PL 120.14: Menacing in the Second Degree in New York

PL 120.14 criminalizes putting someone in fear with a weapon — no injury, no contact, not even a swing. Displaying the object is the crime. Around 270 menacing cases a year run through Nassau and Suffolk County District Court, and in most of them the “weapon” is an ordinary household object. If you have been charged, call Hochhauser Criminal & DWI Defense at 516-939-1529.

PL 120.14 penalties

That second row is the point of most of these cases. Menacing in the third degree covers placing someone in fear by physical menace — with no weapon element at all. Dropping from PL 120.14 to PL 120.15 removes the display element entirely and cuts the maximum by three quarters, which is why it is the standard negotiated landing spot.

What PL 120.14 requires

The People must prove you intentionally placed, or attempted to place, another person in reasonable fear of physical injury, serious physical injury or death, by displaying a deadly weapon, a dangerous instrument, or what appears to be a firearm.

Two of those words are where the case is fought.

Display. The object has to actually be displayed. Possession is not display. A knife visible on a kitchen counter, a bat in the corner of a room, a firearm in a waistband that was never drawn — none of those are automatically a display, and a verbal threat to go get a weapon is not one either.

Dangerous instrument. New York defines this by how the object was used, not by what it is. An ordinary object becomes a dangerous instrument only if, under the circumstances of its actual use, it was readily capable of causing death or serious physical injury. That is why kitchen knives, tools, bottles and phones dominate this docket — and why the classification is contestable in nearly every case.

Defenses to a menacing charge

• No display. The most productive attack. Holding a knife while cooking, or picking up a tool during an argument, is not displaying a weapon to instill fear.
• The fear was not reasonable. This is an objective element the People must prove, not a matter of what the complainant says they felt.
• No intent. The object was in your hand for a reason unrelated to the other person.
• The object does not qualify as a deadly weapon, dangerous instrument, or apparent firearm as it was actually used.
• Justification under Penal Law Article 35, which is fully available — defensive display is not menacing.
• Reduction to PL 120.15, which drops the weapon element altogether.

Menacing as a family offense

Menacing in the second and third degree are both family offenses when the parties are married, formerly married, related, share a household, have a child in common, or are in an intimate relationship. Family Court and criminal court have concurrent jurisdiction, so the same incident can produce two proceedings and two orders of protection. See domestic violence charges.

Note also that menacing in the third degree committed in violation of an order of protection is elevated to a Class A misdemeanor — so an existing order changes the arithmetic. See criminal contempt.

Where menacing cases are heard

We handle menacing cases across Nassau County and Suffolk County. Where injury is alleged as well, see assault in the third degree.

PL 120.14 frequently asked questions

I never touched anyone. How is this a crime?

Menacing does not require contact or injury. Intentionally causing reasonable fear by displaying a weapon is the entire offense.

It was a kitchen knife in my own kitchen.

Then display and intent are both genuinely in issue, and so is whether it was a dangerous instrument as used. Context is not a technicality here — it goes to the elements.

Is menacing a felony?

Second and third degree are misdemeanors. Menacing in the first degree, which requires a prior menacing conviction within ten years, is a Class E felony.

Can it be reduced?

Frequently — to menacing in the third degree, or in defensible cases to harassment in the second degree, which is a violation rather than a crime.

Speak with a Long Island menacing defense lawyer

Richard Hochhauser defends menacing cases in Nassau and Suffolk County District Court, most of them arising from arguments in which an ordinary object was in someone’s hand. Whether that was a display, and whether the object was a dangerous instrument, are questions worth litigating rather than conceding.

This page provides general information about PL 120.14 menacing in New York and is not legal advice. Every case turns on its own facts. Contacting our firm does not create an attorney-client relationship.