Relates to the operation of vehicles when approaching a parked, stopped or standing authorized emergency vehicle or hazard vehicle or vehicle displaying a blue or green light; provides for mandatory revocation of a driver's license for a period of six months where a person violates section 1144-a of the vehicle and traffic law and causes serious physical injury or death to another person; directs the division of criminal justice services to establish a public information campaign to instruct the public that operating a motor vehicle when approaching a parked, stopped or standing authorized emergency vehicle or hazard vehicle or vehicle displaying a blue or green light that results in physical injury, serious physical injury or death as a result of the operator recklessly failing to exercise due care to avoid a collision can result in serious criminal penalties.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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1332
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 14, 2019
___________
Introduced by Sen. GALLIVAN -- 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 the opera-
tion of vehicles when approaching a parked, stopped or standing
authorized emergency vehicle or hazard vehicle or vehicle displaying a
blue or green light
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 1144-a of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended
2 by chapter 458 of the laws of 2011, the section heading as amended and
3 subdivision (c) as added by chapter 97 of the laws of 2016, and subdivi-
4 sion (a) as amended by chapter 248 of the laws of 2013, is amended to
5 read as follows:
6 § 1144-a. Operation of vehicles when approaching a parked, stopped or
7 standing authorized emergency vehicle or hazard vehicle or vehicle
8 displaying a blue or green light. (a) 1. Every operator of a motor vehi-
9 cle shall exercise due care to avoid colliding with an authorized emer-
10 gency vehicle which is parked, stopped or standing on the shoulder or
11 any portion of such highway and such authorized emergency vehicle is
12 displaying one or more red or combination red and white lights pursuant
13 to the provisions of paragraph two of subdivision forty-one of section
14 three hundred seventy-five of this chapter or is displaying one or more
15 blue, combination blue and red or combination blue, red and white lights
16 pursuant to the provisions of subparagraph b of paragraph four of subdi-
17 vision forty-one of section three hundred seventy-five of this chapter.
18 For operators of motor vehicles on parkways or controlled access high-
19 ways, such due care shall include, but not be limited to, moving from a
20 lane which contains or is immediately adjacent to the shoulder where
21 such authorized emergency vehicle displaying one or more red, blue or
22 white or any combination of red and white lights or blue or combination
23 blue and red or combination blue, red and white lights pursuant to the
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00697-01-9
S. 1332 2
1 provisions of paragraph two or subparagraph b of paragraph four, as
2 applicable of subdivision forty-one of section three hundred seventy-
3 five of this chapter is parked, stopped or standing to another lane,
4 provided that such movement otherwise complies with the requirements of
5 this chapter including, but not limited to, the provisions of sections
6 eleven hundred ten [of this title] and eleven hundred twenty-eight of
7 this title.
8 [(b)] 2. Every operator of a motor vehicle shall exercise due care to
9 avoid colliding with a hazard vehicle which is parked, stopped or stand-
10 ing on the shoulder or on any portion of such highway and such hazard
11 vehicle is displaying one or more amber lights pursuant to the
12 provisions of paragraph three of subdivision forty-one of section three
13 hundred seventy-five of this chapter. For operators of motor vehicles on
14 parkways or controlled access highways, such due care shall include, but
15 not be limited to, moving from a lane which contains or is immediately
16 adjacent to the shoulder where such hazard vehicle displaying one or
17 more amber lights pursuant to the provisions of paragraph three of
18 subdivision forty-one of section three hundred seventy-five of this
19 chapter is parked, stopped or standing to another lane, provided that
20 such movement otherwise complies with the requirements of this chapter
21 including, but not limited to, the provisions of sections eleven hundred
22 ten and eleven hundred twenty-eight of this title.
23 [(c)] 3. Every operator of a motor vehicle shall exercise due care to
24 avoid colliding with a vehicle displaying a blue light pursuant to the
25 provisions of paragraph four or a green light pursuant to the provisions
26 of paragraph five of subdivision forty-one of section three hundred
27 seventy-five of this chapter which is parked, stopped or standing on the
28 shoulder or any portion of such highway. For operators of motor vehicles
29 on parkways or controlled access highways, such due care shall include,
30 but not be limited to, moving from a lane which contains or is imme-
31 diately adjacent to the shoulder where such vehicle displaying a blue
32 light pursuant to the provisions of paragraph four or a green light
33 pursuant to the provisions of paragraph five of subdivision forty-one of
34 section three hundred seventy-five of this chapter is parked, stopped or
35 standing to another lane, provided that such movement otherwise complies
36 with the requirements of this chapter including, but not limited to, the
37 provisions of sections eleven hundred ten and eleven hundred twenty-
38 eight of this title.
39 (b) 1. An operator of a motor vehicle who causes physical injury as
40 defined under article ten of the penal law as a result of recklessly
41 failing to exercise due care in violation of subdivision (a) of this
42 section shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor punishable by a fine of
43 not less than two hundred fifty dollars nor more than five hundred
44 dollars in addition to any other penalties provided by law. A conviction
45 for a second or any subsequent violation, any of which were committed
46 within a period of eighteen months, shall constitute a class E felony,
47 punishable by a fine of not less than one thousand nor more than two
48 thousand five hundred dollars in addition to any other penalties
49 provided by law.
50 2. An operator of a motor vehicle (i) who causes serious physical
51 injury as defined under article ten of the penal law as a result of
52 recklessly failing to exercise due care in violation of subdivision (a)
53 of this section shall be guilty of a class D felony punishable by a fine
54 of not less than one thousand dollars nor more than five thousand
55 dollars in addition to any other penalty provided by law, or (ii) who
56 causes death as a result of recklessly failing to exercise due care in
S. 1332 3
1 violation of subdivision (a) of this section shall be guilty of a class
2 C felony punishable by a fine of not less than two thousand nor more
3 than five thousand dollars in addition to any other penalties provided
4 by law, and by suspension of a license or registration pursuant to
5 subparagraph (xviii) of paragraph b of subdivision two of section five
6 hundred ten of this chapter.
7 (c) For the purposes of this section, the term "recklessly" shall have
8 the same meaning as defined in section 15.05 of the penal law.
9 § 2. Paragraph b of subdivision 2 of section 510 of the vehicle and
10 traffic law is amended by adding a new subparagraph (xviii) to read as
11 follows:
12 (xviii) for a period of six months where the holder is convicted of a
13 violation of paragraph two of subdivision (b) of section eleven hundred
14 forty-four-a of this chapter and the commission of such violation caused
15 serious physical injury to or death of another person.
16 § 3. The division of criminal justice services shall establish a
17 public information campaign to instruct the public that operating a
18 motor vehicle when approaching a parked, stopped or standing authorized
19 emergency vehicle or hazard vehicle or vehicle displaying a blue or
20 green light that results in physical injury, serious physical injury or
21 death as a result of the operator recklessly failing to exercise due
22 care to avoid a collision can result in serious criminal penalties.
23 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.