S1450-2013 Actions

• Jan 9, 2013: REFERRED TO CODES

S1450-2013 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S1450

TITLE  OF  BILL:    An  act  to  amend  the  penal law, in relation to
penalties  for  causing  serious  injury  or  death  while   knowingly
operating a motor vehicle with a revoked or suspended license

PURPOSE:
To  create  two  new  felony  crimes  addressing  those who cause such
serious physical injury or death by operation of a motor vehicle while
knowing or having reason to know that his or her license or  privilege
of operating a motor vehicle is suspended or revoked.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section  1  provides  for  the amending of Section 120.03 of the Penal
Law, to include the new crime of causing serious  physical  injury  by
operation  of  a  motor vehicle while knowing or having reason to know
that one's license or  privilege  of  operating  a  motor  vehicle  is
suspended or revoked pursuant to provisions of five hundred ten of the
vehicle  and  Traffic  Law, as vehicular assault in the second degree,
which is a class E felony.

Section 2 also provides for the amending  of  Section  125.12  of  the
Penal Law, to include the new crime of causing the death of such other
person  by operation of a motor vehicle while knowing or having reason
to know that his or her license or  privilege  of  operating  a  motor
vehicle is suspended or revoked pursuant to provisions of section five
hundred  ten of the Vehicle and Traffic Law, as vehicular manslaughter
in the second degree, which is a class D felony.

JUSTIFICATION:
Under current  law  any  person  who  commits  vehicular  assault,  or
vehicular  manslaughter, while operating a motor vehicle while knowing
or having reason to know that his  or  her  license  or  privilege  of
operating  a  motor  vehicle  is  suspended  or  revoked,  pursuant to
provisions of section five hundred ten of the vehicle and traffic law,
may not face serious criminal penalties.

The injuries and tragedies associated with serious vehicular accidents
may be ultimately preventable. An  individual  who  operates  a  motor
vehicle while knowing or having reason to know that his or her license
or  privilege  of operating a motor vehicle is suspended or revoked is
making  a  conscious  decision  to  disregard  their   suspension   or
revocation, and by doing so, are potentially putting lives in danger.

Individuals with suspended or revoked licenses should not be operating
motor vehicles. This bill will be a deterrent. Law enforcement must be
given  the  ability to prosecute such individuals to make our roadways
safer.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
01/25/05 Referred to Codes
01/04/06 Referred to Codes
01/17/07 Referred to Codes
02/09/08 Referred to Codes
2009/10: Referred to Codes
2011/12: Passed Senate/Assembly Codes Committee


FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the state.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeeding
the date on which it shall have become a law.

S1450-2013 Text

 S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 
 
                                         1450
 2013-2014 Regular Sessions
 I N  SENATE
 (PREFILED)
 January 9, 2013
 
 Introduced by Sens. FLANAGAN, MAZIARZ -- read twice and ordered printed,
 and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the  penal law, in relation to penalties for causing
 serious injury or death while knowingly operating a motor vehicle with
 a revoked or suspended license
 THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

 

Section  1.

Section 120.03 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 732
 of the laws of 2006, is amended to read as follows:

 

S 120.03 Vehicular assault in the second degree.
 A person is guilty of vehicular assault in the second degree  when  he
 or she causes serious physical injury to another person, and either:

 (1)  operates  a motor vehicle in violation of subdivision two, three,
 four or four-a of section eleven hundred ninety-two of the  vehicle  and
 traffic  law or operates a vessel or public vessel in violation of para
 graph (b), (c), (d) or (e) of subdivision two of section forty-nine-a of
 the navigation law, and as a result of such intoxication  or  impairment
 by  the use of a drug, or by the combined influence of drugs or of alco
 hol and any drug or drugs, operates such motor vehicle, vessel or public
 vessel in a manner that causes such  serious  physical  injury  to  such
 other person, or
 (2)  operates  a  motor  vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of
 more than eighteen thousand pounds which contains flammable gas,  radio
 active  materials  or  explosives  in  violation  of  subdivision one of
 section eleven hundred ninety-two of the vehicle and  traffic  law,  and
 such  flammable gas, radioactive materials or explosives is the cause of
 such serious physical injury, and as a result of such impairment by  the
 use of alcohol, operates such motor vehicle in a manner that causes such
 serious physical injury to such other person, or
 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
 [ ] is old law to be omitted.
 LBD04329-01-3
 
