Criminal Contempt in the Second Degree for Disobeying Court Orders

What is Criminal Contempt in the Second Degree?

The definition of Criminal Contempt in the second degree is codified under New York Penal Law § 215.50 criminal contempt in the second degree. "A person is guilty of criminal contempt in the second degree when he or she violates an order of the supreme court or any superior court (other than a district court) or any city court, town court or village court." Penal Law § 215.50 (3) "Criminal contempt in the second degree is a Class A misdemeanor. A person is guilty of Criminal Contempt in the Second Degree when they have committed an act of contempt in a civil case , which is not otherwise defined as a criminal crime in New York State penal law. It is also covered under Family Court where a person fails to do as directed by an order of Family Court and where there is no provision in Family Court Act to find the person in contempt of Family Court Order of Protection, a judge can refer the case to Family Court for prosecution on the criminal contempt charge.

Conduct that Disobeys a Court Order

Criminal contempt in the second degree, as defined in New York Penal Law, is committed by a person who "knowingly fails to obey a lawful order of the court (b.) [w]ho commits or attempts to commit any of the acts which are specified in section two hundred ten-one of this chapter, and thereby resists, or otherwise obstructs, authority of the court, is guilty of a class B misdemeanor." (emphasis added)
While that definition simply requires the prosecution to prove that someone has violated a court order, the statute also lists several acts which may be considered criminal contempt in the second degree. The penal statute further breaks down what kind of acts may result in an arrest.
As discussed in the previous section, Criminal Contempt in the Second Degree, the acts constituting disobedience to court orders include:
(a.) Refusal to be sworn as a witness;
(b.) Refusal to give testimony, or to produce a book, paper, document or other article as required by a lawful order of a court;
(c.) Refusal to take an oath or affirmation or to answer legal questions delicately authorized or reasonably believed to be relevant to child support proceedings as directed by a support magistrate in a support proceeding;
(d.) Failure to obey a lawful order of the court, which specifically directs the disclosure of income of benefits, including social security benefits; or
(e.) Failure to appear in accordance with a court issued process or summons or notice issued pursuant to section one hundred eleven of this chapter in a proceeding to enforce a child support order through the courts.
Other than acts above, disobedience to a court’s order may include several other events in which a party violates a command of a court. Committing, for instance, a nuisance, a civil disobedience. These acts may include: creating a public disturbance, excessive parking tickets, continued disobeyance of an order. In order to enforce the law, it has been set, that no one can be in violation of a court’s order without incurring a penalty. Valid court orders, must always be obeyed.

Criminal Contempt Has Legal Consequences

Legal Consequences of Criminal Contempt in the Second Degree
The possible consequences of a conviction for criminal contempt in the second degree are codified in Criminal Procedure Law § 730. Generally, a person convicted of this crime may be fined up to $1,000 or sentenced to a term in jail for not more than 30 days, or both. An important limitation on the punishment is that, under CPL § 750, no greater sentence may be imposed for an act of criminal contempt than what could be imposed for the offense the defendant was accused of violating an order about. Thus, when that order concerned a traffic summons, the defendant could only be sentenced to the same disposition that would have been imposed had he appeared in court. Because in traffic infraction cases there is no maximum fine or imprisonment, a defendant could theoretically be fined a million dollars or sentenced to a million days of imprisonment for criminal contempt in the second degree.
The threshold of 30 days of imprisonment is partially determinative of the type of court that hears such contempt proceedings. Pursuant to Judiciary Law § 140-b if a person is accused of criminal contempt in the second degree in a town or village court, and the sum total of alleged contemptuous conduct is more than 30 days of imprisonment, the matter must be transferred to the Supreme Court. This transfer does not apply if the court, as a matter of discretion or law, has jurisdiction over felony prosecutions.
The only prerequisite for application of the transfer provision in § 140-b in New York is that the alleged conduct constitutes second degree criminal contempt and could potentially result in more than 30 days of imprisonment. If the alleged criminal contempt consists of multiple acts each of which could result in 30 days of imprisonment, transfer is not required. For instance, an accused may face 30 days on each of four counts of criminal contempt; where the total possible punishment equals 120 days, the matter must be transferred. It is possible however that a judge faced with a charge of noncompliance with four different orders, resulting in 120 days of imprisonment, may exercise his discretion to hear all the charges on the basis that the total sentence would not be served since it exceeds the maximum limit for crime and punishment as set forth in Penal Law § 70.20.

