ASSEMBLY, No. 442

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

220th LEGISLATURE

 

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2022 SESSION

 

 

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman  EDWARD H. THOMSON

District 30 (Monmouth and Ocean)

Assemblyman  SEAN T. KEAN

District 30 (Monmouth and Ocean)

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     Requires mandatory minimum term of imprisonment for leaving scene of accident resulting in serious bodily injury.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.

  

An Act concerning certain motor vehicle accidents and amending P.L.1997, c.111.

 

     Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

 

     1.    Section 2 of P.L.1997, c.111 (C.2C:12-1.1) is amended to read as follows:

     2.    A motor vehicle operator who knows he is involved in an accident and knowingly leaves the scene of that accident under circumstances that violate the provisions of R.S.39:4-129 shall be guilty of a crime of the third degree if the accident results in serious bodily injury to another person. The presumption of nonimprisonment set forth in N.J.S.2C:44-1 shall not apply to persons convicted under the provisions of this section.

     A person convicted under this section for a crime of the third degree shall be sentenced to a minimum term of imprisonment by the court. Notwithstanding the provisions of N.J.S.2C:43-6, the minimum term shall be three years, during which time the defendant shall not be eligible for parole. The court may not suspend or make any other non-custodial disposition of any person sentenced pursuant to this section.

     If the evidence so warrants, nothing in this section shall be deemed to preclude an indictment and conviction for aggravated assault or assault by auto under the provisions of N.J.S.2C:12-1.

     Notwithstanding the provisions of N.J.S.2C:1-8 or any other provisions of law, a conviction arising under this section shall not merge with a conviction for aggravated assault or assault by auto under the provisions of N.J.S.2C:12-1 and a separate sentence shall be imposed upon each conviction.

     Notwithstanding the provisions of N.J.S.2C:44-5 or any other provisions of law, whenever in the case of such multiple convictions the court imposes multiple sentences of imprisonment for more than one offense, those sentences shall run consecutively.

     For the purposes of this section, neither knowledge of the serious bodily injury nor knowledge of the violation are elements of the offense and it shall not be a defense that the driver of the motor vehicle was unaware of the serious bodily injury or provisions of R.S.39:4-129.

(cf: P.L.2007, c.83, s.2)

 

     2.    This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

 

     This bill requires the court to impose a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment for the crime of knowingly leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident resulting in serious bodily injury.

     The minimum term of imprisonment for this third degree crime would be fixed at three years, during which the defendant would not be eligible for parole.