Staff writer
Local troopers’ deaths inspires stricter law
The North Carolina House of Representatives passed a bill last week increasing the penalties for those who are caught violating the Move Over law.
The measure must receive state Senate approval to become law.
“Their lives, the lives of the people this law is meant to protect, are worth more than a slap on the wrist,” said Lara Feinberg, president and founder of the nonprofit group Families for Roadside Safety, which has focused much of its efforts on the Move Over law and protecting law enforcement and emergency response officials.
Feinberg, the wife of a state trooper, testified before a House subcommittee on the matter in March and has urged state legislators during the last few months to update the law.
House Bill 288 proposes to change the Move Over law in several ways: increases the fine for violators from $125 to $250, makes the offense a Class 1 misdemeanor when violators cause more than $500 in property damage, makes violation of the law a Class I felony when it causes serious injury or death, and added public service vehicles, such as tow trucks and Incident Management Assistance Patrol vehicles operating amber-colored flashing lights, to the list of those protected under the law.
“The key to me is that we have people putting their lives on the line everyday by simply going to work,” said Rep. Ray Rapp, D-Mars Hill, who co-sponsored the House bill.
“And we need to let them know that we’re going to do what we can to protect them,” Rapp said.
Rapp said there are two aspects of the Move Over law that need to be accomplished. “We need a campaign to make folks aware of the law and what they need to do,” he said, adding that Feinberg and FORS have done a great job in that regard.
“If you’re not going to do that, you need to know that we have increased the penalties,” Rapp said.
While he is satisfied that penalties for violating the Move Over law, Rapp wanted tougher consequences.
“This is one more step in our effort to make the roads safe,” he said. “But I had to fight to get the judiciary committee to see that there had to be consequences for this behavior.”
The debate persisted for the past three months and consisted of agonizing arguments, he said.
“We came a long way; I thought this bill was dead because it had been gutted so badly,” Rapp said. “But we were able to get it back on track and get it passed in a real time crunch.”
A version of the bill, sponsored by Sen. John Snow, D-Murphy, has now been introduced in the state Senate, and S1142 has been referred for review to the Senate Judiciary II Committee.
Rapp said he hopes the Senate will consider stiffening the penalties for violators of the Move Over law.
“I think we’ll have the support,” he said. Feinberg agrees.
“Our original bill was really hoping for higher fines and penalties,” she said.
“We have to be held responsible for our actions,” Feinberg said. “Their offices, for the most part, is on the side of our highways, and this bill will help some walls around them to protect them.”
The state legislature passed he first Move Over law, General Statute 20-157(f), on Jan. 30, 2002, stating that drivers must move over if possible or slow down when approaching a stopped emergency vehicle which has on its flashing lights.
Only a few months earlier, on Oct. 3, 2001, Trooper Calvin Taylor was killed in Haywood County when a tractor-trailer crossed onto the shoulder lane of Interstate 40 while he was issuing a citation.
Less than two years later, on May 30, 2003, another state Highway Patrol trooper, Anthony Cogdill, was killed on I-40 in Haywood County as a result of a nearly identical incident.
Since 2001, 66 troopers have been injured or killed in similar crashes, evidence that something has to be done, Rapp said.
According to FORS, emergency vehicles being struck by another vehicle is the third leading cause of death for law enforcement officers in the United States.
Along with the increase in fines and penalties and the addition of public service vehicles, the House bill includes another significant adjustment.
Under the current law, motorists are required to move over and slow down.
The House bill updated that mandate — move over, slow down and “be prepared to stop,” according to HB288.
Rapp said he anticipates the Senate to pass the bill by the end of the month and have it ready for the governor to sign into law at that time.
While some form of the bills will most likely become law this summer, it will not become effective until July 1, 2006.
The delay would allow for an education and awareness campaign, informing the public of the changes.
FORS, along with other agencies, will lead that effort, Feinberg said.
The group has experience doing so, as it campaigned to inform motorists of the law with Project Move Over, which began in January 2004 and included two billboards in Haywood County and bumper stickers.
Feinberg said FORS will conduct a billboard campaign throughout the state to promote awareness of the changes in the Move Over law.
While she said it is the most effective way to inform motorists, it will cost $30,000. So FORS will need funding assistance, Feinberg said.
“If it can act as a means of prevention,” she said regarding an updated, tougher Move Over law, “then let’s do it.”
Darren Miller can be reached at 452-0661, ext. 115, or at darren@themountaineer.com.