HB0508 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB095 04052 DRH 24090 b

95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2007 and 2008
HB0508

Introduced 2/1/2007, by Rep. Elaine Nekritz

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

625 ILCS 5/11-503	from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 11-503
720 ILCS 5/9-3	from Ch. 38, par. 9-3

Amends the Criminal Code of 1961 and the Illinois Vehicle Code. Provides that, if a defendant commits reckless homicide upon a public thoroughfare where children pass going to and from school when a school crossing guard is performing official duties, the defendant is guilty of a Class 2 felony. Provides that the defendant, if sentenced to a term of imprisonment, shall be sentenced to (i) not less than 3 years and not more than 14 years if the defendant caused the death of one person or (ii) not less than 6 years and not more than 28 years if the defendant caused the deaths of 2 or more persons as part of a single course of conduct. Creates the offense of aggravated reckless driving where a school crossing guard is performing official duties, a Class 3 felony. Provides that a person commits the offense if he or she drives with a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property and as a result causes bodily injury to a child or a school crossing guard while the school crossing guard is performing his or her official duties.

CORRECTIONAL BUDGET AND IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning transportation.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by changing Section 11-503 as follows:

(625 ILCS 5/11-503) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 11-503)

Sec. 11-503. Reckless driving; aggravated reckless driving; aggravated reckless driving where a school crossing guard is performing official duties.

(a) A person commits reckless driving if he or she:

(1) drives any vehicle with a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property; or

(2) knowingly drives a vehicle and uses an incline in a roadway, such as a railroad crossing, bridge approach, or hill, to cause the vehicle to become airborne.

(b) Every person convicted of reckless driving shall be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor, except as provided under subsection (c) of this Section.

(c) Every person convicted of committing a violation of subsection (a) shall be guilty of aggravated reckless driving if the violation results in great bodily harm or permanent disability or disfigurement to another. Aggravated reckless driving is a Class 4 felony.

(d) A person who violates this Section, if the violation causes bodily injury to a child or a school crossing guard while the school crossing guard is performing his or her official duties, is guilty of aggravated reckless driving where a school crossing guard is performing official duties.

Aggravated reckless driving where a school crossing guard is performing official duties is a Class 3 felony.

(Source: P.A. 93-682, eff. 1-1-05.)

Section 10. The Criminal Code of 1961 is amended by changing Section 9-3 as follows:

(720 ILCS 5/9-3) (from Ch. 38, par. 9-3)

Sec. 9-3. Involuntary Manslaughter and Reckless Homicide.

(a) A person who unintentionally kills an individual without lawful justification commits involuntary manslaughter if his acts whether lawful or unlawful which cause the death are such as are likely to cause death or great bodily harm to some individual, and he performs them recklessly, except in cases in which the cause of the death consists of the driving of a motor vehicle or operating a snowmobile, all-terrain vehicle, or watercraft, in which case the person commits reckless homicide. A person commits reckless homicide if he or she unintentionally kills an individual while driving a vehicle and using an incline in a roadway, such as a railroad crossing, bridge approach, or hill, to cause the vehicle to become airborne.

(b) (Blank).

(c) (Blank).

(d) Sentence.

(1) Involuntary manslaughter is a Class 3 felony.

(2) Reckless homicide is a Class 3 felony.

(e) (Blank).

(e-2) Except as provided in subsection (e-3), in cases involving reckless homicide in which the offense is committed upon a public thoroughfare where children pass going to and from school when a school crossing guard is performing official duties, the penalty is a Class 2 felony, for which a person, if sentenced to a term of imprisonment, shall be sentenced to a term of not less than 3 years and not more than 14 years.

(e-3) In cases involving reckless homicide in which (i) the offense is committed upon a public thoroughfare where children pass going to and from school when a school crossing guard is performing official duties and (ii) the defendant causes the deaths of 2 or more persons as part of a single course of conduct, the penalty is a Class 2 felony, for which a person, if sentenced to a term of imprisonment, shall be sentenced to a term of not less than 6 years and not more than 28 years.

(e-5) (Blank).

(e-7) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (e-8), in cases involving reckless homicide in which the defendant was driving in a construction or maintenance zone, as defined in Section 11-605 of the Illinois Vehicle Code, the penalty is a Class 2 felony, for which a person, if sentenced to a term of imprisonment, shall be sentenced to a term of not less than 3 years and not more than 14 years.

(e-8) In cases involving reckless homicide in which the defendant was driving in a construction or maintenance zone, as defined in Section 11-605 of the Illinois Vehicle Code, and caused the deaths of 2 or more persons as part of a single course of conduct, the penalty is a Class 2 felony, for which a person, if sentenced to a term of imprisonment, shall be sentenced to a term of not less than 6 years and not more than 28 years.

(e-9) In cases involving reckless homicide in which the defendant drove a vehicle and used an incline in a roadway, such as a railroad crossing, bridge approach, or hill, to cause the vehicle to become airborne, and caused the deaths of 2 or more persons as part of a single course of conduct, the penalty is a Class 2 felony.

(f) In cases involving involuntary manslaughter in which the victim was a family or household member as defined in paragraph (3) of Section 112A-3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963, the penalty shall be a Class 2 felony, for which a person if sentenced to a term of imprisonment, shall be sentenced to a term of not less than 3 years and not more than 14 years.

(Source: P.A. 92-16, eff. 6-28-01; 93-178, eff. 6-1-04; 93-213, eff. 7-18-03; 93-682, eff. 1-1-05.)