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Indicates Matter Stricken
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Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
AMENDED
May 18, 2005
S. 1
Introduced by Senators Ryberg, Hutto, Lourie, Drummond, Land, Moore, Matthews, McGill, O'Dell, Reese, Hayes, Gregory, Jackson, Martin, Rankin, Short, Richardson, Ritchie, Cromer, J. Verne Smith, Leatherman, Fair and Patterson
S. Printed 5/18/05--H.
Read the first time February 3, 2005.
TO AMEND SECTION 56-5-6450, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE CHILD PASSENGER RESTRAINT SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT A FINE FOR A VIOLATION OF THE LAW MUST NOT BE WAIVED; TO AMEND SECTION 56-5-6530, RELATING TO EXCEPTIONS TO THE MANDATORY USE OF SAFETY BELTS AND CHILD RESTRAINT SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT OCCUPANTS OF THE BACK SEAT OF A MOTOR VEHICLE ARE NOT EXEMPT FROM THE SAFETY BELT REQUIREMENT; TO AMEND SECTION 56-5-6540, RELATING TO PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS OF THE SAFETY BELT LAW AND CHILD RESTRAINT SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT ALL FUNDS COLLECTED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION MUST BE DEPOSITED IN THE STATE GENERAL FUND, A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER MAY NOT SEARCH A VEHICLE STOPPED SOLELY FOR A PRIMARY SAFETY BELT VIOLATION, A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER MAY STOP A DRIVER OF A MOTOR VEHICLE FOR ANY PRIMARY VIOLATION OF A PROVISION THAT REQUIRES A DRIVER OR PASSENGER TO WEAR A SAFETY BELT OR A CHILD RESTRAINT SYSTEM, A PERSON MUST NOT BE CONVICTED FOR A PRIMARY SAFETY BELT VIOLATION EXCEPT UPON PROOF BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT, A VIOLATION OF THE MANDATORY SAFETY BELT LAW MAY BE TRIED BEFORE EITHER A JUDGE OR A JURY, AND A CONVICTION FOR A VIOLATION OF THE STATE'S MANDATORY SAFETY BELT LAW IS APPEALABLE TO THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS.
Amend Title To Conform
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 56-5-6450 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 56-5-6450. No A person shall not be subjected to a custodial arrest for violation of violating the provisions of this article. Any A person violating adjudicated to be in violation of the provisions of this article shall upon conviction must be fined not more than twenty-five dollars, no part of which may be suspended. The court shall waive any fine against any person who, before, or upon the appearance date on the summons, supplies the court with evidence of acquisition, purchase or rental of a child restraint system meeting the requirements of this article. Court costs, assessments, or surcharges may not be assessed against a person who violates a provision of this article."
SECTION 2. Section 56-5-6525 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 56-5-6525. (A) The Department of Public Safety or any other law enforcement agency must not use a "Click It or Ticket" campaign or a similar endeavor of systematic checkpoints or roadblocks as a law enforcement tool where the principal purpose is to detect and issue a ticket to a violator of the provisions of this article on either a primary or secondary basis.
(B) A person must not be issued a citation at any checkpoint established to stop all drivers on a certain road for a period of time for removing his seatbelt in order to retrieve documentation that must be produced at the checkpoint."
SECTION 3. Section 56-5-6530 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 56-5-6530. The provisions of this article do not apply to:
(1) a driver or occupant who possesses a written verification from a physician that he is unable to wear a safety belt for physical or medical reasons;
(2) medical or rescue personnel attending to injured or sick individuals in an emergency vehicle when operating in an emergency situation as well as the injured or sick individuals;
(3) school, church, or day care buses;
(4) public transportation vehicles except taxis;
(5) occupants of vehicles in parades;
(6) United States mail carriers;
(7) an occupant for which no safety belt is available because all belts are being used by other occupants;
(8) a driver or occupant frequently stopping or leaving a motor vehicle for pick up or delivery purposes;
(9) occupants of the back seat of a motor vehicle unless the vehicle is equipped with a shoulder harness in addition to the lap belt;
(109) children under six years of age who must be properly restrained as provided by Article 47, Chapter 5 of Title 56.
(1110) a driver or occupants in a vehicle not originally equipped with safety belts."