       S. 1450                             2
 (3) operates a snowmobile in violation of paragraph (b), (c) or (d) of
 subdivision  one  of section 25.24 of the parks, recreation and historic
 preservation law or operates an all terrain vehicle as defined in  para
 graph (a) of subdivision one of section twenty-two hundred eighty-one of
 the  vehicle and traffic law and in violation of subdivision two, three,
 four, or four-a of section eleven hundred ninety-two of the vehicle  and
 traffic  law,  and as a result of such intoxication or impairment by the
 use of a drug, or by the combined influence of drugs or of  alcohol  and
 any  drug or drugs, operates such snowmobile or all terrain vehicle in a
 manner that causes such serious physical injury to such other person[.],
 OR
 (4) CAUSES SUCH SERIOUS PHYSICAL INJURY BY OPERATION OF A MOTOR  VEHI
 CLE  WHILE  KNOWING  OR HAVING REASON TO KNOW THAT HIS OR HER LICENSE OR
 PRIVILEGE OF OPERATING A MOTOR VEHICLE IS SUSPENDED OR REVOKED  PURSUANT
 TO  PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISIONS TWO AND TWO-A OF SECTION FIVE HUNDRED TEN
 AND SUBDIVISIONS ONE AND THREE OF SECTION  FIVE  HUNDRED  TEN-A  OF  THE
 VEHICLE AND TRAFFIC LAW.
 If  it  is  established  that the person operating such motor vehicle,
 vessel, public vessel, snowmobile or all  terrain  vehicle  caused  such
 serious  physical injury while unlawfully intoxicated or impaired by the
 use of alcohol or a drug, then there shall be a  rebuttable  presumption
 that, as a result of such intoxication or impairment by the use of alco
 hol  or  a drug, or by the combined influence of drugs or of alcohol and
 any drug or drugs, such  person  operated  the  motor  vehicle,  vessel,
 public vessel, snowmobile or all terrain vehicle in a manner that caused
 such serious physical injury, as required by this section.
 Vehicular assault in the second degree is a class E felony.
 

S 2.

Section 125.12 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 732 of the
 laws of 2006, is amended to read as follows:

 

S 125.12 Vehicular manslaughter in the second degree.
 A person is guilty of vehicular manslaughter in the second degree when
 he or she causes the death of another person, and either:

 (1)  operates  a motor vehicle in violation of subdivision two, three,
 four or four-a of section eleven hundred ninety-two of the  vehicle  and
 traffic  law or operates a vessel or public vessel in violation of para
 graph (b), (c), (d) or (e) of subdivision two of section forty-nine-a of
 the navigation law, and as a result of such intoxication  or  impairment
 by  the use of a drug, or by the combined influence of drugs or of alco
 hol and any drug or drugs, operates such motor vehicle, vessel or public
 vessel in a manner that causes the death of such other person, or
 (2) operates a motor vehicle with a gross  vehicle  weight  rating  of
 more  than eighteen thousand pounds which contains flammable gas, radio
 active materials or  explosives  in  violation  of  subdivision  one  of
 section  eleven  hundred  ninety-two of the vehicle and traffic law, and
 such flammable gas, radioactive materials or explosives is the cause  of
 such  death,  and  as a result of such impairment by the use of alcohol,
 operates such motor vehicle in a manner that causes the  death  of  such
 other person, or
 (3) operates a snowmobile in violation of paragraph (b), (c) or (d) of
 subdivision  one  of section 25.24 of the parks, recreation and historic
 preservation law or operates an all terrain vehicle as defined in  para
 graph (a) of subdivision one of section twenty-two hundred eighty-one of
 the  vehicle  and  traffic  law  in violation of subdivision two, three,
 four, or four-a of section eleven hundred ninety-two of the vehicle  and
 traffic  law,  and as a result of such intoxication or impairment by the
 use of a drug, or by the combined influence of drugs or of  alcohol  and
 
       S. 1450                             3
 any  drug or drugs, operates such snowmobile or all terrain vehicle in a
 manner that causes the death of such other person[.], OR
 (4)  CAUSES  THE  DEATH  OF  SUCH OTHER PERSON BY OPERATION OF A MOTOR
 VEHICLE WHILE KNOWING OR HAVING REASON TO KNOW THAT HIS OR  HER  LICENSE
 OR PRIVILEGE OF OPERATING A MOTOR VEHICLE IS SUSPENDED OR REVOKED PURSU
 ANT  TO PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISIONS TWO AND TWO-A OF SECTION FIVE HUNDRED
 TEN AND SUBDIVISIONS ONE AND THREE OF SECTION FIVE HUNDRED TEN-A OF  THE
 VEHICLE AND TRAFFIC LAW.
 If  it  is  established  that the person operating such motor vehicle,
 vessel, public vessel, snowmobile or all  terrain  vehicle  caused  such
 death  while unlawfully intoxicated or impaired by the use of alcohol or
 a drug, then there shall be a rebuttable presumption that, as  a  result
 of  such  intoxication or impairment by the use of alcohol or a drug, or
 by the combined influence of drugs or of alcohol and any drug or  drugs,
 such  person  operated the motor vehicle, vessel, public vessel, snowmo
 bile or all terrain vehicle in a  manner  that  caused  such  death,  as
 required by this section.
 Vehicular manslaughter in the second degree is a class D felony.
 

S 3. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed
 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.

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