N.Y. Executive Law § 837: Functions, powers and duties of division

§ 837. Functions, powers and duties of division. The division shall

have the following functions, powers and duties:

1. Advise and assist the governor in developing policies, plans and

programs for improving the coordination, administration and

effectiveness of the criminal justice system;

2. Make recommendations to agencies in the criminal justice system for

improving their administration and effectiveness:

3. Act as the official state planning agency pursuant to the federal

acts; in accordance therewith, prepare, evaluate and revise statewide

crime control and juvenile delinquency prevention and control plans; and

receive and disburse funds from the federal government;

4. In cooperation with the state administrator of the unified court

system as well as any other public or private agency,

(a) through the central data facility collect, analyze, evaluate and

disseminate statistical and other information and data; and

(b) undertake research, studies and analyses and act as a central

repository, clearinghouse and disseminator of research studies, in

respect to criminal justice functions and any agency responsible for a

criminal justice function, with specific attention to the effectiveness

of existing programs and procedures for the efficient and just

processing and disposition of criminal cases; and

(b-1) collect data and undertake research, studies and analyses of

judicial diversion programs including but not limited to the judicial

diversion program described in article two hundred sixteen of the

criminal procedure law; and

(c) collect and analyze statistical and other information and data

with respect to the number of crimes reported or known to police

officers or peace officers, the number of persons arrested for the

commission of offense, the age of the person or persons arrested, the

number of custodial arrests and appearance tickets issued, the offense

for which the person was arrested, the county within which the arrest

was made and the accusatory instrument filed, the disposition of the

accusatory instrument including, but not limited to, as the case may be,

dismissal, acquittal, the offense to which the defendant pled guilty,

the offense the defendant was convicted of after trial, and the

sentence; and where a firearm as defined in section 265.00 of the penal

law or machine gun, rifle or shotgun comes into the custody of police

officers or peace officers in the course of an investigation of such

crime or offense, the make, model type, caliber and magazine or cylinder

capacity of any such firearm and whether possession of such firearm by

the defendant is licensed or unlicensed and if confiscated at arrest,

the style and manufacturer of any ammunition; and

(d) Supply data, upon request, to federal bureaus or departments

engaged in collecting national criminal statistics; and

(e) Supply data, including confidential and sealed criminal history

record information, for bona fide research purposes. Such information

shall be disseminated in accordance with procedures established by the

division to assure the security and privacy of identification and

information data, which shall include the execution of an agreement

which protects the confidentiality of the information and reasonably

protects against data linkage to individuals; and

(e-1) Collect demographic data with respect to persons appointed as a

police officer, including but not limited to racial and gender

characteristics; and

(f) Accomplish all of the functions, powers, and duties set forth in

paragraphs (a), (b), (c) and (d) of this subdivision with respect to the

processing and disposition of cases involving violent felony offenses

specified in subdivision one of section 70.02 of the penal law.

4-a. In cooperation with the state administrator of the unified court

system as well as any other public or private agency, collect and

analyze statistical and all other information and data with respect to

the number of environmental crimes and offenses in violation of articles

twenty-seven, thirty-seven and forty, and titles twenty-seven and

thirty-seven of article seventy-one of the environmental conservation

law reported or known to the department of environmental conservation,

the division of state police, and all other police or peace officers,

the number of persons arrested for the commission of said violation, the

offense for which the person was arrested, the county within which the

arrest was made and the accusatory instrument filed, the disposition of

the accusatory instrument filed, including, but not limited to, as the

case may be, dismissal, acquittal, the offense to which the defendant

pled guilty, the offense the defendant was convicted of after trial, and

the sentence or monetary penalty levied, or the civil disposition of the

offense if such offense was adjudicated by civil means.

4-b. In cooperation with any public or private agency or entity,

collect and analyze statistical data and all other information and data

with respect to the number of crimes and offenses committed against

employees of the city of New York responsible for enforcing certain

regulations in such city, while such employees were enforcing or

attempting to enforce such regulations and reported or known to any law

enforcement agency, the number of persons arrested for the commission of

said offenses, the offense for which the person was arrested, the county

within which the arrest was made and the accusatory instrument filed,

the disposition of the accusatory instrument filed, including but not

limited to, as the case may be, dismissal, acquittal, the offense to

which the defendant pled guilty, the offense the defendant was convicted

of after trial, and the sentence or other penalty levied. For the

purposes of this subdivision, an employee of the city of New York

responsible for enforcing certain regulations in such city shall mean a

traffic enforcement agent or an employee of the department of sanitation

who is authorized to issue notices of violation, summons or appearance

tickets.

