Criminal sale of a police uniform · as in force on May 31, 2026
§ 190.27 Criminal sale of a police uniform.
A person is guilty of criminal sale of a police uniform when he or she sells or offers for sale the uniform of any police officer to any person, unless presented with a valid photo identification card showing the purchaser to be a member of the police department which has authorized the requested uniform or an authorization to purchase specified uniforms signed by the police chief or the police commissioner of such police department accompanied by a personal photo identification. For purposes of this section, "police officer" shall include federal law enforcement officers, as defined in section 2.15 of the criminal procedure law; and "uniform" shall include all or any part of the uniform which identifies the wearer as a member of a police department, such as the uniform, shield, badge, numbers or other identifying insignias or emblems.
Criminal sale of a police uniform is a class A misdemeanor.
A person commits this offense by selling or offering a police uniform or identifying part to someone who does not present the required police photo ID or written authorization plus personal photo ID. ★ “Police officer” includes the federal officers listed in CPL § 2.15, and “uniform” includes any identifying uniform part, shield, badge, number, insignia, or emblem. It is a class A misdemeanor.
Marked in the text: penalties, time limits, sums of money. Editorial emphasis added by this edition; it does not appear in the statute as enacted.
This provision appears in Volume 4 — The Court Clerk: Penal Law; Volume 1 — The Court Officer in Plain English; Volume 3 — The Court Officer: Penal Law; Volume 3 — Your Career: Penal Law in Plain English.