SECTION 4. Section 56-5-6540 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 56-5-6540. (A) A person who violates is adjudicated to be in violation of the provisions of this article, upon conviction, must be fined not more than twenty-five dollars, all or part no part of which may be suspended. No Court costs, assessments, or surcharges may be assessed against the a person convicted who violates a provision of this article. No A person may must not be fined more than fifty dollars for any one incident of one or more violations of the provisions of this article. No A custodial arrest for a violation of this article may must not be made, except upon a warrant issued for failure to appear in court when summoned or for failure to pay an imposed fine. A conviction for violation of this article does not constitute a criminal offense. Notwithstanding Section 56-1-640, a conviction for a violation of this article must not be:
(1) included in the offender's motor vehicle records maintained by the Department of Motor Vehicles or in the criminal records maintained by SLED; or
(2) reported to the offender's motor vehicle insurer.
(B) A law enforcement officer must not stop a driver for a violation of this article in the absence of another violation of the motor vehicle laws except as follows:
(1) when the officer has probable cause for a violation of this article based on his clear and unobstructed view of a driver seventeen years of age or younger or an occupant of the motor vehicle seventeen years of age or younger who is not wearing a safety belt or is not secured in a child restraint system as required by Article 47; or
(2) when the stop is made in conjunction with a driver's license check or registration check conducted at a checkpoint established to stop all drivers on a certain road for a period of time.
(C) A citation for a violation of this article, except for a citation issued pursuant to a stop made under subsection (B)(1), must not be issued without citing the violation that initially caused the officer to effect the enforcement stop.
(D) A citation issued pursuant to a stop made under subsection (B)(1) may be issued without citing any other violation.
(E)(B) A violation of this article does is not constitute negligence per se or contributory negligence, and is not admissible as evidence in a civil action.
(F)(C) No A vehicle, driver, or occupant in a vehicle may must not be searched, nor may consent to search be requested by a law enforcement officer, solely because of a violation of this article or a stop made under subsection (B)(1).
(D) A law enforcement officer must not stop a driver for a violation of this article except when the officer has probable cause that a violation has occurred based on his clear and unobstructed view of a driver or an occupant of the motor vehicle who is not wearing a safety belt or is not secured in a child restraint system as required by Article 47 of this chapter.
(E) A person charged with a violation of this article may admit or deny the violation, enter a plea of nolo contendere, or be tried before either a judge or a jury. If the trier of fact is convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that the person was not wearing a safety belt at the time of the incident, the penalty is a civil fine pursuant to Section 56-5-6540. If the trier of fact determines that the State has failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the person was not wearing a safety belt, no penalty shall be assessed.
(F) A person found to be in violation of this article may bring an appeal to the court of common pleas pursuant to Section 18-3-10 or Section 14-25-95."
SECTION 5. Article 48, Chapter 5, Title 56 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 56-5-6560. (A) Any time a motor vehicle is stopped by a state or local law enforcement officer without a citation being issued or an arrest being made, the officer who initiated the stop must complete a data collection form designed by the Department of Public Safety that must include information regarding the age, gender, and race or ethnicity of the driver of the vehicle.
(B) The Department of Public Safety shall develop and maintain a database for the information submitted to the department under subsection (A) and prepare a report to be submitted annually to the General Assembly regarding motor vehicle stops using the collected information.
(C) The General Assembly shall have the authority to withhold any state funds or federal pass-through funds from any state or local law enforcement agency that fails to comply with the requirements of this section."
SECTION 6. Chapter 5 of Title 56 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding Section 56-5-6565:
"Section 56-5-6565. (A) The Department of Public Safety shall develop and implement education programs designed to create awareness of the state's safety belt laws and to increase safety belt use in rural and ethnically diverse areas throughout the State. The Department of Public Safety, when securing consultant, contractor, and subcontractor services for developing and implementing programs related to safety belts laws, shall select providers that have experience working with the communities the provider is procured to target. The Department of Public Safety shall confer with members of the targeted communities for input on the development of effective safety education programs and on the identification of providers that have the appropriate experience with the targeted communities. Contracts made with providers selected for the purposes of this subsection are exempt from the provisions of the Consolidated Procurement Code, Chapter 35 of Title 11.
(B) The Department of Transportation may develop additional programs to promote safety belt use or may coordinate with the Department of Public Safety to fund and carry out the programs jointly. If there is coordination between the two departments, the Department of Public Safety has final authority on all issues, including but not limited to, program content and dissemination, allocation of funds, and procurement procedures.
(C) The Department of Public Safety may use available federal funds or private sector contributions to meet the requirements of subsection (A). The General Assembly may provide funds to supplement federal or private sector funds used by the Department of Public Safety or the Department of Transportation to develop and implement the programs described in subsection (A). The General Assembly shall provide the Department of Public Safety the funds necessary to meet the requirements of subsection (A), if federal or private sector funds are unavailable."
SECTION 7. This act takes effect six months after the date of approval by the Governor.
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