New York statute
N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law § 180.70 — Proceedings upon felony complaint; disposition of felony complaint after hearing
Current through 2026 legislative session (LBDC text via OpenLegislation as of 2026-07-17)
Part of Article 180: Proceedings Upon Felony Complaint From Arraignment Thereon Through Disposition Thereof, New York Criminal Procedure Law.
Full text of N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law § 180.70
Statutory text current through the 2026 legislative session (LBDC text via OpenLegislation as of 2026-07-17). This publication reproduces the text of the Consolidated Laws of New York as provided by the New York State Senate's Open Legislation service (Legislative Bill Drafting Commission statutory text); it is not the official statutes of the State of New York.
180.70 Proceedings upon felony complaint; disposition of felony
complaint after hearing.
At the conclusion of a hearing, the court must dispose of the felony
complaint as follows:
1. If there is reasonable cause to believe that the defendant
committed a felony, the court must, except as provided in subdivision
three, order that the defendant be held for the action of a grand jury
of the appropriate superior court, and it must promptly transmit to such
superior court the order, the felony complaint, the supporting
depositions and all other pertinent documents. Until such papers are
received by the superior court, the action is deemed to be still pending
in the local criminal court.
2. If there is not reasonable cause to believe that the defendant
committed a felony but there is reasonable cause to believe that he
committed an offense other than a felony, the court may, by means of
procedures prescribed in subdivision three of section 180.50, reduce the
charge to one for such non-felony offense.
3. If there is reasonable cause to believe that the defendant
committed a felony in addition to a non-felony offense, the court may,
instead of ordering the defendant held for the action of a grand jury as
provided in subdivision one, reduce the charge to one for such
non-felony offense as provided in subdivision two, if (a) it is
satisfied that such reduction is in the interest of justice, and (b) the
district attorney consents thereto; provided, however, that the court
may not order such reduction where there is reasonable cause to believe
the defendant committed a class A felony, other than those defined in
article two hundred twenty of the penal law, or any armed felony as
defined in subdivision forty-one of section 1.20.
4. If there is not reasonable cause to believe that the defendant
committed any offense, the court must dismiss the felony complaint and
discharge the defendant from custody if he is in custody, or, if he is
at liberty on bail, it must exonerate the bail.
Official sources
Legal terms used in this section
This reference is informational and is not legal advice.