New York Penal Law § 120.70 – Luring a Child

Luring a Child under New York Penal Law § 120.70 is a New York crime prohibiting adults from luring children under 17 into a car, building or isolated area with the intent of committing an enumerated offense, such as murder or a sex crime. Luring a child is a class E felony as well as a registerable sex offense. Notably, Luring a Child is a separate offense from the crime that the defendant is alleged to have intended to commit.

Before a judge or jury can convict anyone of Luring a Child, the government must prove each element of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt. The elements of Luring a Child are:

1. The defendant lured the alleged victim into a vehicle, aircraft, watercraft, isolated area, or building;
2. The alleged victim was a minor under the age of 17; and
3. The defendant lured the child away for the purposes of committing a murder, sex offense, kidnapping, certain prostitution offenses, incest or a child pornography offense.

A defendant’s efforts at luring a child do not need to be successful to commit the offense.

Examples of Luring a Child include:

• A person approaches a child after school, trying to convince the child to get into their vehicle so they can make a pornographic video.
• A child’s relative attempts to convince a child to sneak out of their home so they can have sex.
• A person attempts to convince a child to meet them in a dark alley, where they plan on sexually assaulting the child.

Often, prosecutors bring Luring a Child charges along with several other charges. In almost all cases involving these charges, the prosecution will charge the defendant for attempting to commit the crime, even if they did not get a chance to. Thus, the most common related offenses include:

• Murder under NY Penal Law § 125.25 or § 125.27
• Promoting Prostitution under NY Penal Law § 230.30
• Compelling Prostitution under NY Penal Law § 230.33
• Sex Trafficking under NY Penal Law § 230.34
• Use of a Child in a Sexual Performance under NY Penal Law § 263.05
• Incest under NY Penal Law § 255.25, § 255.26 or § 255.27
• Aggravated Sexual Abuse under NY Penal Law § 130.66, § 130.67 or § 130.70

The defenses to Luring a Child include:

• The alleged victim fabricated the allegations against the defendant;
• The defendant’s actions did not constitute luring;
• The defendant lured a child into an area that was not a vehicle, a building or an isolated location;
• The alleged victim was 17 years old or older; and
• Lack of evidence that the defendant intended to commit an enumerated offense.

Luring a Child is a class E felony. In New York, class E felonies are punishable by a maximum term of four years in jail. However, if the offense that the defendant is alleged to have attempted was a class A or a class B felony, then the offense of Luring a Child will be graded as a class C or class D felony, respectively.

Luring a Child is considered a sex offense in New York. Thus, anyone convicted of this offense must register as a sex offender for at least 20 years and possibly for life.

If you were recently arrested and charged with crimes related to Luring a Child, it is imperative that you reach out to an experienced New York criminal defense attorney as soon as possible. At the Tilem & Associates, P.C., our dedicated defense attorneys are immediately available to meet with you to discuss your case and what we can do to help. Our lawyers have decades of combined experience aggressively defending clients facing all types of serious felony offenses, including Luring a Child, sex abuse, homicide and more. We are immediately available to meet with you to get started working on a compelling defense to the charges you face. To learn more, and to schedule a free consultation today, call 877-377-8666. You can also reach us through our online contact form.