New York Sex Crime Laws

New York’s sex offense statutes are spread across several articles of the Penal Law, and they do not follow a single logic. Article 130 covers the core offenses and was substantially rewritten by recent legislation. Article 263 addresses sexual performances by children and uses more than one age threshold within the same article. Separate articles govern intimate imagery, public conduct, prostitution, and trafficking, and one commonly confused provision is not a sex offense at all.

This page maps those families and gives the section numbers and offense classes so you can locate the provision that matters to your situation. It does not address registration, which is set out on the New York sex offender laws page. If you are looking at a charging document, read it against the statute rather than against a description of the statute, because the section and subdivision charged control everything that follows. Request a consultation. Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. maintains 24/7 phone intake at (888) 437-7747.

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Article 130 and the L.2023 c.777 Restructure

Article 130 contains New York’s principal sex offenses, and L.2023 c.777 restructured it. The act repealed §§ 130.40, 130.45 and 130.50 outright. Those sections no longer exist and cannot be charged. The act also deleted the term “sexual intercourse” from the article.

Definitions in § 130.00 carry the weight that language once did. “Vaginal sexual contact” means contact between the penis and the vagina or vulva, and it has no penetration element. “Oral sexual contact” and “anal sexual contact” are defined separately.

The act states an effective date of January 1, 2024 and was signed on January 30, 2024, and that discrepancy remains unresolved. The workable rule is that the date of the alleged conduct governs which version applies.

Under § 130.05, lack of consent is an element of every Article 130 offense, and subdivision 3 deems persons under seventeen incapable of consent.

The rape sections that remain are graded by degree. Section 130.35, rape in the first degree, is a class B felony. Section 130.30, rape in the second degree, is a class D felony and carries an affirmative defense where the defendant was less than four years older. Section 130.25, rape in the third degree, is a class E felony.

Contact offenses follow a parallel structure. Section 130.52, forcible touching, is a class A misdemeanor. Section 130.55, sexual abuse in the third degree, is a class B misdemeanor with an affirmative defense where the defendant was less than five years older and the victim more than fourteen. Section 130.60, sexual abuse in the second degree, is a class A misdemeanor, and § 130.65, sexual abuse in the first degree, is a class D felony.

Offenses Against Children and the Article 263 Age Thresholds

Article 263 addresses sexual performances by children, and its internal age thresholds are not uniform. Reading them carelessly is one of the more common errors in this area.

Section 263.11, possessing an obscene sexual performance by a child, applies where the child is less than sixteen and is a class E felony. Section 263.15, promoting a sexual performance by a child, applies where the child is less than seventeen and is a class D felony. Section 263.16, possessing a sexual performance by a child, applies where the child is less than sixteen and is a class E felony. The promoting offense therefore reaches an older age band than either possession offense, and it is graded more seriously.

Article 235 supplies a related pair of offenses concerning material transmitted to minors, and the degrees differ in a consequence that is easy to miss. Section 235.21, disseminating indecent material to minors in the second degree, is a class E felony and is not registrable. Section 235.22, disseminating indecent material to minors in the first degree, is a class D felony and is registrable. The distinction between those two sections can determine whether a registration obligation attaches at all, which is why the specific subdivision charged, and any subdivision offered in a resolution, deserves close attention.

Imagery and Public Conduct Offenses

A pair of provisions outside Article 130 come up frequently and are often misdescribed.

Section 245.15, unlawful dissemination or publication of an intimate image, is a class A misdemeanor. It concerns the dissemination or publication of an intimate image and sits outside Article 130 and Article 263, so the consequences that follow a conviction under it are not the same as those attached to the offenses in those articles. Cases under it typically rest on account records, message histories, and platform data, which means the digital record and the question of who actually controlled an account at the relevant time are usually central to how the matter is approached.

Section 245.00, public lewdness, is a class B misdemeanor. Its classification carries a point worth stating plainly: public lewdness is not an Article 130 offense, and it is not itself registrable. People charged under it often assume they are facing a registrable sex offense and make decisions on that assumption, and defendants sometimes accept or reject resolutions for reasons that do not reflect what the section actually is.

Because the consequences attached to these sections differ so sharply from those attached to Article 130 and Article 263 offenses, the section number on the accusatory instrument matters more than the label anyone applies to the conduct in conversation.

