Is It Illegal To Cheat On Your Spouse In New York State?

Cheating on a spouse. Not a good thing. That's a no-brainer. But if you cheat on your spouse in New York State, is it illegal? The answer is YES. Cheating on a spouse in the State of New York can carry a penalty.

That's right. It is seldom enforced, but there is a law from 1907 that states the act of committing adultery is illegal in the Empire State.

While we don't condone this behavior, a New York State Assemblymember has introduced bill A.4714, which aims to repeal and decriminalize the act of adultery in the State of New York.

Assemblymember Charles Lavine (D-North Shore) drew up the bill which passed unanimously through the Codes Committee on March 11, 2024, by a vote of 137 to 10, according to his website. The bill now goes to the New York State Senate, and if passed, will land on Governor Kathy Hochul's desk to sign or reject.

This outdated statute criminalizes sexual behavior between consenting adults. It is long past time for us to remove it from the penal code. If a law is not enforced, there is no reason it should be maintained. - New York State Assemblymember Charles Lavine

Assemblymember Lavine notes that only 13 people have been charged with adultery since 1972 and just five of those people were convicted of the crime, mostly because there was some other crime involved, and the prosecuting attorney added adultery as just one of many crimes committed.

According to Fox 5 New York, over a dozen states have adultery laws, but they are classified as misdemeanors, the same as New York State, except for Oklahoma, Wisconsin, and Michigan, where adultery is a felony offense.

What are your thoughts? Should this law remain on the books in New York State, or should it be repealed? Soon, we'll know the outcome either way.