Assembly Bill A10737

                                BILL NUMBER:A10737

TITLE  OF BILL:  An act to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation
to issuance of an arrest warrant for a person  charged  with  a  traffic
misdemeanor

This  is  one in a series of measures being introduced at the request of
the Chief Administrative Judge upon  the  recommendation  of  her  Local
Courts Advisory Committee.

This measure would amend section 120.20 of the Criminal Procedure Law to
authorize issuance of an arrest warrant upon a simplified traffic infor-
mation which charges a misdemeanor.

The  simplified traffic information was designed to facilitate the expe-
ditious processing of a massive number of vehicle and traffic  offenses,
and can be used to charge petty offenses as well as misdemeanors. Pries-
er,  Practice  Commentary,  McKinney's  Cons  Laws  of NY, Book 11A, CPL
100.25, at 366. Where the offense charged  is  a  misdemeanor,  such  as
driving  while  intoxicated, which is a violation of section 1194 of the
Vehicle and Traffic Law, and the motorist fails to appear  in  court  on
the designated court date, the court may wish to issue an arrest warrant
to compel the motorist to appear and answer. Due to advances in technol-
ogy, it is becoming increasingly common for police officers when issuing
traffic  tickets  to  issue  to  a  motorist both the simplified traffic
information and the supporting deposition, and then  file  both  instru-
              

ments  on  the  court date designated on the simplified traffic informa-
tion, Taken together, both the simplified traffic  information  and  the
supporting  deposition  will furnish sufficient allegations to establish
reasonable cause for the charges that are the subject of the  simplified
information  and thereby for issuing the arrest warrant. See CPL 140,40:
People v.   Boback, 23 N.Y.2d  189,  195  (1969)(stating  that  while  a
simplified traffic information alone will not support the issuance of an
arrest  warrant,  a  court may issue an arrest warrant upon an affidavit
which proffers facts establishing reasonable cause that  the  respondent
committed the charged offense).

The  problem is that while section 120.20(1) provides that the court may
issue a warrant for a defendant's arrest if a criminal action  has  been
commenced with the filing of an accusatory instrument that is sufficient
on its face, it expressly excludes a simplified traffic information from
serving as the basis for an arrest warrant.

This  measure  would amend section 120.20(1) by restricting the prohibi-
tion against issuance of an arrest warrant to those  simplified  traffic
information's  alleging  only a traffic information, and thereby provide
authorization for issuance of an arrest warrant for the charge of a more
serious offense.

By amending section 120.20(1) to authorize issuance of an arrest warrant
upon a simplified traffic information alleging  a  traffic  misdemeanor,
the  measure provides local criminal courts with a means for effectively

addressing criminal conduct that impacts road  safety.    This  measure,
which  would  have no fiscal impact upon the State, would take effect on
the first day of January after becoming a law.

2008 Legislative History: None. New measure.