How to Defend Against a Criminal Contempt Charge

A key factor in defending against a charge of contempt is the ability to raise a legal justification, excuse or defense recognized by New York law – in other words, citing a legal "get out of jail free" card. In one widely cited decision from 1911, the Court of Appeals in New York State asserted the following: "In our individual opinion, we are convinced that at most what defendant did was to maintain and defend a right or interest of her own which she had a right to assert and so secure for herself …We do not say that the language was lawful or that the method was proper, but we do say that, the defendant being an adult and an officer of the court, no contempt had been committed. We might well say, however, as to the language, that had it been addressed to a private individual the defendant might have been indicted for a breach of the peace ; but as to the method we should hold a mere notice of appeal sufficient justification for the act." People v Meyer, 195 N.Y. 100, 111 (1908). In the case of Matter of Schulz v Grievance Committee for Tenth Judicial Dist., 181 A.D.2d 161, 164 (2d Dep’t 1992), New York criminal contempt statute was found to be unconstitutional as applied to a lawyer who advised a client not to answer a question on cross-examination while contesting whether to produce certain documents. As a separate observation, we point out that traditional "stand your ground" principles in the law merely act as qualifiers in determining whether a use of force is unlawful. To this , the courts of New York further refuse to consider threats of criminal prosecution or contempt as impacting on the defendant’s state of mind in terms of a lack of culpable mental state. See People v St Pierre, 192 A.D.2d 986, 987 (4th Dep’t 1993) ("Even assuming that defendant may have reasonably feared arrest if he did not pay the fine, there can be no defense as a matter of law …[his] testimony establishes not only that he was aware of his obligation to pay the fine but also that his failure to pay was deliberate and intentional"). Plaintiff’s position that a bitter quarrel between her and her former husband led him to disobey the court orders is rejected by the Second Department in Toohey v Toohey, 257 A.D.2d 294, 300 (2d Dep’t 1999). In Toohey, the court concluded that the extraordinary circumstances test articulated in Goldstein v Goldstein, 218 A.D.2d 499 (1st Dep’t 1995) need not be met in order to defend against a finding of civil contempt, which includes all of the criteria set forth in Elliott v. Court Officers Benevolent Assoc., 5 N.Y.3d 242 (2005). See Toohey v Toohey, 257 A.D.2d 294, 301 (2d Dep’t 1999) ("a party cannot cure a failure to obey a court order by fully complying with an unambiguous order after being adjudged in contempt, because it is the disobedience of the Court’s mandate – and not the mere fact of noncompliance – that constitutes the contempt"). Here, the court also commented upon matters that may be considered beyond the contempt interests at hand, for instance, the parties’ financial situation, due process and possible LAQ% disparity.

Criminal Contempt vs. Civil Contempt

In the civil contempt setting, the person alleged to have violated the court’s order must be given the opportunity to comply and then to purge himself or herself of contempt, that is, take the required actions to rectify the situation that led to the contempt citation. But, as is often the case, you can face criminal contempt charges even if you have no ability to comply with the court’s order.
The bottom line is that a defendant facing a criminal contempt charge will have the choice to either comply with the court’s order after being charged, or go to jail. In contrast, for a civil contempt charge, the defendant can decide to either comply with the order or go to jail until he or she complies, which could essentially be forever, at least until the defendant takes steps to comply with the underlying order.
There is another key difference: in a civil contempt setting, the outcome is based on the damage caused by the person forced to comply with the court order. In a criminal contempt setting, the judge is saying that the defendant has committed a crime against the court.

Lawyers’ Tips to Avoid Criminal Contempt Charges

To avoid being found in criminal contempt, attorneys and legal experts suggest a few strategies. First and foremost, it is of the utmost importance to comply with all Court orders immediately. When an attorney knows that his or her client will be unable to meet a temporary order, for instance, it is critically important to file for a modification of that order as soon as possible. Of course, in high stakes divorces or other litigated matters, there may be substantial lag times between a temporary order being entered and a return date at which the issue will be heard. Because of this potential delay, it is essential to save money and resources to comply with an order if it is entered. Even the most tentative observation that a party should save money to abide by a Court order may seem overly simplistic, but many parties are frequently surprised at how quickly litigation can escalate and how easily that litigation can spiral out of control. Many are surprised to learn that they have failed to come into compliance with an order and then sit in jail for want of a few hundred dollars.
An experienced attorney can instill whether a temporary order is likely to remain in place long-term or if the Court may entertain a change based upon what the attorney has observed in similar matters. Moreover , by developing a relationship with a client’s accountant, book keeper or other individuals, an attorney can provide his/her client with more realistic expectations and can make recommendations on what actions to take to ensure compliance.
Utilizing the Courts immediately if there is an impending order violates can also be of critical importance. First, if a person takes action on their own and there is an order in place, there is a likelihood that if they are wrong, contempt charges could be brought against them. Also, many times the accused party is unwilling to immediately agree to purge their contempt. If the Court is asked to address the situation immediately and decides that the Court order must be complied with, there may be room for error. On the other hand, to purposely go out of one’s way to violate an order where a person is already aware that there was a past violation may well be viewed as a knowing and willful violation.