Contact: Janine Kava, Press Office
New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services
(518) 457-8906 or (518) 275-5508 – cell
janine.kava@dcjs.ny.gov
For immediate release: Thursday, Aug. 12, 2010
Child Passenger Protection Act (Leandra’s Law) arrests in New York State
- There have been 392 arrests for aggravated driving while intoxicated with a child under 16 reported to the state Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) from Dec. 18, 2009 (the effective date of the Law) through Aug. 8, 2010.
- Arrests have been reported in 54 of the state’s 62 counties (see the attached chart for a county-by-county and gender breakdown of reported arrests).
- In the Long Island/New York City area, there have been: 44 arrests reported to DCJS from Suffolk County, 25 from Nassau County, six from Kings County, three each from Bronx County and New York County and two from Queens County.
- The top five counties in the state for reported arrests are as follows: Suffolk (44), Erie and Westchester (32 each), Nassau (25) and Monroe (22).
Leandra’s Law/Ignition Interlock Provision Facts
- New York is currently one of 36 states in the nation with special child endangerment laws that impose tougher sanctions on individuals who place a child passenger at risk while driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
- The final Leandra’s Law provision takes effect Sunday, Aug. 15, at which time New York State becomes one of 10 mandatory, first-offender ignition interlock states. Under the provision:
- Courts must order all drivers convicted of misdemeanor and felony drunk driving charges – even first-time offenders and regardless of whether a child under 16 was in the vehicle at the time – to install and maintain ignition interlock devices at their own expense on any vehicles they own or operate for a minimum of six months, in addition to any other terms of sentence.
- Interlocks can be ordered for a maximum of three years for a misdemeanor conviction and five years for a felony conviction.
- An interlock device costs between $75 and $100 to install, coupled with a monthly fee ranging from $70 to $100.
- Driving a vehicle without an interlock device after one has been ordered is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail.
- Assisting someone in circumventing an interlock device – for example, blowing into the device while sober so the vehicle will start, allowing an intoxicated individual to drive – also is a Class A misdemeanor.
- Approximately 2,000 drivers in New York State currently have court-ordered interlocks. Under this provision, an estimated 25,000 drivers statewide will be required to install ignition interlocks annually.
- The New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) has scheduled six trainings across the state to educate law enforcement about Leandra’s Law and the ignition interlock provision.
- Today’s training at the Nassau County Police Academy is the third in the series of six; more than 80 individuals from 24 law enforcement agencies across Long Island and New York City are registered to take the four-hour training course.
- The remaining trainings are scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 17 in Niagara County (Western New York); Aug. 26 in Schenectady County (Capital Region); and Sept. 2 in Oneida County (Mohawk Valley).
The following provisions of Leandra’s Law have been in effect since December:
- First-time offenders driving while intoxicated (.08 blood alcohol content or more) or impaired by drugs while a child younger than 16 years old is in the vehicle may be charged with a Class E felony punishable by up to four years in state prison.
- Courts must order drivers convicted of DWI with a child in the vehicle to install and maintain ignition interlock devices at their own expense on any vehicle they own or operate for a minimum of six months, in addition to any terms of sentence.
- Individuals charged with driving with a blood alcohol level of .08 or greater and with a child under the age of 16 in the vehicle automatically have their license suspended pending prosecution.
- Drivers who drive while intoxicated or impaired by drugs and cause the death of a child younger than 16 in the car may be charged with a Class B felony, punishable by up to 25 years in state prison.
- Drivers who drive while intoxicated or impaired by drugs and cause serious physical injury to a child in the vehicle may be charged with a Class C felony, punishable by up to 15 years in state prison.
- Parents, guardians, custodians and others who are legally responsible for a child, and charged with a driving while intoxicated or impaired by drugs while that child is a passenger in the vehicle, are reported to the Statewide Central Register of Child Abuse and Maltreatment by the arresting agency.
2009 Misdemeanor and Felony Drunk Driving Sentences
- Last year in New York State, 23,506 individuals were sentenced for felony and misdemeanor drunk driving convictions.
- Nassau County: 2,089 individuals were sentenced for felony and misdemeanor drunk driving convictions.
- Suffolk County:2,609 individuals were sentenced for felony and misdemeanor drunk driving convictions.
- New York City (all five boroughs): 3,967 individuals were sentenced for felony and misdemeanor drunk driving convictions.
| Child Passenger Protection Act (Leandra’s Law) Arrests by County and Gender* |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| County | Female | Male | Total |
| Albany | 10 | 7 | 17 |
| Allegany | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Bronx | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Broome | 4 | 2 | 6 |
| Cattaraugus | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Cayuga | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chautauqua | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Chemung | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Chenango | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Clinton | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| Columbia | 5 | 4 | 9 |
| Cortland | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Delaware | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Dutchess | 5 | 9 | 14 |
| Erie | 12 | 20 | 32 |
| Essex | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Franklin | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Fulton | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Genesee | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Greene | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Hamilton | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Herkimer | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Jefferson | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| Kings | 1 | 5 | 6 |
| Lewis | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Livingston | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Madison | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| Monroe | 12 | 10 | 22 |
| Montgomery | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Nassau | 7 | 18 | 25 |
| New York | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Niagara | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| Oneida | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| Onondaga | 9 | 6 | 15 |
| Ontario | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Orange | 6 | 11 | 17 |
| Orleans | 1 | 8 | 9 |
| Oswego | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Otsego | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Putnam | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Queens | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Rensselaer | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| Richmond | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rockland | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| St Lawrence | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| Saratoga | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| Schenectady | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Schoharie | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Schuyler | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Seneca | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Steuben | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Suffolk | 20 | 24 | 44 |
| Sullivan | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| Tioga | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Tompkins | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Ulster | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| Warren | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| Washington | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Wayne | 2 | 6 | 8 |
| Westchester | 8 | 24 | 32 |
| Wyoming | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Yates | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 152 | 240 | 392 |
| * Reported to DCJS from Dec. 18, 2009 through Aug. 8, 2010. | |||