Mayor Bill de Blasio proposed
new stricter legislation to prevent dangerous drivers after an NYPD officer was
killed in a hit-and-run.
The mayor grieved for the loss
of Officer Anastasios Tsakos, who was posthumously promoted to detective.
De Blasio says it is time to
do more than just grieve, and that the state must act.
He announced the Crash Victim
Rights Act, a proposed legislation that would lower the legal limit for blood
alcohol content from .08 to .05.
It also includes Sammy’s Law
to lower speeds, in honor of a 12-year-old killed by a reckless driver in
Brooklyn.
The proposed legislation would
also create a “one strike and you are out” enforcement for reckless driving.
The mayor says drivers
currently get a second chance, and he is urging immediate action in the next
legislative session.
“This is an opportunity to
make profound change,” de Blasio says. “So I am calling upon our colleagues in
Albany, I am pleading with you, in memory of Detective Tsakos, in memory of
Sammy, please pass this legislations to keep New Yorkers safe.”
Jessica Beuvais, the woman
accused of hitting and killing Tsakos, is currently charged with manslaughter
and is being held without bail.