N.Y. Personal Property Law § 252: Found property and found instruments to be deposited with police; penalty for failure to deliver to police; delivery to persons in posses...

§ 252. Found property and found instruments to be deposited with

police; penalty for failure to deliver to police; delivery to persons in

possession of premises where found. 1. Except as provided in subdivision

five of section two hundred fifty-six of this chapter or as otherwise

prescribed pursuant to section two hundred fifty of the general

municipal law, any person who finds lost property of the value of twenty

dollars or more or comes into possession of property of the value of

twenty dollars or more with knowledge that it is lost property or found

property shall, within ten days after the finding or acquisition of

possession thereof, either return it to the owner or report such finding

or acquisition of possession and deposit such property in a police

station or police headquarters of the city where the finding occurred or

possession was acquired, but if the finding occurred or possession was

acquired in buildings or on grounds or premises under the control and

supervision of the commissioner of general services as described in

article two of the public buildings law, then the property may also be

deposited in a station of the capital buildings police. If the finding

occurred or possession was acquired outside a city, then such property

shall be deposited in a station or substation of the state police or in

a police station or police headquarters, including a sheriff's office,

of the county, town, or village where the finding occurred or possession

was acquired. If the finding occurred or possession was acquired in

buildings or on grounds or premises constituting a state park, parkway,

recreational facility or historic site under the jurisdiction of the

commissioner of parks, recreation and historic preservation, then such

property may also be deposited in a station of the regional state park

police. If the finding occurred or possession was acquired in buildings

or on the grounds or premises of the state-operated institutions in the

state university of New York, then such property may also be deposited

with a security officer or police officer appointed by the state

university. Property so deposited shall be retained and disposed of in

accordance with procedures set forth in sections two hundred fifty-three

through two hundred fifty-seven of this chapter except that the powers

and duties in said sections mentioned to be performed by the police

shall be performed by security officers or police officers appointed by

the state university.

2. Except as provided in subdivision five of section two hundred

fifty-six of this chapter or as otherwise prescribed pursuant to section

two hundred fifty of the general municipal law, any person who finds an

instrument or comes into possession of an instrument with knowledge that

it has been found shall, within ten days after the finding or

acquisition of possession thereof, either return it to a person entitled

thereto or report the finding or acquisition of possession and deposit

the instrument in a police station or police headquarters, as provided

in subdivision one of this section, as if such instrument were lost

property having a value of ten dollars or more.

3. Except as provided in subdivision four of this section, any person

who shall refuse or wilfully neglect to comply with the provisions of

subdivision one or subdivision two of this section shall be guilty of a

misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of

not more than one hundred dollars or imprisonment not exceeding six

months or both.

4. A person shall not be subject to criminal prosecution for failure

to report a finding or acquisition of possession of found property or of

a found instrument to the police and deposit such property or instrument

with the police if, in lieu thereof, he delivers the property or

instrument to the person in possession of the premises where the

property or instrument was found, provided he had no reason to believe

that such person would not comply with subdivision one or subdivision

two of this section.

A person who delivers found property or a found instrument to the

person in possession of the premises where the property or instrument

was found is not liable to the owner or person entitled thereto for such

delivery if he had no reason to believe that such person in possession

of the premises would not comply with subdivision one or subdivision two

of this section.