New York statute
N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law § 710.20 — Motion to suppress evidence; in general; grounds for
Current through 2026 legislative session (LBDC text via OpenLegislation as of 2026-07-17)
Part of Article 710: Motion to Suppress Evidence, New York Criminal Procedure Law.
Full text of N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law § 710.20
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.
710.20 Motion to suppress evidence; in general; grounds for.
Upon motion of a defendant who (a) is aggrieved by unlawful or
improper acquisition of evidence and has reasonable cause to believe
that such may be offered against him in a criminal action, or (b) claims
that improper identification testimony may be offered against him in a
criminal action, a court may, under circumstances prescribed in this
article, order that such evidence be suppressed or excluded upon the
ground that it:
1. Consists of tangible property obtained by means of an unlawful
search and seizure under circumstances precluding admissibility thereof
in a criminal action against such defendant; or
2. Consists of a record or potential testimony reciting or describing
declarations, conversations, or other communications overheard,
intercepted, accessed, or recorded by means of eavesdropping, or
observations made by means of video surveillance, obtained under
circumstances precluding admissibility thereof in a criminal action
against such defendant; or
3. Consists of a record or potential testimony reciting or describing
a statement of such defendant involuntarily made, within the meaning of
section 60.45; or
4. Was obtained as a result of other evidence obtained in a manner
described in subdivisions one, two and three; or
5. Consists of a chemical test of the defendant's blood administered
in violation of the provisions of subdivision three of section eleven
hundred ninety-four of the vehicle and traffic law, subdivision eight of
section forty-nine-a of the navigation law, subdivision seven of section
25.24 of the parks, recreation and historic preservation law, or any
other applicable law; or
6. Consists of potential testimony regarding an observation of the
defendant either at the time or place of the commission of the offense
or upon some other occasion relevant to the case, which potential
testimony would not be admissible upon the prospective trial of such
charge owing to an improperly made previous identification of the
defendant or of a pictorial, photographic, electronic, filmed or video
recorded reproduction of the defendant by the prospective witness. A
claim that the previous identification of the defendant or of a
pictorial, photographic, electronic, filmed or video recorded
reproduction of the defendant by a prospective witness did not comply
with paragraph (c) of subdivision one of section 60.25 of this chapter
or with the protocol promulgated in accordance with subdivision
twenty-one of section eight hundred thirty-seven of the executive law
shall not constitute a legal basis to suppress evidence pursuant to this
subdivision. A claim that a public servant failed to comply with
paragraph (c) of subdivision one of section 60.25 of this chapter or of
subdivision twenty-one of section eight hundred thirty-seven of the
executive law shall neither expand nor limit the rights an accused
person may derive under the constitution of this state or of the United
States.
7. Consists of information obtained by means of a pen register or trap
and trace device installed or used in violation of the provisions of
article seven hundred five of this chapter.
Official sources
Legal terms used in this section
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