N.Y. Public Health Law 3455 – Violations; prosecutions
§ 3455. Violations; prosecutions. 1. Any person who shall:
Terms Used In N.Y. Public Health Law 3455
- Advertisement: means the publication, dissemination, circulation, or placing before the public, or causing directly or indirectly to be made, published, disseminated, or placed before the public, any announcement or statement in a newspaper, magazine, or other publication, or in the form of a book, notice, circular, pamphlet, letter, hand-bill, poster, bill, sign, placard, card, label, tag, or by radio or television or any other means. See N.Y. Public Health Law 3400
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
- Embalmer: means a person to whom a valid license as such has been duly issued. See N.Y. Public Health Law 3400
- Embalming: means preparing, disinfecting and preserving, either hypodermically, arterially or by any other recognized means the body of a deceased person for burial, cremation or other final disposition. See N.Y. Public Health Law 3400
- Embalming fluid: means any chemicals or substances manufactured primarily for use by licensed funeral directors, undertakers or embalmers, or registered residents, to prepare, disinfect or preserve, either hypodermically, arterially or by any other recognized means the body of a deceased person for burial, cremation or other final disposition. See N.Y. Public Health Law 3400
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Funeral directing: means the care and disposal of the body of a deceased person and/or the preserving, disinfecting and preparing by embalming or otherwise, the body of a deceased person for funeral services, transportation, burial or cremation; and/or funeral directing or embalming as presently known whether under these titles or designations or otherwise. See N.Y. Public Health Law 3400
- Funeral director: means a person to whom a valid license as such has been duly issued. See N.Y. Public Health Law 3400
- Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
- Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
- Registered resident: means a person who passed a funeral directing examination and who is duly registered as such with the department while in the employ of a registered funeral firm and who is engaged in the practice of funeral directing under the supervision of a licensed funeral director or undertaker and embalmer; provided, however, that a registered resident shall not have authority to sign any form or document required by law which requires the signature of a licensed funeral director or make funeral arrangements or own or manage a funeral firm. See N.Y. Public Health Law 3400
- Undertaker: means a person to whom a valid license as such has been duly issued. See N.Y. Public Health Law 3400
- Undertaking: means the care, disposal, transportation, burial or cremation by any means other than embalming of the body of a deceased person. See N.Y. Public Health Law 3400
(a) obtain or attempt to obtain or aid in obtaining any license or certificate under this article by any false or fraudulent statement or representation; or,
(b) practice as a funeral director, undertaker or embalmer without having been issued a license or without having registered as required by this article; or,
(c) being a funeral director, undertaker, or embalmer, aid and abet an unlicensed person to practice funeral directing, undertaking, and embalming; or,
(d) hold himself out as licensed or able to practice or as practicing or entitled to practice without conformity to the requirements of this article; or,
(e) otherwise violate or neglect to comply with any of the provisions of this article; or,
(f) being a funeral director, undertaker or embalmer, or registered resident, knowingly give, sell, permit to be sold, offer for sale or display for sale, other than for purposes within the general scope of their activities as a licensed funeral director, undertaker or embalmer, or registered resident, embalming fluid to another person with actual knowledge that such other person is not a licensed funeral director, undertaker or embalmer, or registered resident, or entity authorized to perform embalming activities under section thirty-four hundred twenty of this article or activities described in article forty-two of this chapter; or
(g) practice as a funeral director, undertaker or embalmer, while his license is revoked or suspended, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall, on conviction, for each and every offense be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred dollars nor more than five hundred dollars, or by imprisonment for a term of not less than thirty days and not more than one year, or by both such fine and imprisonment, and for a second offense shall be punishable by both such fine and imprisonment.
2. All courts of special sessions within their respective territorial jurisdictions are hereby empowered to hear, try and determine such crimes without indictment and to impose in full the punishments of fines and imprisonments herein prescribed.
3. The attorney general of the state shall have the power to prosecute in any county of the state any violation of this article; such prosecution may be instituted by him in his discretion or after complaint made to him by any person, provided, however, that nothing in this section shall be interpreted to prevent or impede the prosecution of such proceedings by the district attorney of any county in which the offense is committed when such proceedings have been instituted by him.
4. (a) In any prosecution or hearing hereunder it shall be necessary to prove only a single act prohibited by law or a single holding out or attempt, without having to prove a general course of conduct, in order to constitute a violation.
(b) The display, publication or dissemination by any person of an advertisement, card, sign or any other representation bearing a name, designation or description as a practitioner of funeral directing, undertaking, or embalming, in any manner or by implication, shall be presumptive evidence of a holding out of such practice by such person.
5. All violations of this article when reported to the department and duly substantiated by affidavits, or other satisfactory evidence, shall be investigated and, if the report is found to be substantiated, the department shall report such violations to the attorney general and request prompt prosecution.