§ 177-b. Special narcotics parts; establishment. 1. There shall be established in cities having a population of one million or more in the supreme court special narcotics parts in such numbers and at such locations as shall be designated by the administrative board of the judicial conference of the state of New York to effectuate the purposes of this article. Such parts shall hear and determine narcotics indictments assigned thereto from any part of the supreme court in any county within such cities.

As used in this article, "narcotics indictment" means an indictment charging a crime that is prosecutable in any county wholly contained in a city within cities having a population of one million or more involving the sale or possession of a narcotic drug and any other offense properly joined therewith.

2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, upon or after arraignment on a narcotics indictment filed in the supreme court in any county within such cities and before entry of a plea of guilty or commencement of trial, such supreme court may order that the indictment and action be assigned to a special narcotics part of the supreme court.

3. The trial of an indictment in a special narcotics part shall for all purposes be deemed to be a trial in the county in which the indictment was filed, but the administrative board of the judicial conference may promulgate rules, orders or regulations to be applicable to such parts in place and instead of the rules, orders or regulations applicable to courts in the county where the indictment was filed. The administrative board shall provide by rule, order or regulation for at least the following matters: the procedure of the part; its auxiliary services; the assignment of judicial personnel; the appointment of terms; and transmittal of all papers in the action, including all undertakings for appearances of the defendant and of the witnesses, to the part of the supreme court to which the action has been assigned.