Bill Text: NJ SR19 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Urges AG to study best practices regarding law enforcement emergency vehicle lights and sirens and speeding.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-14 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Law and Public Safety Committee [SR19 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-SR19-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
219th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2020 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator DECLAN J. O'SCANLON, JR.
District 13 (Monmouth)
Senator STEPHEN M. SWEENEY
District 3 (Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem)
SYNOPSIS
Urges AG to study best practices regarding law enforcement emergency vehicle lights and sirens and speeding.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
A Senate Resolution urging the Attorney General to study best practices for law enforcement regarding emergency vehicle warning lights and sirens and when to exceed the speed limit.
Whereas, By safely and efficiently responding to service calls, law enforcement officers help to ensure the safety of the citizens and residents of this State; and
Whereas, On any given day, a law enforcement officer may respond to both emergency and non-emergency calls for service; and
Whereas, A law enforcement officer must quickly calculate how best to respond by considering the nature of the call, the community the officer is travelling through, and the road conditions; and
Whereas, Depending on the urgency of the call, it may be necessary for a law enforcement officer to exceed the posted speed limit; and
Whereas, The decision concerning when to exceed the speed limit and utilize the vehicle's emergency light and siren system is often left to the discretion of the individual officer; and
Whereas, The safety of citizens, residents, and law enforcement officers alike is compromised when an officer fails to appropriately utilize a vehicle's emergency light and siren system when exceeding the speed limit; and
Whereas, A number of tragic accidents have highlighted the need to determine when it is appropriate for an officer to exceed the speed limit and use emergency lights and sirens when responding to a service call; and
Whereas, The Attorney General guidelines regarding police vehicular pursuit, last updated on September 17, 2009, outline the proper procedures to be followed when police officers are confronted with the possibility of pursuing a fleeing vehicle; and
Whereas, Accordingly, it is in the public interest for the Attorney General to study the implementation of best practices for law enforcement regarding the proper use of a vehicle's emergency light and siren system and when to exceed the speed limit; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Attorney General of New Jersey is urged to conduct a study of best practices for law enforcement regarding the proper use of a vehicle's emergency light and siren system, when to exceed the speed limit, and whether the Attorney General guidelines regarding police vehicular pursuit should be updated and to report the results of this study to the Governor, and to Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1) at the earliest possible date.
2. Duly authenticated copies of this resolution, signed by the President of the Senate and attested by the Secretary thereof, shall be transmitted to the Attorney General.
STATEMENT
This Senate resolution urges the Attorney General of New Jersey to undertake a study of best practices for law enforcement regarding the proper use of emergency vehicle warning lights and sirens and speeding.
By safely and efficiently responding to service calls, law enforcement officers help to ensure the safety of the citizens and residents of this State. On any given day, a law enforcement officer may respond to both emergency and non-emergency calls for service. A law enforcement officer must quickly calculate how best to respond by considering the nature of the call, the community the officer is travelling through, and the road conditions. Depending on the urgency of the call, it may be necessary for a law enforcement officer to exceed the posted speed limit. The decision concerning when to exceed the speed limit and utilize the vehicle's emergency light and siren system is often left to the discretion of the individual officer. The safety of citizens, residents, and law enforcement officers alike is compromised when an officer fails to appropriately utilize a vehicle's emergency light and siren system when exceeding the road's speed limit. A number of tragic accidents have highlighted the need to determine when it is appropriate for an officer to exceed the speed limit and use emergency lights and sirens when responding to a service call. The Attorney General guidelines regarding police vehicular pursuit outline the proper procedures to be followed when police officers are confronted with the possibility of pursuing a fleeing vehicle; however, these guidelines were last updated on September 17, 2009.
Accordingly, it is in the public interest for the Attorney General to study the implementation of best practices for the use of a vehicle's emergency light and siren system, when to exceed the speed limit, and whether the Attorney General guidelines regarding police vehicular pursuit should be updated.
