Unlawful Eviction Under NYS Penal Law: Penalties and Remedies

Under New York’s unlawful eviction penalties, a landlord who locks out, threatens, or cuts utilities on a protected tenant commits a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to 364 days in jail and a criminal fine of up to $1,000, plus civil penalties of $1,000 to $10,000 for each separate violation.¹ The same tenant can also sue the landlord separately and recover three times their actual damages. The penalties stack, each prohibited act counts on its own, and anyone who helped the landlord carry out the eviction is on the hook too.

What Counts as an Unlawful Eviction

RPAPL § 768 prohibits a landlord from pushing an occupant out of a dwelling without a court-issued warrant of eviction or a government vacate order. Three categories of conduct trigger the law:

Using force or threats of force to make the occupant leave or to block entry.¹
Interrupting essential services such as electricity, heat, or hot water to make the unit unlivable.¹
Physically interfering with the unit itself: changing the locks without giving a new key, removing the entrance door, disabling the lock, or hauling the occupant’s belongings out.¹

Each act is a separate offense. A landlord who changes the locks and also shuts off the heat has committed two violations, not one, and the penalties multiply accordingly. The statute also reaches anyone who assists in the violation, so a property manager or handyman carrying out the lockout on the owner’s instructions is equally liable.¹

Criminal Penalties

An intentional violation of RPAPL § 768 is a Class A misdemeanor. Conviction can bring a definite jail sentence of up to 364 days.² New York set the ceiling at 364 rather than 365 to limit immigration consequences for noncitizen defendants, so the number is precise. The criminal fine for a Class A misdemeanor can reach $1,000.³

In place of jail, a judge may impose probation of two or three years.⁴ The case is prosecuted by the local district attorney, and police may arrest the landlord at the scene if they find evidence of the violation. Unlike a housing court matter, a conviction leaves the landlord with a permanent criminal record.

Civil Penalties

The civil side of RPAPL § 768 is where the financial exposure gets serious. Section 768(2)(b) sets a penalty of at least $1,000 and up to $10,000 per violation. Because each prohibited act is its own violation, a landlord who changed the locks, dumped the tenant’s belongings, and killed the utilities could face up to $30,000 in civil penalties from those three acts alone.¹

If the landlord refuses to let the tenant back in after being asked, an additional penalty of up to $100 per day accrues from the date of the request until the tenant is restored. That daily penalty runs for a maximum of six months, which can add roughly $18,000 on top of the per-violation penalties.⁵

Treble Damages in a Separate Lawsuit

A tenant forced out unlawfully can also sue the landlord under RPAPL § 853 and recover treble damages, meaning three times the actual harm proven at trial. Recoverable losses can include temporary housing costs, lost or damaged belongings, and emotional distress damages.⁶ This civil action runs on its own track. A landlord acquitted of the misdemeanor can still lose the civil case, because the burden of proof in a civil lawsuit is lower.

The Landlord’s Duty to Restore

RPAPL § 768(1)(b) imposes an obligation that many landlords miss. Once an occupant has been illegally removed or shut out, the owner must take all reasonable and necessary steps to put the person back in the unit after being asked. If the original unit is no longer available, the owner must provide a suitable alternative in the same building.⁵

The duty applies in two situations: when the owner committed or knew about the illegal acts, and when those acts occurred within seven days before the occupant’s request to be restored. That seven-day window creates a near-automatic obligation. Even an owner who claims not to have known about the lockout is presumed to owe restoration if the request comes within a week. Failing to restore is itself a violation and triggers the daily penalty described above.⁵

Who Is Covered

The penalties apply only when the person removed was a protected occupant. RPAPL § 768 protects two groups: anyone who has lawfully lived in a dwelling for 30 consecutive days or longer, and anyone holding a lease, regardless of how long they have actually been there.¹ A written agreement is not required. Once a resident crosses the 30-day mark, the landlord cannot remove them without going to court. A weekend guest is not protected; a person who has slept in the same room for six weeks and receives mail there is.

What to Do If You Are Locked Out

Call 911 right away and use the phrase “unlawful eviction” so the dispatcher understands this is a potential crime rather than a dispute. The Attorney General’s office is clear that local law enforcement is the first stop, because no state agency can get you back inside in an emergency.⁷ Show responding officers proof you live there: a lease, utility bills, mail dated more than 30 days earlier, pay stubs, identification with the address. The AG’s guidance to officers states that the goal of any intervention is to return the tenant to their home when legally warranted, and officers may help the occupant retrieve documents from inside the unit if needed.⁸

If police cannot resolve it on the spot, you can go to Housing Court and file an Order to Show Cause to be restored to possession. A judge reviews and signs the order, and a hearing is typically scheduled within one or two days. Bring your lease, rent receipts, utility bills, and any other proof you have been living there. If you cannot afford the filing fee, you can apply to proceed without payment.⁹ You can also file an unlawful eviction complaint with the Attorney General’s office through its online form, which creates an additional official record and may prompt enforcement action against repeat offenders.⁷

When Police Help the Landlord

If law enforcement officers actively assist a landlord in carrying out the eviction instead of stopping it, the tenant may have a federal civil rights claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The statute lets anyone deprived of constitutional rights by someone acting under government authority sue for damages.¹⁰ An officer who ordered a tenant out without a court warrant, knowing the person lived there, may have violated the tenant’s Fourteenth Amendment right to due process.

These claims are hard to win. Officers can raise qualified immunity, which blocks liability unless the conduct violated a clearly established constitutional right. Overcoming that defense generally requires showing that no reasonable officer would have considered the conduct lawful. The potential damages and attorney fee awards still make the claim worth raising with a civil rights attorney when police played an active role in the removal.

1
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 768 – Unlawful Eviction
2
New York State Senate. New York Penal Law 70.15 – Sentences of Imprisonment for Misdemeanors
3
New York State Senate. New York Penal Law PEN 80.05 – Fines
4
New York State Senate. New York Penal Law 65.00 – Sentence of Probation
5
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Code 768 – Unlawful Eviction
6
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law 853 – Action for Forcible or Unlawful Entry or Detainer; Treble Damages
7
New York State Office of the Attorney General. Unlawful Eviction Complaint Form
8
New York State Attorney General. Unlawful Evictions (RPAPL Section 768)
9
New York City Housing Court. Illegal Lock-Outs
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. United States Code Title 42 Section 1983 – Civil Action for Deprivation of Rights