Prostitution and Trafficking Provisions

Article 230 covers prostitution and patronizing offenses. Section 230.00, prostitution, is a class B misdemeanor and remains in force. Section 230.04, patronizing in the third degree, is a class A misdemeanor.

Trafficking sits at the far end of the grading scale. Section 230.34, sex trafficking, is a class B felony. Section 230.34-a, sex trafficking of a child, is also a class B felony.

One provision is regularly mislabeled, including in secondary sources. Section 135.35 is labor trafficking, a class D felony, and it is not a sex-trafficking provision. It sits in a different article of the Penal Law and concerns labor rather than sexual conduct. Treating a § 135.35 charge as though it were a sex offense leads to incorrect assumptions about registration, about collateral consequences, and about how a case should be approached. If a charge, a news account, or a background report describes § 135.35 as sex trafficking, that description is wrong.

The offense class on any of these sections is a starting point rather than a conclusion. It indicates the range of grading, not what the prosecution has to establish. What the charged subdivision requires, whether the alleged conduct fits it, and how the section interacts with the registration provisions of the Correction Law are the questions that follow, and they are answered from the charging document rather than from the offense label.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which New York rape sections were repealed?

L.2023 c.777 repealed §§ 130.40, 130.45 and 130.50 outright. Those sections no longer exist and cannot be charged. Older articles, forms, and background materials still reference them, so a document citing one of them is working from a superseded version of the Penal Law. Anything built on that citation, including a description of the offense grade, should be checked against the current text.

What does § 130.00 mean by “vaginal sexual contact”?

It means contact between the penis and the vagina or vulva. The definition contains no penetration element. Section 130.00 defines “oral sexual contact” and “anal sexual contact” separately, so the terms are distinct and are not interchangeable in a charging document. Which one appears in the instrument affects what the prosecution has to establish.

Is “sexual intercourse” still a term used in Article 130?

No. L.2023 c.777 deleted the term “sexual intercourse” from Article 130. The article now works through the defined contact terms in § 130.00 instead. Language drawn from the older text does not match the current statute, and a charging document or plea colloquy that still uses it is describing an article that no longer reads that way.

When did the Article 130 changes take effect?

That is unsettled. The act states an effective date of January 1, 2024, and it was signed on January 30, 2024. The discrepancy has not been resolved. What governs in practice is the date of the alleged conduct, which determines which version of the statute a charge is measured against.

What is the difference between forcible touching and sexual abuse?

They are separate sections with different grades. Section 130.52, forcible touching, is a class A misdemeanor. Sexual abuse is graded across § 130.55, a class B misdemeanor, § 130.60, a class A misdemeanor, and § 130.65, a class D felony. Which section fits depends on what the charged subdivision requires.

Why do Article 263 offenses use different ages?

The thresholds are written into the individual sections. Section 263.11 and § 263.16 apply where the child is less than sixteen, and both are class E felonies. Section 263.15, promoting a sexual performance by a child, applies where the child is less than seventeen and is a class D felony. The thresholds have to be read section by section rather than assumed to be uniform across the article.

Does a public lewdness charge require registration?

Section 245.00, public lewdness, is a class B misdemeanor. It is not an Article 130 offense and it is not itself registrable. Whether any particular conviction carries a registration obligation is governed by the Correction Law, which is covered on the New York sex offender laws page. People facing this charge frequently assume otherwise and decide accordingly.

Is § 135.35 a sex trafficking statute?

No. Section 135.35 is labor trafficking, a class D felony, and it is not a sex-trafficking provision. The sex trafficking sections are § 230.34 and § 230.34-a, both class B felonies. The distinction affects what a case is actually about and what consequences follow from it, and a mislabeled reference in a report or an article is not a reason to treat the charge as something it is not.

Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. has been practicing since 1997. Mr. Sris, Owner and Founder of Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C., is a former prosecutor and is admitted in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and New York. New York sex offense matters are handled by Mr. Sris and the firm’s Of Counsel attorneys, who contract directly with the firm. Because the section and subdivision charged determine the grade, the available defenses, and the consequences that follow, the firm begins with the charging document itself. Consultations take place at the firm’s locations by appointment, and the firm maintains 24/7 phone intake. Request a consultation.

This page provides general information and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Case results depend on a variety of factors unique to each case. Results may vary.

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