Sponsored by:
Senator VIN GOPAL
District 11 (Monmouth)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes Uniform Crash Investigation Protocol Task Force to establish uniform crash investigation protocol for State, county, and municipal law enforcement agencies when investigating certain motor vehicle and vessel crashes.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act establishing the Uniform Crash Investigation Protocol Task Force and supplementing Title 40A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. There is established a task force to be known as the Uniform Crash Investigation Protocol Task Force whose charge shall be to establish a uniform crash investigation protocol for every State, county, and municipal law enforcement agency to follow in every case where a motor vehicle or vessel crash involving a fatality or serious injury occurred and the law enforcement agency determines that at least one of the following criteria are known or suspected:
(1) alcohol;
(2) drugs;
(3) excessive speed, which is above the speed limit or too fast for existing conditions;
(4) distracted driving, including the use of a wireless device or electronic communication device,
(5) hit and run;
(6) two or more moving violations;
(7) a person with a revoked or suspended operator s license;
(8) a pursuit where the pursued party causes death or serious injury;
(9) an emergency vehicle is involved or was responding to an emergency call;
(10) multiple fatalities or serious injuries to more than one person, including the operator or passenger of any motor vehicle or vessel involved in the crash or a pedestrian;
(11) purposeful use of a vehicle or vessel to inflict death or injury;
(12) any other evidence of reckless operation, regardless of whether there is a known risk or deviation from the conduct of a reasonably prudent person;
(13) an active bench warrant that was issued for the operator of the motor vehicle or vessel that is related to a motor vehicle offense; or
(14) the operator of a motor vehicle involved in the crash has previously been involved in a crash resulting in a fatality or serious injury to another person.
b. The uniform crash investigation protocol established by the task force shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
(1) technology advances, including vehicle event data recorders, cellular telephone extraction software, video camera recording devices, including body worn cameras and traffic or business cameras;
(2) relevant State programs which may overlap with motor vehicle crash investigations, including but not limited to the Prescription Monitoring Program established pursuant to section 25 of P.L.2007, c.244 (C.45:1-45), the New Jersey Suspicious Activity Reporting portal, or any other relevant programs or initiatives implemented by the Division of Highway Traffic Safety in the Department of Law and Public Safety;
(3) a process for providing relevant information to the victim or family of the victim including, but not limited to, information regarding the rights of the victim and the victim s family, organ and tissue donation, the crash investigation protocol, the date and time of the autopsy, provided in a timely manner, in order to allow religious limitations to be taken into consideration and allow representation at the autopsy. A web portal shall be established through which a victim may track the progress of the investigation to the extent it does not jeopardize the integrity of the investigation;
(4) provisions for ensuring transparency and accountability for crash investigations, including requiring law enforcement officers to complete self-assessments to ensure the officer is complying with the crash investigation protocol, random reviews to ensure officers are complying with the protocol, and a process for an individual to report suspected noncompliance with the protocol; and provisions to minimize confirmation bias;
(5) provisions providing for the use of Drug Recognition Experts and addressing the investigation of a crash where a person was operating a motor vehicle in violation of R.S.39:4-50, including assessing the morphine milligram equivalent where the operator of the motor vehicle possesses a prescription for an opioid; and
(6) provisions establishing timeframes for the investigation of crashes that take into consideration the statute of limitations for relevant criminal offenses in order to ensure that the investigation is completed prior to the expiration of the statute of limitations.
When establishing the uniform crash investigation protocol, the task force shall take into consideration the policies or protocols of other states or the federal government.
c. The task force shall consist of seven members as follows:
(1) the Attorney General or a designee, who shall serve ex-officio;
(2) the Director of the Division of Highway Traffic Safety or a designee, who shall serve ex-officio;
(3) three public members with experience investigating motor vehicle crashes, upon recommendation by the New Jersey State Policemen s Benevolent Association, the New Jersey State Fraternal Order of Police, and the State Troopers Fraternal Association; and
(4) two public members with experience prosecuting cases involving motor vehicle or vessel crashes, upon recommendation of the County Prosecutors Association of New Jersey and the New Jersey State Municipal Prosecutors Association of New Jersey.
All appointments shall be made by the Governor.
d. All appointments to the task force shall be made within 90 days of the effective date of this act. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments. The task force shall choose a chairperson from among its members. The chairperson shall appoint a secretary who need not be a member of the task force. The members of the task force shall serve without compensation but may be reimbursed, within the limits of funds made available to the task force, for necessary travel expenses incurred in the performance of their duties.
e. The chairperson shall call an initial meeting of the task force within seven days of the appointment of a majority of its members and hold hearings at the times and in the places it may deem appropriate and necessary to fulfill its charge. The task force shall be entitled to call to its assistance and avail itself of the services of the employees of any State, county or municipal department, board, bureau, commission, or agency as it may require and as may be available to it for its purposes.
f. The task force may seek the advice of experts as deemed appropriate by the membership of the task force.