Bill Text: NY S00664 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Authorizes police officers to arrest a driver of a motor vehicle in certain circumstances without a warrant.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION [S00664 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S00664-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                           664

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                     January 5, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by Sen. KAVANAGH -- 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  authorizing
          police  officers  to  arrest  a  driver  of a motor vehicle in certain
          circumstances

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1. Subdivisions (a), (b) and (c) of section 1146 of the vehi-
     2  cle and traffic law, as amended by chapter 333 of the laws of 2010,  are
     3  amended to read as follows:
     4    (a)  Notwithstanding  the provisions of any other law to the contrary,
     5  every driver of a vehicle shall exercise due  care  to  avoid  colliding
     6  with  any bicyclist, pedestrian, including any highway worker, or domes-
     7  tic animal upon any roadway and shall give warning by sounding the  horn
     8  when  necessary.  For  the  purposes  of this section, the term "highway
     9  worker" shall mean any person engaged in work on a highway who is  work-
    10  ing  on  behalf  of  the United States, this state, or any county, city,
    11  town, district or any other political subdivision of the state; and  the
    12  term  "domestic animal" shall mean domesticated sheep, cattle, and goats
    13  which are under the supervision and control of a pedestrian.
    14    (b) 1. A driver of a motor  vehicle  who  causes  physical  injury  as
    15  defined  in  article ten of the penal law to a pedestrian, including any
    16  highway worker or bicyclist  while  failing  to  exercise  due  care  in
    17  violation of subdivision (a) of this section, shall be guilty of a traf-
    18  fic  infraction  punishable  by  a  fine  of  not more than five hundred
    19  dollars or by imprisonment for not more than fifteen  days  or  by  both
    20  such fine and imprisonment.
    21    2.  If  such  driver  of  a motor vehicle causes physical injury while
    22  failing to exercise due care in violation of  subdivision  (a)  of  this
    23  section,  then there shall be a rebuttable presumption that, as a result

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD03007-01-3
        S. 664                              2

     1  of such failure to exercise due care, such  person  operated  the  motor
     2  vehicle in a manner that caused such physical injury.
     3    (c)  1. A driver of a motor vehicle who causes serious physical injury
     4  as defined in article ten of the penal law to  a  pedestrian,  including
     5  any  highway  worker  or bicyclist while failing to exercise due care in
     6  violation of subdivision (a) of this section, shall be guilty of a traf-
     7  fic infraction punishable by a fine of not more than seven hundred fifty
     8  dollars or by imprisonment for not more than fifteen days or by required
     9  participation in a motor vehicle accident prevention course pursuant  to
    10  paragraph  (e-1) of subdivision two of section 65.10 of the penal law or
    11  by any combination of such fine, imprisonment or course, and by  suspen-
    12  sion of a license or registration pursuant to subparagraph (xiv) or (xv)
    13  of  paragraph  b  of subdivision two of section five hundred ten of this
    14  chapter.
    15    2. If such driver of a motor vehicle causes  serious  physical  injury
    16  while  failing  to  exercise due care in violation of subdivision (a) of
    17  this section, then there shall be a rebuttable presumption  that,  as  a
    18  result  of  such  failure to exercise due care, such person operated the
    19  motor vehicle in a manner that caused such serious physical injury.
    20    § 2. Section 1146 of the vehicle and traffic law is amended by  adding
    21  a new subdivision (f) to read as follows:
    22    (f)  Notwithstanding  the provisions of section 140.10 of the criminal
    23  procedure law, a police officer may, without a warrant, arrest a person,
    24  in case of a violation of subdivision (b) or (c)  of  this  section,  if
    25  such  violation  is  coupled with an accident or collision in which such
    26  person is involved, which in fact has been committed, though not in  the
    27  police  officer's  presence,  when  the  officer has reasonable cause to
    28  believe that the violation was committed by such person.
    29    § 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
    30  have become a law.