§ 818-69. Legislative intent.

A. 

This Legislature hereby finds and determines that accidents resulting in serious injury or death occur regularly on roadways in the County of Suffolk. This Legislature determines that there were 5,555 reported accidents where a driver left the scene of an accident in 2012. Of those, 11 were fatalities. This Legislature also finds and determines that, increasingly, motorists involved in accidents are leaving the scene without reporting the incident. Frequently, these motorists are operating vehicles under the influence of drugs or alcohol. This Legislature also determines that hit-and-run drivers pose a significant danger to public safety, as they leave victims in jeopardy of further injury, without prompt medical treatment, and debris resulting from an accident is also left in the roadway.

B. 

This Legislature finds and determines that a recent spate of hit-and-run accidents in Suffolk County have raised concerns about road safety, leading the District Attorney to call for stronger penalties against those leaving the scene of an accident. This Legislature finds that hit-and-run drivers place the public in peril of injury, and stronger penalties are needed to deter individuals from unlawfully leaving the scene of an accident. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to authorize the County's law enforcement agencies to seize and forfeit the vehicles of hit-and-run drivers.