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H.B. 106
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TRAFFIC STOPS STATISTICS
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2000 GENERAL SESSION
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STATE OF UTAH
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Sponsor: Duane E. Bourdeaux
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AN ACT RELATING TO PUBLIC SAFETY; ESTABLISHING FORMS, PROCEDURES, AND
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REPORTING REQUIREMENTS TO MONITOR TRAFFIC STOPS AMONG LAW
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ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS FOR A SPECIFIED NUMBER OF YEARS.
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This act affects sections of Utah Code Annotated 1953 as follows:
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AMENDS:
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77-7-20, as enacted by Chapter 15, Laws of Utah 1980
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ENACTS:
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53-14-101, Utah Code Annotated 1953
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53-14-102, Utah Code Annotated 1953
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53-14-103, Utah Code Annotated 1953
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53-14-104, Utah Code Annotated 1953
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Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
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Section 1.
Section
53-14-101
is enacted to read:
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CHAPTER 14. TRAFFIC STOPS STATISTICS
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53-14-101. Title.
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This chapter is known as the "Traffic Stops Statistics Act."
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Section 2.
Section
53-14-102
is enacted to read:
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53-14-102. Definitions.
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As used in this chapter:
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(1) "Commissioner" means the commissioner of the Department of Public Safety.
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(2) "Law enforcement agency" means the Department of Public Safety and each municipal
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and county law enforcement agency.
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(3) "Law enforcement officer" means the state and local officers defined under Section
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53-13-103
.
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(4) "Traffic stop" means a law enforcement officer stopped a vehicle, but did not make an
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arrest, or issue a warning or citation.
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Section 3.
Section
53-14-103
is enacted to read:
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53-14-103. Requirements to monitor traffic stops.
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(1) Each law enforcement agency shall adopt a written policy that prohibits the stopping,
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detention, or search of any person when the action:
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(a) is solely motivated by considerations of race, color, ethnicity, age, or gender; and
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(b) would constitute a violation of the civil rights of the person.
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(2) Each law enforcement agency shall record and retain the following information, using
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the form created under Subsection
53-14-104
(1):
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(a) the number of traffic stops made monthly by the agency;
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(b) characteristics of race, in accordance with the categories established by rule of the
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Department of Public Safety, gender, and age of the driver of the vehicle, and the race
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characteristic:
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(i) shall be based on the law enforcement officer's own perceptions; and
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(ii) may not be required to be provided by the driver of the vehicle;
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(c) the reason for stopping the vehicle;
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(d) whether a search was conducted as a result of the stop;
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(e) the time and location of the stop; and
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(f) any additional information that a law enforcement agency finds appropriate to require.
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(3) Each law enforcement officer, after recording a traffic stop, shall issue a form letter to
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the driver of the vehicle that indicates:
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(a) proactive traffic enforcement is a productive strategy to protect the public from the
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devastation caused by traffic-related death and injury, illegal trafficking in and possession of
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weapons and drugs, and fugitives at large, and to otherwise promote and maintain an orderly and
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law-abiding society;
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(b) proactive traffic enforcement must be conducted in full compliance with constitutional
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and statutory safeguards established to preserve the rights of citizens, prescriptions of case law,
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and sanctioned policies and practices of law enforcement agencies, and the spirit of American
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democratic principles;
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(c) the procedure to file a complaint if the driver of the vehicle feels he or she has been
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mistreated or has been treated in a biased or prejudiced manner; and
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(d) the law enforcement officer's name, badge number, and employer.
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(4) Each law enforcement agency shall provide to the commissioner on a quarterly basis:
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(a) a copy of each complaint received pursuant to this chapter; and
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(b) written notification of the review and disposition of the complaint.
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(5) Any law enforcement officer who in good faith records traffic stop information
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pursuant to the requirements of this section may not be held civilly liable for the act of recording
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the information unless the officer's conduct is found to be unreasonable or reckless.
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(6) If a law enforcement agency fails to comply with the provisions of this chapter the
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commissioner shall report the noncompliance to the Legislature. The Legislature may impose an
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appropriate penalty in the form of withholding state funds from these agencies.
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(7) Each law enforcement agency shall quarterly report to the commissioner the
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information regarding each warning, citation, and traffic stop by the agency. The report shall be
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in a form the commissioner prescribes.
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(8) The commissioner shall:
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(a) provide for a review and evaluation of the prevalence and disposition of traffic stops
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and complaints reported under this section; and
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(b) report to the attorney general, governor, and Legislature the results of the review,
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including any recommendations, on or before January 1, 2004.
