§ 125.26 Aggravated murder. 

  A person is guilty of aggravated murder when: 

1.With intent to cause the death of another person, he or she causes the
death of such person, or of a third person who was a person described in
subparagraph (i), (ii), (ii-a) or (iii) of paragraph (a) of this  subdi-
vision  engaged  at  the time of the killing in the course of performing
his or her official duties; and
(as amended by L.2013 c.1)
  (a) Either: 
  (i) the intended victim was a police officer as defined in subdivision 
thirty-four of section 1.20 of the criminal procedure law who was at the 
time of the killing engaged in the course of performing his or her offi- 
cial duties, and the defendant knew or reasonably should have known that 
the victim was a police officer; or 

  (ii) the intended victim was a peace officer as defined in paragraph a 
of  subdivision  twenty-one,  subdivision  twenty-three,  twenty-four or 
sixty-two  (employees  of the division for youth) of section 2.10 of the 
criminal procedure law who was at the time of the killing engaged in the 
course  of performing his or her official duties, and the defendant knew 
or  reasonably  should  have  known that the victim was such a uniformed 
court  officer,  parole  officer,  probation officer, or employee of the 
division for youth; or 

   (ii-a) the intended victim was a firefighter, emergency medical tech-
nician,  ambulance  driver,  paramedic,  physician  or  registered nurse
involved in a first response team, or any other individual who,  in  the
course  of  official  duties, performs emergency response activities and
was engaged in such activities at the time of killing and the  defendant
knew  or  reasonably should have known that the intended victim was such
firefighter, emergency medical technician, ambulance driver,  paramedic,
physician or registered nurse; or
(Added by L.2013 c.1)

  (iii)  the  intended  victim  was  an employee of a state correctional 
institution  or  was  an  employee  of  a local correctional facility as 
defined  in  subdivision two of section forty of the correction law, who 
was  at  the time of the killing engaged in the course of performing his 
or her official duties, and the defendant knew or reasonably should have 
known  that  the victim was an employee of a state correctional institu- 
tion  or  a  local correctional facility; and (b) The defendant was more 
than eighteen years old at the time of the commission of the crime; or

  2.  (a)  With intent to cause the death of a person less than fourteen
years old, he or she causes the death of such person, and the  defendant
acted  in  an especially cruel and wanton manner pursuant to a course of
conduct intended to inflict and inflicting torture upon the victim prior
to the victim's death. As used in this subdivision, "torture" means  the
intentional  and  depraved  infliction  of extreme physical pain that is
separate and apart from the pain which otherwise would have been associ-
ated with such cause of death; and
  (b) The defendant was more than eighteen years old at the time of  the
commission of the crime.
(Added by L.2009 c.482 effective 10/09/09.)

  3. In any prosecution under subdivision one or two of this section, it 
is an affirmative defense that:

  (a)  (i)  The defendant acted under the influence of extreme emotional
disturbance for which there was a reasonable explanation or excuse,  the
reasonableness  of  which  is  to  be determined from the viewpoint of a
person in the defendant's  situation  under  the  circumstances  as  the
defendant believed them to be. Nothing contained in this paragraph shall
constitute  a defense to a prosecution for, or preclude a conviction of,
aggravated manslaughter in the first degree, manslaughter in  the  first
degree  or  any  other crime except murder in the second degree. (ii) It
shall  not  be  a  "reasonable  explanation  or  excuse"   pursuant   to
subparagraph (i) of this paragraph when the defendant's conduct resulted
from  the  discovery,  knowledge  or  disclosure  of the victim's sexual
orientation,  sex,  gender,  gender  identity,  gender expression or sex
assigned at birth; or
(As amended by L.2019 c.45 effective 06/30/19.)

  (b) The  defendant's  conduct  consisted of causing or aiding, without 
the  use of duress or deception, another person to commit suicide. Noth- 
ing  contained  in this paragraph shall constitute a defense to a prose- 
cution  for, or preclude a conviction of, aggravated manslaughter in the 
second  degree,  manslaughter  in  the  second degree or any other crime 
except murder in the second degree. 
  Aggravated murder is a class A-I felony.