N.Y. Laws » CHAPTER Penal / PART Specific Offenses / TITLE Offenses Against the Person Involving Physical Injury, Sexual Conduct, Restraint and Intimidation / ARTICLE Assault and Related Offenses
New York Consolidated Laws

N.Y. Penal Law § 120.25 (2026)

Reckless endangerment in the first degree

✓ text as retrieved May 2026 (this copy records no edition or section history)
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§ 120.25 Reckless endangerment in the first degree.
  A person is guilty of reckless endangerment in the first degree when,
under circumstances evincing a depraved indifference to human life, he
recklessly engages in conduct which creates a grave risk of death to
another person.
  Reckless endangerment in the first degree is a class D felony.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 355 cases (31 in the last 5 years), 1984–2026 · leading case: People v. Feingold, 852 N.E.2d 1163 (N.Y. 2006).
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People v. Feingold, 852 N.E.2d 1163 (N.Y. 2006). · cites it 8× “Defendant was convicted, after a nonjury trial, of reckless endangerment in the first degree in violation of Penal Law § 120.25. Because the verdict, as enunciated by the trial judge and affirmed by the Appellate Division, does not conform to this Court's precedents, we modify…”
People v. Suarez, 844 N.E.2d 721 (N.Y. 2005). · cites it 2× “10 [3]; see Penal Law § 120.25). Presumably, the majority's new interpretation of "depraved indifference" in the context of second-degree murder will apply with equal force to these two offenses since identically worded phrases in the same chapter of laws are usually accorded…”
Jan Knapik v. John Ashcroft, Attorney Gen. of the United States, 384 F.3d 84 (3d Cir. 2004). · cites it 2× “§ 1227 (a)(2) (A) (i)(I) - (I I). As for the length of sentence requirement, though Knapik received but a four month sentence, first degree reckless endangerment is a class D felony, N.”
United States v. Jerome Crosby, 549 U.S. 915 (2005). “See N.Y. Penal Law § 120.25 (McKinney 2004). Next, the Judge added three levels for creating a substantial risk of injury to a law enforcement officer.”
People v. Wells, 141 A.D.3d 1013 (N.Y. App. Div. 3d Dep't 2016). · cites it 2× “The other charged acts included interrupting the teenagers’ party, bullying and threatening the young guests, accusing them of stealing or hiding the missing car keys, threatening to strip search them and forcing them to submit to physical searches, blocking them from leaving,…”
Carlton Baptiste v. Attorney Gen. United States, 841 F.3d 601 (3d Cir. 2016). · cites it 2× “at 89 (quoting N.Y. Penal Law § 120.25 (McKinney 2009)).”
People v. Van Norstrand, 647 N.E.2d 1275 (N.Y. 1995). · cites it 2× “05 [8]), one count of reckless endangerment in the first degree (Penal Law § 120.25), and one count of endangering the welfare of a child (Penal Law § 260.”
United States v. Legros, 529 F.3d 470 (2d Cir. 2008). · cites it 2× “” See N.Y. Penal Law § 120.25 . In explaining its decision to impose the four-level enhancement, the district court made no mention of a “grave risk” or “depraved indifference.”
People v. Davis, 526 N.E.2d 20 (N.Y. 1988). · cites it 3× “” Reckless endangerment in the first degree is committed when a person, under circumstances evincing a depraved indifference to human life, recklessly creates a grave risk of death to another (Penal Law § 120.25). A person acts reck *36 lessly when he is aware of, but…”
People v. Lewie, 953 N.E.2d 760 (N.Y. 2011). · cites it 2× “Reckless Endangerment Reckless endangerment in the first degree is defined by Penal Law § 120.25: "A person is guilty of reckless endangerment in the first degree when, under circumstances evincing a depraved indifference to human life, he recklessly engages in conduct which…”
United States v. Gray, 535 F.3d 128 (2d Cir. 2008). · cites it 2× “In addition, Gray challenges his sentence by arguing that the district court erred in finding that his prior conviction for reckless endangerment, in violation of N.Y. Penal Law § 120.25 , was a “crime of violence,” under U.”
Lazaro Larios v. Attorney Gen. United States, 978 F.3d 62 (3d Cir. 2020). · cites it 2× “§ 2C:12-1b(1), or “grave risk of death to another person,” N.Y. Penal Law § 120.25 , and “extreme indifference to the value of human life,” N.”
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