Senator Jack Martins (R-Mineola) today announced that the New York State Senate has passed legislation he sponsors to strengthen penalties for criminals who deal drugs to children.
“Drugs destroy lives, and the victims of drug abuse are getting younger and younger,” Martins said. “Drug use among children, especially heroin, is a growing epidemic on Long Island. Criminals who target young children and poison them with heroin and other controlled substances deserve tougher penalties. This legislation will give law enforcement another tool to keep these drug dealers off the streets and behind bars where they belong.”
Under current law, anyone over the age of 21 who sells a controlled substance to a minor under the age of 17 can be charged with a class B felony. However, the law does not contain an enhanced penalty for selling a controlled substance to younger children.
Martins’ legislation would create the new crime of criminal sale of a controlled substance to a child in the first degree.
Under the proposed law, adults over the age of 18 who sell a controlled substance to a minor under the age of 14 would be charged with a class A-II felony.
