[Added 2-4-1971; amended 10-21-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-07]
The driver of any vehicle involved in an accident
resulting in injury or damage to property shall immediately stop at
the scene of such accident or as close thereto as possible without
obstructing traffic and give to the driver or some other occupant
of the vehicle collided with his name, address, operator's or chauffeur's
license number, the registration number of his vehicle, the date,
time, and place of the accident and include a description of the property
damage. If the damage is to an unattended vehicle or to some other
object, the driver shall make a reasonable effort to find the owner
or person in charge of such property or shall leave a note in a conspicuous
place providing the information hereinbefore required. A wilful failure
to make a report required in this section shall constitute a violation
of this chapter.
[1]
Editor’s Note: Former § 394-42, Report of
driver of vehicle involved in accident; supplemental reports, was
repealed 10-21-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-07.
Every law enforcement officer who in the course
of duty investigates a motor vehicle accident for which a report must
be made, either at the time of and at the scene of the accident or
thereafter and elsewhere, by interviewing participants or witnesses,
shall, within 24 hours after completing the investigation, forward
a written report of the accident to the Division of Motor Vehicles.
Whenever the driver of a vehicle is physically
incapable of making an immediate or a written report of an accident
for which a report is required, each other occupant of the vehicle
at the time of the accident, if any, who is capable of so doing, shall
make the report required by this article to be made primarily by the
driver. A wilful failure to file the report required by this section
shall constitute a violation of this chapter.
Conviction of a failure to report an accident
as required or conviction of a failure to give correctly the information
required of him in connection with any requisite report shall be a
violation of this chapter and shall constitute a ground for suspension
of the operator's or chauffeur's license and all certificates of registration
of all motor vehicles, or of both, of the persons failing to make
the report as required. Such suspension shall continue until such
time as the person has filed the accident report as required or has
given correctly the information requested.
The person in charge of any garage or repair
shop to which is brought any motor vehicle that shows evidence of
having been involved in a serious motor vehicle accident or with evidence
of blood stains shall report to the Police Department within 24 hours
after the motor vehicle is received, giving the engine number, registration
number and the name and address of the owner or operator of the vehicle
if known. Reports required by this section shall be made upon forms
furnished by the Superintendent of State Police.
All accident reports made by persons involved
in accidents or by garages shall be without prejudice to the individual
so reporting and shall be for the confidential use of the City, the
Division of Motor Vehicles or other state agencies having use for
the records for accident prevention purposes, except that the Police
Department or the Division of Motor Vehicles may disclose the identity
of a person involved in an accident when his identity is not otherwise
known or when he denies his presence at the accident.
No report required by this article shall be
used as evidence in any trial, civil or criminal, arising out of an
accident, except that the Police Department shall furnish, upon demand
of any person who has or claims to have made such a report or upon
demand of any court, a certificate showing that a specified accident
report has or has not been made to the Police Department or the Division
of Motor Vehicles, solely to prove compliance or noncompliance with
the requirement that the report be made.
Subject to the provisions of § 394-47, all accident reports made by investigating officers shall be for the confidential use of the Police Department, the Division of Motor Vehicles and of other state agencies for accident prevention purposes and shall not be used as evidence in any trial, civil or criminal, arising out of any accident. The Division of Motor Vehicles shall disclose from the reports, upon request of any person, the date, time and location of the accident and the names and addresses of the drivers, the owners of the vehicles involved, the injured persons, the witnesses and one investigating officer.
