Sb 1 - C.j.'s Law

• Jurisdiction: Georgia,United States
• Citation: Vol. 36 No. 1
• Publication year: 2019
• topic: Criminal Law

SB 1 - C.J.'s Law

Michael C. Duffey

Georgia State University College of Law, mduffey3@student.gsu.edu

Stephen Swanson

Georgia State University College of Law, sswanson12@student.gsu.edu

[Page 145]

MOTOR VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC

Uniform Rules of the Road: Amend Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, Relating to Motor Vehicles and Traffic, so as to Provide for a Penalty for Hit and Run Accidents that Result in Serious Injury; Clarify a Cross-Reference Relating to Suspensions of Drivers' Licenses; Provide a Definition; Provide for an Exception; Provide a Short Title; Provide for Related Matters; Repeal Conflicting Laws; and for Other Purposes

Code Sections: O.C.G.A. §§ 40-5-63 (amended); 40-6-394 (amended)

Bill Number: SB 1

Act Number: 151

Georgia Laws: 2019 Ga. Laws 492

Summary: The Act primarily functions to increase the penalty for drivers who cause death or serious bodily injury as a result of a vehicular accident and then flee the scene. Also known as C.J.'s Law, the Act establishes a maximum prison sentence of ten years for such a hit-and-run violation. In addition, the Act rewords and clarifies existing statutory language regarding license suspensions subsequent to reckless driving or driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Effective Date: July 1, 2019

History

On the night of January 24, 2009, a car struck twenty-three-year-old Charlie Jones (C.J.) as he walked home along Piedmont Road in Cobb County, Georgia.¹ The driver failed to stop,

[Page 146]

and as C.J. lie in the roadway, a second vehicle inadvertently ran over and killed him.² The second driver stopped and called the police, but the first hit-and-run driver was never found.³ Every year since the crash, C.J.'s mother has attended a vigil at the crash site to remember her son and plead for the unknown driver to "[d]o the right thing and come forward."⁴

Even if police found the driver, under prior Georgia law the penalty range for a hit-and-run resulting in serious or fatal injuries was one to five years.⁵ Unsatisfied that the then-current hit-and-run statutes did not adequately deter against fleeing the scene of an accident, State Representative Mable Thomas (D-56th) and others introduced legislation in the 2017-2018 session of the Georgia General Assembly aimed at increasing the maximum penalty from five to ten years.⁶ House Bill 765, known colloquially as C.J.'s Law, passed in the Georgia House of Representatives on February 28, 2018, but it failed to pass in the Georgia Senate due to an amendment that "gutted" the legislation.⁷ This happened despite the Senate Committee's favorable reporting on March 15, 2018.⁸

Notwithstanding this setback, C.J.'s Law was reintroduced in the 2019-2020 session of the General Assembly, this time via Senator Elena Parent (D-42nd).⁹ She viewed C.J.'s Law as a "worthy effort" in the pursuit of making roadways safer for non-motorists such as pedestrians and bicyclists.¹⁰ She believed C.J.'s Law and others like it would encourage safer roadways, thereby promoting the growth

[Page 147]

and use of alternative forms of transportation.¹¹ In this regard, the versatility of C.J.'s Law is what led a "coalition" of supporters from various arenas to advocate and lobby on behalf of the bill.¹²

This coalition included C.J's cousin, Marcus Coleman, who sought a review of Georgia's hit-and-run laws where a serious bodily injury was concerned, and Georgia Bikes, which wanted to change laws that make it dangerous for bicyclists to be on the roadway.¹³ Additionally, the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council of Georgia joined the coalition and led several meetings with people in "important positions" to explain the need for and utility of C.J.'s Law.¹⁴ With this varied support group in place, C.J.'s Law was poised to pass through the Senate and House largely unscathed.¹⁵

Bill Tracking of SB 1

Consideration and Passage by the Senate

Senator Elena Parent (D-42nd) sponsored Senate Bill (SB) 1 in the Senate with Senator Jennifer Jordan (D-6th), Senator Harold Jones II (D-22nd), Senator Greg Kirk (R-13th), Senator Ellis Black (R-8th), and Senator Matt Brass (R-28th) cosponsoring.¹⁶ The bill was prefiled on November 19, 2018, and the Senate first read it on January 30, 2019.¹⁷ The Senate then referred the bill to the Senate Judiciary Committee that same day.¹⁸

The Committee favorably reported the bill by substitute on February 8, 2019.¹⁹ The substitute incorporated new language that limited criminal liability to individuals who "knew or should have

[Page 148]

known" that the vehicular accident caused death or serious bodily injury.²⁰

The Senate read the bill for the second time on February 11, 2019.²¹ Then, on February 21, 2019, the Senate read the bill for a third time.²² Senator William Ligon (R-3rd) accompanied by Senators Mike Dugan (R-30th), John Albers (R-56th), Ben Watson (R-1st), and Steve Gooch (R-51st) introduced two floor amendments to the bill.²³ The first eliminated the phrase "or should have known" from the bill, which further limited criminal liability to those who knew that the accident caused serious injury or bodily harm.²⁴ The second amendment allowed for an exception for any individual who exchanged insurance information with the other party before leaving the scene of the accident.²⁵ Both amendments passed, and the Senate adopted the bill by a vote of 50 to 1.²⁶

Consideration and Passage by the House

Representative William Boddie (D-62nd) sponsored the bill in the House, and the House first read it on February 22, 2019.²⁷ The House read the bill for a second time on February 25, 2019.²⁸ The House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee reported favorably on the bill with no opposition on March 14, 2019.²⁹

The House read the bill for the third time on March 22, 2019, and it passed the same day by a vote of 131 to 34.³⁰ The Senate sent the bill to the Governor on April 5, 2019, and he signed it into law as Act 151 on May 3, 2019.³¹ The Act's effective date is July 1, 2019.³²

[Page 149]

The Act

The Act amends the following portions of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated: Article 63 of Chapter 5 of Title 40, relating to periods of suspension and conditions to return of license; and Article 394 of Chapter 5 of Title 40, relating to serious injury by vehicle.³³ The overall purpose of the Act is to increase the "penalty for hit and run accidents that result in serious injury."³⁴

Section 1

Section 1 titles the Act as "C.J.'s Law."³⁵

Section 2

Section 2 of the Act amends paragraph (1) of subsection (d) of Code section 40-5-63. Code section 40-5-63 relates to driver's license suspension periods as well as conditions to reinstate a suspended driver's license following a vehicular homicide or hit-and-run.³⁶ The Act removes the explanatory phrases "relating to homicide by vehicle" and "relating to serious injury by vehicle," as associated with Code sections 40-6-393 and 40-6-394, respectively.³⁷ Further, a cross-reference was added to clarify that only subsection (b) of Code section 40-6-394 triggers the three-year license suspension.³⁸

Section 3

Section 3 of the Act amends Code section 40-6-394, which relates to serious injury by vehicle.³⁹ Specifically, subsection (a) is added to

[Page 150]

clarify the meaning of bodily harm as used in Code section 40-6-394.⁴⁰ Bodily harm refers to:

an injury to another person which deprives him or her of a member of his or her body, renders a member of his or her body useless, seriously disfigures his or her body or a member thereof, or causes organic brain damage which renders his or her body or any member thereof useless.⁴¹

Subsection (b) is added to identify the instances where one "commits the crime of serious injury by vehicle."⁴² This occurs when a person, absent "malice aforethought, causes an accident that results in bodily harm while" driving impaired or driving recklessly.⁴³ A felony conviction will result along with a prison sentence...