S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
2087
2015-2016 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
January 21, 2015
___________
Introduced by Sen. FLANAGAN -- 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
(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
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05207-01-5
S. 2087 2
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
any drug or drugs, operates such snowmobile or all terrain vehicle in a
manner that causes the death of such other person[.], OR
S. 2087 3
(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.