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(9) The provisions of Subsections (2), (7), and (8) are no longer in effect on and after
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January 2, 2004.
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Section 4.
Section
53-14-104
is enacted to read:
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53-14-104. Creation of forms to monitor racial profiling.
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The commissioner shall develop and implement:
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(1) a form, in both printed and electronic format, to be used by law enforcement officers
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when making a traffic stop, to record personal identifying information about the driver of the
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vehicle as required under Subsection
53-14-103
(2); and
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(2) a form, in both printed and electronic format, to be made available to the public to
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report complaints under Subsection
53-14-103
(3) by persons who believe they have been subjected
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to a traffic stop by a law enforcement officer solely on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, age, or
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gender.
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Section 5.
Section
77-7-20
is amended to read:
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77-7-20. Service of citation on defendant -- Filing in court -- Contents of citations --
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Contents of warnings.
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(1) If a citation is issued pursuant to Section
77-7-18
, the peace officer or public official
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shall issue one copy to the person cited and shall within five days file a duplicate copy with the
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court specified in the citation.
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(2) Each copy of the citation issued under authority of this chapter shall contain:
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(a) the name of the court before which the person is to appear;
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(b) the name of the person cited;
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(c) the race of the person cited, in accordance with the categories established by rule of the
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Department of Public Safety, and the identification:
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(i) shall be based on the law enforcement officer's own perceptions; and
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(ii) may not be required to be provided by the person cited;
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[(c)] (d) a brief description of the offense charged;
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[(d)] (e) the date, time, and place at which the offense is alleged to have occurred;
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[(e)] (f) the date on which the citation was issued;
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[(f)] (g) the name of the peace officer or public official who issued the citation, and the
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name of the arresting person if an arrest was made by a private party and the citation was issued
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in lieu of taking the arrested person before a magistrate;
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[(g)] (h) the time and date on or before and after which the person is to appear;
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[(h)] (i) the address of the court in which the person is to appear;
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[(i)] (j) a certification above the signature of the officer issuing the citation in substantially
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the following language: "I certify that a copy of this citation or information (Summons and
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Complaint) was duly served upon the defendant according to law on the above date and I know
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or believe and so allege that the above-named defendant did commit the offense herein set forth
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contrary to law. I further certify that the court to which the defendant has been directed to appear
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is the proper court pursuant to Section
77-7-21
."; [and]
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[(j)] (k) a notice containing substantially the following language:
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READ CAREFULLY
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"This citation is not an information and will not be used as an information without your
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consent. If an information is filed you will be provided a copy by the court. You MUST appear in
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court on or before the time set in this citation. IF YOU FAIL TO APPEAR AN INFORMATION
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WILL BE FILED AND THE COURT MAY ISSUE A WARRANT FOR YOUR ARREST[.]";
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and
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(l) a notice containing the following information:
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(i) proactive traffic enforcement is a productive strategy to protect the public from the
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devastation caused by traffic-related death and injury, illegal trafficking in and possession of
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weapons and drugs, and fugitives at large, and to otherwise promote and maintain an orderly and
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law-abiding society;
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(ii) proactive traffic enforcement must be conducted in full compliance with constitutional
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and statutory safeguards established to preserve the rights of citizens, prescriptions of case law,
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and sanctioned policies and practices of law enforcement agencies, and the spirit of American
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democratic principles; and
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(iii) the procedure to file a complaint if the person feels he or she has been mistreated or
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has been treated in a biased or prejudiced manner.
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(3) If a law enforcement agency issues a warning, the warning shall contain:
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(a) the race of the person warned, in accordance with the categories established by rule of
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the Department of Public Safety, and the identification:
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(i) shall be based on the law enforcement officer's own perceptions; and
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(ii) may not be required to be provided by the person warned; and
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(b) a notice containing the following information:
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(i) proactive traffic enforcement is a productive strategy to protect the public from the
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devastation caused by traffic-related death and injury, illegal trafficking in and possession of
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weapons and drugs, and fugitives at large, and to otherwise promote and maintain an orderly and
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law-abiding society;
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(ii) proactive traffic enforcement must be conducted in full compliance with constitutional
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and statutory safeguards established to preserve the rights of citizens, prescriptions of case law,
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and sanctioned policies and practices of law enforcement agencies, and the spirit of American
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democratic principles; and
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(iii) the procedure to file a complaint if the person feels he or she has been mistreated or
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has been treated in a biased or prejudiced manner.
Legislative Review Note
as of 1-27-00 5:08 PM
A limited legal review of this legislation raises no obvious constitutional or statutory concerns.