4-c. (a) In cooperation with the chief administrator of the courts as

well as any other public or private agency, including law enforcement

agencies, collect, maintain, analyze and make public statistical and all

other information and data with respect to the number of hate crimes

reported to or investigated by the division of state police, and all

other police or peace officers, the number of persons arrested for the

commission of such crimes, the offense for which the person was

arrested, the demographic data of the victim or victims of such crimes

including, but not limited to, race, color, national origin, ancestry,

gender, gender identity or expression, religion, religious practice,

age, disability or sexual orientation of a person, the demographic data

of the person or persons arrested for the commission of such crimes

including, but not limited to, race, color, national origin, ancestry,

gender, gender identity or expression, religion, religious practice,

age, disability or sexual orientation of a person, the county within

which the arrest was made and the accusatory instrument filed, the

disposition of the accusatory instrument filed, including, but not

limited to, as the case may be, dismissal, acquittal, the offense to

which the defendant pled guilty, the offense the defendant was convicted

of after trial, and the sentence imposed. Data collected shall be used

for research or statistical purposes only and shall not contain

information that may reveal the identity of any individual. The division

shall include the statistics and other information required by this

subdivision in an annual report submitted to the governor, the speaker

of the assembly, the temporary president of the senate, the chair of the

assembly codes committee, the chair of the senate codes committee, the

attorney general and the chief administrative judge of the office of

court administration. Such annual reports shall be a public record.

(b) The division shall promulgate regulations related to the use and

collection of a "hate crime demographic data form". The regulations

shall address the appropriate methods and timing of collection of the

demographic data included in paragraph (a) of this subdivision. The

division shall consider the manner of collection which will be most

conducive to respecting victims while collecting necessary information

that will assist the state in providing adequate victim support services

and additional programming to decrease the likelihood of such hate

crimes occurring, and best practices for collection of the data.

Information disclosed on the hate crime victim demographic data form or

the hate crime defendant demographic data form shall be used only to

assist the division in complying with paragraph (a) of this subdivision

and shall not be used in any administrative or judicial proceeding.

(c) As used in this section, the term "gender identity or expression"

shall have the same meaning as defined in paragraph (c) of subdivision

four of section 485.05 of the penal law.

5. Conduct studies and analyses of the administration or operations of

any criminal justice agency when requested by the head of such agency,

and make the results thereof available for the benefit of such agency;

5-a. Undertake to furnish or make available to the district attorneys

of the state such supportive services and technical assistance as the

commissioner and any one or more of the district attorneys shall agree

are appropriate to promote the effective performance of his or their

prosecutorial functions.

6. Establish, through electronic data processing and related

procedures, a central data facility with a communication network serving

qualified agencies anywhere in the state, so that they may, upon such

terms and conditions as the commissioner, and the appropriate officials

of such qualified agencies shall agree, contribute information and,

except as provided in subdivision two of section 306.2 of the family

court act, have access to information contained in the central data

facility, which shall include but not be limited to such information as

criminal record, personal appearance data, fingerprints, photographs,

and handwriting samples;

6-a. Upon request, provide an incarcerated individual of the state or

local correctional facility, at no charge, with a copy of all criminal

history information maintained on file by the division pertaining to

such incarcerated individual.

7. Receive, process and file fingerprints, photographs and other

descriptive data for the purpose of establishing identity and previous

criminal record;

7-a. Receive, process and file orders granting a change of name to

persons convicted of a felony subject to the provisions of subdivision

two of section sixty-one of the civil rights law;

8. Adopt appropriate measures to assure the security and privacy of

identification and information data;

8-a. Charge a fee when, pursuant to statute or the regulations of the

division, it conducts a search of its criminal history records and

returns a report thereon in connection with an application for

employment or for a license or permit. The division shall adopt and may,

from time to time, amend a schedule of such fees which shall be in

amounts determined by the division to be reasonably related to the cost

of conducting such searches and returning reports thereon but, in no

event, shall any such fee exceed twenty-five dollars and an additional

surcharge of fifty dollars. The comptroller is hereby authorized to

deposit such fees into the general fund, provided, however, that the

monies received by the division of criminal justice services for payment

of the additional surcharge shall be deposited in equal amounts to the

general fund and to the fingerprint identification and technology

account. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the division shall not request

or accept any fee for searching its records and supplying a criminal

history report pursuant to section two hundred fifty-one-b of the

general business law relating to participating in flight instruction at

any aeronautical facility, flight school or institution of higher

learning.

