NYC Council Votes to Fine Hit-and-Run Drivers

Hit-and-run drivers will face new civil penalties under a bill unanimously passed Tuesday by the New York City Council. 

Under the “Justice for Hit-and-Run Victims Act,” drivers who leave despite “knowing or having cause to know” that they damaged someone’s property in a crash can be fined up to $500. Drivers who injure a person get hit with a fine of up to $2,000, and hit-and-run drivers who cause serious injuries or death can be fined up to $10,000.

"This bill is past due," said Ydanis Rodriguez, chair of the Council's transportation committee and a co-sponsor of the bill. "Today we send a message to drivers that if you leave a victim on the street, you will not be tolerated. Citizens across our city have asked for justice, and today the council answered their call one more time."

The fines imposed by the bill are on top of any criminal charges the driver might face, as well as in addition to any monetary damages that might be assessed after a civil court cases. It's already a crime under state law for drivers to leave the scene of a crash.

Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer said he introduced the legislation because three people in his Queens district were killed by hit and run drivers "who, instead of stopping and seeing if they could help...they left the scene of the crime. And they allowed those three individuals to literally die in the street." 

Mayor Bill de Blasio supports the bill, according to a spokesperson, and is expected to sign it.