ASSAULT ON A JUDGE
PENAL LAW 120.09
(Committed on or after July 19, 2024) 1
The (specify) count is Assault on a Judge.
Under our law, a person is guilty of Assault on a Judge
when, with intent to prevent a judge from performing official
judicial duties, such person causes serious physical injury to such
judge.
The following terms used in that definition have a special
meaning: 2
JUDGE means a judge of a court of record or a justice
3
court. The (specify name of court) is a (specify either: court of
record or justice court).
1 L.2024, c. 55.
If this offense is alleged to have been committed on or after November
17, 2011 and before July 19, 2024, utilize the instruction for “aggravated
assault on a judge” [Penal Law § 120.09-a], omitting the word “aggravated”
wherever it appears in the instruction. L.2011, c. 148.
2
The term Aofficial judicial duties@ is not defined. If in issue, the term
will need to be defined within the context of the facts presented. See People
v McDonald, 291 AD2d 832 (4th Dept 2002); People v Milhouse, 246 AD2d
119 (1st Dept 1998); People v Greene, 221 AD2d 559 (2d Dept 1995).
3
The statute specifies that the term Ajudge@ shall mean a judge of a
court of record or a justice court.@ ACourts of record@ are defined by Judiciary
Law ' 2 to be: the court for the trial of impeachments; a court on the judiciary;
the court of appeals; the appellate division of the supreme court in each
department; the supreme court; the court of claims; a county court in each
county; the family court; a surrogate's court in each county; each city court
outside the city of New York; the district court in each county or portion
thereof in which such court shall be established; the civil court of the city of
New York and the criminal court of the city of New York. Although not a court
of record, a justice court (a judge of which is here included) is a town or
village court. UJCA '' 102 and 103.
1
INTENT means conscious objective or purpose. Thus, a
person acts with intent to prevent a judge from performing official
judicial duties when that person's conscious objective or purpose
is to prevent such judge from performing official judicial duties.4
SERIOUS PHYSICAL INJURY means impairment of a
person's physical condition which creates a substantial risk of
death, or which causes death, or serious and protracted
disfigurement, or protracted impairment of health or protracted
loss or impairment of the function of any bodily organ.5
In order for you to find the defendant guilty of this crime, the
People are required to prove, from all the evidence in the case,
beyond a reasonable doubt, each of the following three elements:
1. That on or about (date), (specify name of judge) was a
judge;
2. That on or about that date in the County of (County), the
defendant, (defendant=s name), caused serious physical injury to
(specify name of judge), and
3. That the defendant did so with intent to prevent (specify
name of judge) from performing official judicial duties.
If you find the People have proven beyond a reasonable
doubt each of those elements, you must find the defendant guilty
of this crime.
If you find the People have not proven beyond a reasonable
doubt any one or more of those elements, you must find the
defendant not guilty of this crime.
4
See Penal Law ' 15.05 (1).
5 See Penal Law ' 10.00 (10).