8-b. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary,

charge a fee for the provision of agency materials and publications,

conferences, criminal history record reviews, legal services, the

provision of services to analyze or prepare data that is not prepared in

the ordinary course of business, the provision of information in a

computerized format, the application for approval and renewal of

security guard training schools and the certification and renewal

certification of security guard instructors, the service and repair of

municipal law enforcement agency equipment and collect reimbursement and

other moneys. Such fees shall be reasonably related to the actual costs

incurred, including the costs of salaries, computer time, shipping and

handling, as appropriate. The comptroller is hereby authorized to

deposit such fees into the general fund effective August thirty-first,

nineteen hundred ninety-six.

8-c. Notwithstanding the provisions of section one hundred three of

the general municipal law, section one hundred seventy-four of the state

finance law and any other general, special or local law to the contrary,

any officer, board or agency of a political subdivision or state agency

authorized to make purchases of materials, equipment or supplies, may

make such purchases of statewide automated fingerprint identification

system-related materials, equipment or supplies, through the agreement

executed between the division and North American Morpho Systems, Inc.

Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, the division shall be

authorized to enter into voluntary cost-sharing arrangements with local

criminal justice agencies for expanded facsimile services and criminal

justice information access through the criminal justice data

communications network.

9. Accept, agree to accept and contract as agent of the state, with

the approval of the governor, any grant, including federal grants, or

any gift for any of the purposes of this article;

10. Accept, with the approval of the governor, as agent of the state,

any gift, grant, devise or bequest, whether conditional or unconditional

(notwithstanding the provisions of section eleven of the state finance

law), including federal grants, for any of the purposes of this article.

Any monies so received may be expended by the division to effectuate any

purpose of this article, subject to the same limitations as to approval

of expenditures and audit as are prescribed for state monies

appropriated for the purposes of this article;

11. Enter into contracts with any person, firm, corporation,

municipality, or governmental agency;

12. Make an annual report to the governor and legislature concerning

its work during the preceding year, and such further interim reports to

the governor, or to the governor and legislature, as it shall deem

advisable, or as shall be required by the governor;

13. Adopt, amend or rescind such rules and regulations as may be

necessary or convenient to the performance of the functions, powers and

duties of the division;

14. Do all other things necessary or convenient to carry out the

functions, powers and duties expressly set forth in this article.

15. Promulgate, in consultation with the superintendent of state

police and the state office for the prevention of domestic violence, and

in accordance with paragraph (f) of subdivision three of section eight

hundred forty of this article, a standardized "domestic violence

incident report form" for use by state and local law enforcement

agencies in the reporting, recording and investigation of all alleged

incidents of domestic violence, regardless of whether an arrest is made

as a result of such investigation. Such form shall be prepared in

multiple parts, one of which shall be immediately provided to the

victim, and shall include designated spaces for: the recordation of the

results of the investigation by the law enforcement agency and the basis

for any action taken; the recordation of a victim's allegations of

domestic violence; the age and gender of the victim and the alleged

offender or offenders; and immediately thereunder a space on which the

victim may sign and verify such victim's allegations. Such form shall

also include, but not be limited to spaces to identify:

(a) what other services or agencies, including but not limited to

medical, shelter, advocacy and other supportive services are or have

previously been involved with the victim; and

(b) whether the victim has been provided with the written notice

described in subdivision five of section eight hundred twelve of the

family court act and subdivision six of section 530.11 of the criminal

procedure law.

16. Operate a toll-free twenty-four hour telephone number that members

of the public may call to obtain information as to resources available

to the public to assist in the location and recovery of missing persons.

Such toll-free telephone line may be operated by the division as part of

the toll-free telephone line established pursuant to section eight

hundred thirty-seven-f of this article. Furthermore, all such

information relating to the locating and recovery of missing persons may

be included on the division homepage established pursuant to section

eight hundred forty-three of this article.

