of savings" shall mean the result of any act or series of

acts of larceny as defined in article one hundred fifty-five of the

penal law, indicated by a criminal justice agency as defined in

subdivision one of section six hundred thirty-one of this article, in

which cash is stolen from a vulnerable elderly person or an incompetent

or physically disabled person as defined in section 260.31 of the penal

law.

* 25. "Domestic partner" shall mean a person who, with respect to

another person:

(a) is formally a party in a domestic partnership or similar

relationship with the other person, entered into pursuant to the laws of

the United States or of any state, local or foreign jurisdiction, or

registered as the domestic partner of the other person with any registry

maintained by the employer of either party or any state, municipality,

or foreign jurisdiction; or

(b) is formally recognized as a beneficiary or covered person under

the other person's employment benefits or health insurance; or

(c) is dependent or mutually interdependent on the other person for

support, as evidenced by the totality of the circumstances indicating a

mutual intent to be a domestic partner including but not limited to:

common ownership or joint leasing of real or personal property; common

householding, shared income or shared expenses; children in common;

signs of intent to marry or become a domestic partner under paragraph

(a) or (b) of this subdivision; or the length of the personal

relationship of the persons.

Each party to a domestic partnership shall be considered to be the

domestic partner of the other party. "Domestic partner" shall not

include a person who is related to the other person by blood in a manner

that would bar marriage to the other person in New York state. "Domestic

partner" also shall not include any person who is less than eighteen

years of age or who is the adopted child of the other person or who is

related by blood in a manner that would bar marriage in New York state

to a person who is the lawful spouse of the other person.

* NB There are 2 sb 25's

* 25. "Employment-related transportation expenses" shall mean the

costs in excess of those normally expended by a victim to get to and

from their places of employment, due to the personal physical injuries

sustained as a direct result of the crime upon which the claim is based.

If required by law, such places of employment shall be reported to the

appropriate taxing authority. Such costs shall not include the purchase,

lease or rental of a vehicle.

* NB There are 2 sb 25's