Increases penalties and requires imprisonment for leaving the scene of an incident without reporting; creates a presumption of avoiding prosecution for DUI when leaving the scene of an incident without reporting within four hours of consuming an alcoholic beverage.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
4946
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
March 3, 2017
___________
Introduced by Sen. DIAZ -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation
AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to increasing
penalties and requiring imprisonment for leaving the scene of an inci-
dent without reporting
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 600 of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by
2 chapter 49 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read as follows:
3 § 600. Leaving scene of an incident without reporting. 1. Property
4 damage. a. Any person operating a motor vehicle who, knowing or having
5 cause to know that damage has been caused to the real property or to the
6 personal property, not including animals, of another, due to an incident
7 involving the motor vehicle operated by such person shall, before leav-
8 ing the place where the damage occurred, stop, exhibit his or her
9 license and insurance identification card for such vehicle, when such
10 card is required pursuant to articles six and eight of this chapter, and
11 give his or her name, residence, including street and number, insurance
12 carrier and insurance identification information including but not
13 limited to the number and effective dates of said individual's insurance
14 policy, and license number to the party sustaining the damage, or in
15 case the person sustaining the damage is not present at the place where
16 the damage occurred then he or she shall report the same as soon as
17 physically able to the nearest police station, or judicial officer.
18 b. It shall be the duty of any member of a law enforcement agency who
19 is at the scene of the [accident] incident to request the said operator
20 or operators of the motor vehicles, when physically capable of doing so,
21 to exchange the information required [hereinabove] in paragraph a of
22 this subdivision and such member of a law enforcement agency shall
23 assist such operator or operators in making such exchange of information
24 in a reasonable and harmonious manner.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD07137-01-7
S. 4946 2
1 A violation of the provisions of paragraph a of this subdivision
2 resulting solely from the failure of an operator to exhibit his or her
3 license and identification card for the vehicle or exchange the informa-
4 tion required in such paragraph shall constitute a traffic infraction
5 punishable by a fine of [up to] not less than two hundred fifty dollars
6 nor more than five hundred dollars or a sentence of imprisonment for up
7 to fifteen days or both such fine and imprisonment. Any violation of
8 the provisions of paragraph a of this subdivision, other than for the
9 mere failure of an operator to exhibit his or her license and insurance
10 identification card for such vehicle or exchange the information
11 required in such paragraph, shall constitute a misdemeanor punishable by
12 a fine of not less than five hundred dollars nor more than fifteen
13 hundred dollars and a sentence of imprisonment of not more than three
14 months, in addition to any other penalties provided by law.
15 2. Personal injury. a. Any person operating a motor vehicle who, know-
16 ing or having cause to know that personal injury has been caused to
17 another person, due to an incident involving the motor vehicle operated
18 by such person shall, before leaving the place where the said personal
19 injury occurred, stop, exhibit his or her license and insurance iden-
20 tification card for such vehicle, when such card is required pursuant to
21 articles six and eight of this chapter, and give his or her name, resi-
22 dence, including street and street number, insurance carrier and insur-
23 ance identification information including but not limited to the number
24 and effective dates of said individual's insurance policy and license
25 number, to the injured party, if practical, and also to a police offi-
26 cer, or in the event that no police officer is in the vicinity of the
27 place of said injury, then, he or she shall report said incident as soon
28 as physically able to the nearest police station or judicial officer.
29 b. It shall be the duty of any member of a law enforcement agency who
30 is at the scene of the [accident] incident to request the said operator
31 or operators of the motor vehicles, when physically capable of doing so,
32 to exchange the information required [hereinabove] in paragraph a of
33 this subdivision and such member of a law enforcement agency shall
34 assist such operator or operators in making such exchange of information
35 in a reasonable and harmonious manner.
36 c. A violation of the provisions of paragraph a of this subdivision
37 resulting solely from the failure of an operator to exhibit his or her
38 license and insurance identification card for the vehicle or exchange
39 the information required in such paragraph shall constitute a [class B]
40 misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than [two hundred fifty]
41 five hundred nor more than [five hundred] one thousand dollars, and a
42 sentence of imprisonment of not more than one year, in addition to any
43 other penalties provided by law. Any subsequent [such] violation shall
44 constitute a [class A misdemeanor] felony punishable by a fine of not
45 less than [five hundred] twenty-five hundred nor more than [one thou-
46 sand] five thousand dollars, and a sentence of imprisonment of not less
47 than one year, in addition to any other penalties provided by law. Any
48 violation of the provisions of paragraph a of this subdivision, other
49 than for the mere failure of an operator to exhibit his or her license
50 and insurance identification card for such vehicle or exchange the
51 information required in such paragraph, shall constitute a [class A
52 misdemeanor] felony, punishable by a fine of not less than [five
53 hundred] one thousand dollars nor more than [one thousand] five thousand
54 dollars in addition to any other penalties provided by law. Any such
55 violation committed by a person after such person has previously been
56 convicted of such a violation shall constitute a [class E] felony,
S. 4946 3
1 punishable by a fine of not less than [one thousand] twenty-five hundred
2 nor more than [two] five thousand five hundred dollars [in addition to
3 any other penalties provided by law], and a sentence of imprisonment of
4 not less than one year, in addition to any other penalties provided by
5 law. Any violation of the provisions of paragraph a of this subdivi-
6 sion, other than for the mere failure of an operator to exhibit his or
7 her license and insurance identification card for such vehicle or
8 exchange the information required in such paragraph, where the personal
9 injury involved (i) results in serious physical injury, as defined in
10 section 10.00 of the penal law, shall constitute a [class E] felony,
11 punishable by a fine of not less than [one thousand nor more than] five
12 thousand dollars in addition to any other penalties provided by law for
13 a class D felony, or (ii) results in death shall constitute a [class D]
14 felony punishable by a fine of not less than [two] five thousand nor
15 more than [five] ten thousand dollars in addition to any other penalties
16 provided by law for a class C felony.
17 § 2. The vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding a new section
18 600-a to read as follows:
19 § 600-a. Leaving the scene of an incident without reporting after
20 consuming an alcoholic beverage or drug; presumption. 1. Any person who
21 violates paragraph a of subdivision one of section six hundred of this
22 article within four hours after consuming an alcoholic beverage or drug
23 as defined in this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable
24 by a fine of not less than three hundred dollars nor more than seven
25 hundred fifty dollars and a sentence of imprisonment of not less than
26 thirty days nor more than ninety days, and shall be presumed to have
27 committed the violation to avoid prosecution for a violation of section
28 eleven hundred ninety-two of this chapter.
29 2. Any person who violates paragraph b of subdivision two of section
30 six hundred of this article within four hours after consuming an alco-
31 holic beverage or drug as defined in this chapter shall be guilty of a
32 misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than five hundred dollars
33 nor more than one thousand dollars and a sentence of imprisonment for
34 not less than three months nor more than one year, and shall be
35 presumed to have committed the violation to avoid prosecution for a
36 violation of section eleven hundred ninety-two of this chapter.
37 § 3. Section 602 of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by chapter
38 843 of the laws of 1980, is amended to read as follows:
39 § 602. Arrest for violations of sections six hundred, six hundred-a
40 and six hundred one. A peace officer, acting pursuant to his or her
41 special duties, or a police officer may, without a warrant, arrest a
42 person, in case of violation of section six hundred, section six
43 hundred-a and section six hundred one, which in fact have been commit-
44 ted, though not in his or her presence, when he or she has reasonable
45 cause to believe that the violation was committed by such person.
46 § 4. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
47 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
