For amend and vote only, the Appropriations Committee heard Sen. Koch’s SB 186 on enhancing penalties for some traffic crimes. This bill provides that:
- an operator of a motor vehicle who operates a motor vehicle after the operator’s driving privileges have been suspended or revoked and causes an accident that results in injury or death to another person commits a separate offense for each person injured or killed as a result of an accident caused by the operator
- an operator of a motor vehicle who leaves the scene of an accident that was caused by the operator and involves injury to another person; commits a separate offense for each person injured by an accident caused by the operator
- leaving the scene of an accident involving moderate bodily injury is a Level 6 felony
- the penalty for leaving the scene of an accident involving the death or catastrophic injury of another person is a Level 4 felony
- an operator of a motor vehicle who operates a motor vehicle while intoxicated and causes an accident that results in moderate bodily injury to another person commits a Level 6 felony and enhances the penalty for the offense to a Level 5 felony if the person has a previous conviction for the offense within the preceding seven years
- an operator of a motor vehicle who operates a motor vehicle while intoxicated and causes an accident that results in moderate bodily injury to another person commits a separate offense for each person who suffers moderate bodily injury as a result of an accident caused by the operator
- the penalty is enhanced for causing serious bodily injury when operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated from a Level 6 felony to a Level 5 felony and the penalty is enhanced for the offense to a Level 4 felony if the person has a previous conviction for the offense within the preceding seven years
- the penalty for causing the death or catastrophic injury of another person when operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated a Level 4 felony in certain instances
- an operator of a motor vehicle who is a habitual traffic violator and causes an accident that results in the injury or death of another person; commits a separate offense for each person injured or killed as a result of an accident caused by the operator and multiple sentences for the offense to be served consecutively in certain instances
- the operator of a motor vehicle who flees from a law enforcement officer and causes an accident resulting in bodily injury, serious bodily injury, catastrophic injury, or death of another person; commits a separate offense for each person injured or killed as a result of the operator’s vehicular flight from police and allows multiple sentences for the offense to be served consecutively in certain instances
- the penalty for certain offenses involving catastrophic injuries is increased.
The bill was amended to remove the crime of operating while intoxicated causing moderate bodily injury to another. The amended bill passed 13-0.
Read the bill at http://www.iga.in.gov/legislative/2019/bills/senate/186