N.Y. CPL Law § 140.20 — New York Code / Act CPL / Part 2 / Title H / Article 140 / Section 140.20
Arrest without a warrant; procedure after arrest by police officer
Status: in_force

§ 140.20 Arrest without a warrant; procedure after arrest by police\n             officer.\n  1. Upon arresting a person without a warrant, a police officer, after\nperforming without unnecessary delay all recording, fingerprinting and\nother preliminary police duties required in the particular case, must\nexcept as otherwise provided in this section, without unnecessary delay\nbring the arrested person or cause him to be brought before a local\ncriminal court and file therewith an appropriate accusatory instrument\ncharging him with the offense or offenses in question. The arrested\nperson must be brought to the particular local criminal court, or to one\nof them if there be more than one, designated in section 100.55 as an\nappropriate court for commencement of the particular action; except\nthat:\n  (a) If the arrest is for an offense other than a class A, B, C or D\nfelony or a violation of section 130.25, former section 130.40, section\n205.10, 205.17, 205.19 or 215.56 of the penal law committed in a town,\nbut not in a village thereof having a village court, and the town court\nof such town is not available at the time, the arrested person may be\nbrought before the local criminal court of any village within such town\nor, any adjoining town, village embraced in whole or in part by such\nadjoining town, or city of the same county; and\n  (b) If the arrest is for an offense other than a class A, B, C or D\nfelony or a violation of section 130.25, former section 130.40, section\n205.10, 205.17, 205.19 or 215.56 of the penal law committed in a village\nhaving a village court and such court is not available at the time, the\narrested person may be brought before the town court of the town\nembracing such village or any other village court within such town, or,\nif such town or village court is not available either, before the local\ncriminal court of any adjoining town, village embraced in whole or in\npart by such adjoining town, or city of the same county; and\n  (c) If the arrest is for an offense committed in a city, and the city\ncourt thereof is not available at the time, the arrested person may be\nbrought before the local criminal court of any adjoining town or\nvillage, or village court embraced by an adjoining town, within the same\ncounty as such city; and\n  (d) If the arrest is for a traffic infraction or for a misdemeanor\nrelating to traffic, the police officer may, instead of bringing the\narrested person before the local criminal court of the political\nsubdivision or locality in which the offense was allegedly committed,\nbring him or her before the local criminal court of the same county\nnearest available by highway travel to the point of arrest; and\n  (e) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, where a local\ncriminal court in the county in which the defendant is arrested is\noperating an off-hours arraignment part designated in accordance with\nparagraph (w) of subdivision one of section two hundred twelve of the\njudiciary law at the time of defendant's arrest, the arrested person may\nbe brought before such local criminal court.\n  2. If the arrest is for an offense other than a class A, B, C or D\nfelony or a violation of section 130.25, former section 130.40, section\n205.10, 205.17, 205.19 or 215.56 of the penal law, or other than where\nan arrest is required to be made pursuant to subdivision four of section\n140.10 of this article, the arrested person need not be brought before a\nlocal criminal court as provided in subdivision one, and the procedure\nmay instead be as follows:\n  (a) A police officer may issue and serve an appearance ticket upon the\narrested person and release him from custody, as prescribed in\nsubdivision two of section 150.20 of this title; or\n  (b) The desk officer in charge at a police station, county jail or\npolice headquarters, or any of his superior officers, may, in such place\nfix pre-arraignment bail and, upon deposit thereof, issue and serve an\nappearance ticket upon the arrested person and release him from custody.\n  3. Other than where an arrest is required to be made pursuant to\nsubdivision four of section 140.10 of this article, if (a) the arrest is\nfor an offense other than a class A, B, C or D felony or a violation of\nsection 130.25, former section 130.40, section 205.10, 205.17, 205.19 or\n215.56 of the penal law, and (b) owing to unavailability of a local\ncriminal court the arresting police officer is unable to bring the\narrested person before such a court with reasonable promptness, either\nan appearance ticket must be served unconditionally upon the arrested\nperson or pre-arraignment bail must be fixed, as prescribed in\nsubdivision two. If pre-arraignment bail is fixed but not posted, such\narrested person may be temporarily held in custody but must be brought\nbefore a local criminal court without unnecessary delay. Nothing\ncontained in this subdivision requires a police officer to serve an\nappearance ticket upon an arrested person or release him from custody at\na time when such person appears to be under the influence of alcohol,\nnarcotics or other drug to the degree that he may endanger himself or\nother persons.\n  4. If after arresting a person, for any offense, a police officer upon\nfurther investigation or inquiry determines or is satisfied that there\nis not reasonable cause to believe that the arrested person committed\nsuch offense or any other offense based upon the conduct in question, he\nneed not follow any of the procedures prescribed in subdivisions one,\ntwo and three, but must immediately release such person from custody.\n  5. Before service of an appearance ticket upon an arrested person\npursuant to subdivision two or three, the issuing police officer must,\nif the offense designated in such appearance ticket is one of those\nspecified in subdivision one of section 160.10, cause such person to be\nfingerprinted in the same manner as would be required were no appearance\nticket to be issued or served.\n  6. Upon arresting a juvenile offender or a person sixteen or\ncommencing October first, two thousand nineteen, seventeen years of age\nwithout a warrant, the police officer shall immediately notify the\nparent or other person legally responsible for his or her care or the\nperson with whom he or she is domiciled, that such offender or person\nhas been arrested, and the location of the facility where he or she is\nbeing detained. If the officer determines that it is necessary to\nquestion a juvenile offender or such person, the officer must take him\nor her to a facility designated by the chief administrator of the courts\nas a suitable place for the questioning of children or, upon the consent\nof a parent or other person legally responsible for the care of the\njuvenile or such person, to his or her residence and there question him\nor her for a reasonable period of time. A juvenile or such person shall\nnot be questioned pursuant to this section unless he or she and a person\nrequired to be notified pursuant to this subdivision, if present, have\nbeen advised:\n  (a) of the juvenile offender's or such person's right to remain\nsilent;\n  (b) that the statements made by him or her may be used in a court of\nlaw;\n  (c) of his or her right to have an attorney present at such\nquestioning; and\n  (d) of his or her right to have an attorney provided for him or her\nwithout charge if he or she is unable to afford counsel.\n  In determining the suitability of questioning and determining the\nreasonable period of time for questioning such a juvenile offender or\nperson, his or her age, the presence or absence of his or her parents or\nother persons legally responsible for his or her care and notification\npursuant to this subdivision shall be included among relevant\nconsiderations.\n  7. Upon arresting a person, other than a juvenile offender, for any\noffense without a warrant, a police officer shall, upon the arrested\nperson's request, permit him or her to communicate by telephone provided\nby the law enforcement facility where the defendant is held to a phone\nnumber located in the United States or Puerto Rico, for the purposes of\nobtaining counsel and informing a relative or friend that he or she has\nbeen arrested, unless granting the call will compromise an ongoing\ninvestigation or the prosecution of the defendant.\n  8. If the arrest is for a juvenile offender or adolescent offender\nother than an arrest for a violation or a traffic infraction, such\noffender shall be brought before the youth part of the superior court.\nIf the youth part is not in session, such offender shall be brought\nbefore the most accessible magistrate designated by the appellate\ndivision of the supreme court in the applicable department to act as a\nyouth part.\n