Falling asleep behind wheel now a crime in NJ

PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (Reuters) -- New Jersey Go. Jim McGee Tuesday signed into law a tough new public safety measure that would impose jail time and stiff fines on drivers who cause fatal accidents by falling asleep behind the wheel.

Known as "Maggie's Law" and described as the first legislation of its kind in the United States, the measure allows prosecutors to charge sleep-deprived drivers with vehicular homicide. The charge carries a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $150,000 fine.

To be charged under the new law, a driver would have to be awake for at least 24 hours and knowingly drive while drowsy. The American Automobile Association has estimated that 24 hours of sleep deprivation is equal to a blood-alcohol level of 0.1 percent -- the state's legal threshold for drunk-driving.

"We are closing the legal loophole that allowed sleep deprived drivers to take a life and get away with it," McGee said at a signing ceremony in a state legislator's office in Therefore, New Jersey, outside Philadelphia.

The law, which took effect immediately, is named for 20-year-old Maggie McDonnell, who was killed in a 1997 head-on collision with a car driven by a man who state officials said had fallen asleep after being awake for 30 hours.

He was acquitted of reckless driving and vehicular homicide charges and fined $200, officials said.

McDonnell's mother Caroled lobbied for the new law. She and other family members flanked the governor as he signed the bill into law.

State officials cited National Highway Traffic Safety statistics blaming sleep-deprived drivers for 100,000 accidents, 71,000 injuries and 1,500 deaths in the United States each year.

NJ sleep-deprived drivers treated same as Drunk drivers

That sounds like a good idea to me. People should find a hotel to sleep in or at a friend or relative's house after drving a few hours at night. Driving all night and falling asleep at the same time is too risky and can hurt or even kill the human(s) who is in the other car. They should have known better to stop by somewhere and sleep instead of drving for LONG hours!

i agree Wildkatress -- BUTTTT Sablescort -- u mentioned NJ's threshold of driving drunk being at 0.1% qq thats quite extreme as here in the state of Maryland its 0.8% to be legally drunk and can be subjected to prosecution

as for the falling asleep while driving i DO support that as it is now the fastest rising cause of injuries/deaths due to auto accidents involving tired drivers and i read somewhere that it now exceeds the nbrs of drunk driving incidences nationwide

Next, senior citizens to take the road test every 3 years.

Stevey Boy -- yes thats the current argument as well in ref to seniors -- with a VERY high nbr of seniors still driving -- they CAN become a hazard as well on the roads -- i would support the re-testing of the seniors every few years to make sure they are still able to drive responsibly

That's why I said it. It'd be helpful to get them to re-educate again. It's like teaching an old trick to an old dog. :P

Originally posted by Fly Free
Stevey Boy -- yes thats the current argument as well in ref to seniors -- with a VERY high nbr of seniors still driving -- they CAN become a hazard as well on the roads -- i would support the re-testing of the seniors every few years to make sure they are still able to drive responsibly

Click to expand...

If u all recall the california man that crashed and killed i belive it was 10 poeple, one of them a child, it does raise questions should IN MY Mind we take the senior ciztens off the road at the age of btwn 65 to 70 to reduce the hazards????

sorry if im going off topic here


we just lost a VERY good friend of ours in calif due to an accident and it was awful considering. but i can say for one thing, falling asleep is dangerous on the road, thats why i only drive total of 8 -12 hrs and leave VERY early in the morning stop driving when it starts getting dark i will not allow myself to drive very late unless im going the short distance. i just rather be safe then sorry.....

Newbies, (especially the teenagers) should be tested pretty often. They're the worst drivers out there on the road in comparison to the seniors.

Heck, ever wondered why the age range of 16 - 21 is the highest in insurance rates?

Exactly.

Originally posted by javapride
If u all recall the california man that crashed and killed i belive it was 10 poeple, one of them a child, it does raise questions should IN MY Mind we take the senior ciztens off the road at the age of btwn 65 to 70 to reduce the hazards????

Click to expand...

I disagree, but drivers should be tested once in a while in order to see if they are still safe drivers.

In Australia, they do the same for giving fines and convictions to people who don't follow the advises of taking a power nap if driving long distances and feeling sleepy.
TAC (Transport Accident Commission) , has been pushing for drivers to be more careful on the roads and the sorts.

Hrm...that law is pointless....unless you want to add that as an extra charges when you show in court.

The punishment for neglict driving should be more higher than currently. Falling asleep while driving is just same as neglict driving in all current states. Illegal of Falling asleep in the lawbooks of NJ is just a waste of few lines. :p

Originally posted by SilenceGold
Hrm...that law is pointless....unless you want to add that as an extra charges when you show in court.

The punishment for neglict driving should be more higher than currently. Falling asleep while driving is just same as neglict driving in all current states. Illegal of Falling asleep in the lawbooks of NJ is just a waste of few lines. :p

Click to expand...

A waste of few lines to "wake" those people up. Re-think "neglience" beyond its definition.

Drowsy Driving

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to let you know that the National Sleep Foundation has launched a new site where you can share or create a memorial for a loved one lost to a drowsy driving crash. The site accepts stories and tributes from anyone whose life has been impacted by drowsy driving. It is a very moving and emotional site; you can read first-hand how a drowsy driving crash can happen to anyone at any time.

To share your memorial or story, please visit Memorials & Testimonials - Drowsy Driving The site also offers lots of grief related services and resources too.

Also, if you want to learn more about how to prevent drowsy driving, visit Home - Drowsy Driving -- there is a wealth of valuable information on the site.

Thank you.
National Sleep Foundation