Establishes the crimes of vehicular assault and vehicular manslaughter in an active work zone and intrusion into an active work zone

3 Co-sponsors

• Brad Hoylman-Sigal
• Timothy M. Kennedy
• Tom Libous

BILL NUMBER:S1052

Title of bill

An act to amend the penal law and the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to safety in active work zones

Purpose

Creating criminal statutes for vehicular assault and manslaughter in an active workzone.

Summary of provisions

Section, 1 creates the crime of vehicular assault in an active workzone, both in the first (class D felony) and second degree (class E felony).

And also creates the crime of vehicular manslaughter in an active workzone, both in the first (class B felony) and second degree (class C felony).

Section 2 amends the vehicle and traffic law to create the crime of intrusion into an active workzone, a class B misdemeanor.

Justification

In the past 5 years, the average number of work zone fatalities nationally was 1,020 per year. Of these, 14.3% were workers in active traffic situations. In 2005, within New York State, 605 crashes occurred in work zones established by State Department of Transportation (State DOT) Of these, 17 people were killed (all drivers), and 220 were injured, of which 18 were State DOT workers.

On September 22, 2005, New York City's Department of Transportation (City DOT) lost one of its own when a driver recklessly entered a closed off, active work zone and fatally struck Assistant City Highway Repairman Nicholas Antico and injured two other City DOT workers who were performing maintenance work on a major street in the borough of Staten Island.

The Work Zone Safety Act, Chapter 223 of 2005, was enacted into law as a result of a fatal accident in a work zone in Binghamton involving three workers. This Chapter provided a combination of tougher penal ties for speeding in work zones, driver's license suspensions, and an education campaign. It provided that State DOT develop rules and regulations for increasing safety in work zones, including police Presence in work zones, use of radar speed display signs, and a system for reviewing safety and design in work zones

To build on the Workzone Safety Act of 2005, penalties to deal with drivers who are convicted of either killing or injuring construction workers are needed. This proposed bill would establish tough new penalties for injuring or killing a construction worker that would serve as a deterrent to driving carelessly in a construction zone. These proposed additional classes of crimes, as with those established for injuring or killing police officers, would give prosecutors and judges additional flexibility in punishing offenders.

Legislative history

S.7871 of 2008; Referred to Codes S.6098A of 2009-2010; Referred to Codes S.156 of 2011-2012; Referred to Codes

Fiscal implications

None.

Effective date

The first of November next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.