AMA Commends West Virginia for New Reckless-Driving Law
PICKERINGTON, Ohio -- The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA)
commends West Virginia for enacting a law supporting the goals of the
AMA's "Justice for All" campaign.
The Reckless Driving Bill, also known as "Danny's Law" after West
Virginia motorcyclist Danny Kneisly, passed unanimously in both houses
of the state legislature and was signed into law April 4 by Governor
Joe Manchin, himself an avid motorcyclist. The new law increases
penalties, including jail time, for reckless-driving violations.
Instrumental in the passage of Danny's Law was ABATE of West Virginia,
along with Kneisly's family and other motorcyclist activists.
"West Virginia motorcyclists can be proud, as we are, that their
legislators and their governor value justice," said Imre Szauter, AMA
Legislative Affairs Specialist. "We urge other states to follow West
Virginia's example, and we encourage all motorcyclists to work with the
AMA and with state motorcyclists'-rights organizations to change the
way the justice system sentences drivers."
Kneisly was killed in 2004 at age 43, less than a mile from his
Martinsburg home, when a driver violated his right-of-way by making a
left turn in front of him; the driver was fined $20.
Responding to the disturbing nationwide trend of inadequate sentences
for motorists who kill or seriously injure other motorists, the AMA
launched Justice for All in 2004. The campaign's goals include
increasing each state's penalties for violations that result in serious
injury or death, as well as incorporating motorcycle-awareness modules
in driver-education classes.
West Virginia joins seven other states in passing legislation that
supports the goals of Justice for All: Arkansas, Maine, New York, North
Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington.
For more information about the AMA's Justice for All campaign, visit www.AMADirectlink.com/justice.