17. In consultation with the district attorneys, develop and operate a

witness protection program. Within the amounts available by

appropriation, such program shall provide assistance to district

attorneys in protecting witnesses and victims, including their family

members, who may suffer physical or emotional harm, intimidation or

retaliatory violence as a result of the cooperation of the witness or

victim with law enforcement, with a particular emphasis on vulnerable

witnesses and victims, including witnesses to and victims of domestic

violence and sexual exploitation and witnesses and victims testifying

against violent or dangerous defendants. Such assistance may include,

but not be limited to, administrative measures to: (a) facilitate name

changes and receipt of new identification documents for witnesses and

victims in appropriate cases; and (b) provide a range of protective

services, including, when necessary, relocating victims and witnesses,

and their family members. The division may enter into contracts with any

person, firm, corporation, not-for-profit entity or governmental agency

to provide administrative oversight and assistance in the operation of

this program, may issue appropriate guidelines and may adopt, amend or

rescind any rules and regulations as may be necessary or convenient to

the operation of the program. These guidelines and regulations shall

include a process by which district attorneys may apply for

reimbursement of the costs of providing witness protection services.

18. In cooperation with any public or private agency or entity,

undertake to make and furnish an instructional video relating to how

sexual predators lure children. The video shall be geared toward

parental information and education. The division shall distribute a copy

of the video to all public libraries and police departments for public

use and viewing.

19. Receive names and other non-clinical identifying information

pursuant to section 9.46 of the mental hygiene law; provided, however,

any such information shall be destroyed five years after such receipt,

or pursuant to a proceeding brought under article seventy-eight of the

civil practice law and rules determining that an individual is eligible

for a license pursuant to section 400.00 of the penal law and otherwise

permitted to possess a firearm.

20. To assist the department of agriculture and markets in developing

information about animal cruelty and protection laws pursuant to

subdivision forty-eight of section sixteen of the agriculture and

markets law.

21. Promulgate a standardized and detailed written protocol that is

grounded in evidence-based principles for the administration of

photographic array and live lineup identification procedures for police

agencies and standardized forms for use by such agencies in the

reporting and recording of such identification procedure. The protocol

shall address the following topics:

(a) the selection of photographic array and live lineup filler

photographs or participants;

(b) instructions given to a witness before conducting a photographic

array or live lineup identification procedure;

(c) the documentation and preservation of results of a photographic

array or live lineup identification procedure;

(d) procedures for eliciting and documenting the witness's confidence

in his or her identification following a photographic array or live

lineup identification procedure, in the event that an identification is

made; and

(e) procedures for administering a photographic array or live lineup

identification procedure in a manner designed to prevent opportunities

to influence the witness.

22. (a) Maintain and annually update a list of offenses in states and

territories of the United States other than New York that include all of

the essential elements of a serious offense as defined by subdivision

seventeen of section 265.00 of the penal law, to assist courts,

licensing authorities and others in determining which offenses in such

other states and territories qualify as a serious offense for purposes

of article two hundred sixty-five of the penal law, subdivision

seventeen of section 265.00 of the penal law, and subdivision one-a of

section 400.00 of the penal law. The division shall append to such list

of offenses a disclaimer that such list shall be for informational

purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for the advice of

an attorney or counselor-at-law.

(b) Such updated list shall be prominently posted on the website

maintained by the division. Each list shall bear the date of posting,

and each posted and dated listing shall be separately maintained by the

division as a record available to the public. The first list compiled

under this subdivision shall be prominently posted by the division no

later than nine months after the effective date of this subdivision.

23. (a) In conjunction with the superintendent of the state police,

promulgate policies and procedures with regard to standardization of

firearms safety training required under subdivision nineteen of section

400.00 of the penal law, which shall include the approval of course

materials and promulgation of proficiency standards for live fire

training; and

(b) In conjunction with the superintendent of state police, create an

appeals board for the purpose of hearing appeals as provided in

subdivision four-a of section 400.00 of the penal law and promulgate

rules and regulations governing such appeals.

24. In furtherance of the responsibilities of the office of gun

violence prevention set forth in section eight hundred thirty-seven-y of

this article, the division shall:

(a) create and disseminate resources and training materials on gun

violence intervention and prevention strategies and best practices; and

may, if practicable, provide technical assistance, additional resources,

and direct training to professionals focused on gun violence

intervention and prevention strategies.

(b) where appropriate, facilitate response activities among political

subdivisions of the state and not-for-profit organizations to assist

communities that are impacted by incidents of mass gun violence. For the

purposes of this section, mass gun violence shall include a "mass

shooting" as defined in subdivision eleven of section eight hundred

thirty-five of this article; a single shooting incident that results in

injury to three or more people; or multiple related shooting incidents

resulting in injuries to three or more individuals, occurring within a

community over a period of up to seven calendar days.