Right before a bill was introduced in the City Council that would establish a hit-and-run alert system for the five boroughs, state lawmakers announced that they are supporting similar statewide legislation in Albany.
State Sen. Marisol Alcantara and Assemblywoman Carmen De La Rosa, both Manhattan Democrats, threw their support behind a bill introduced by upstate Sen. Rich Funke that would create a “Yellow Alert” system to notify drivers throughout the state when a driver flees the scene of a collision where someone is killed or seriously injured.
The officials said more needed to be done to protect victims. Out of the 38 fatal hit-and-runs in the city in 2016, 13 arrests were made, according to police department data.
“Part of this is keeping our city and our state safe,” said Alcantara, who noted that California has a similar system in place already.
They were joined by Ydanis Rodriguez, chair of City Council’s Transportation Committee, who introduced the bill into council.
The politicians were flanked by the family of Jean Pual Guerrero, the popular radio host known as DJ Jinx Paul on La Mega 97.9 , who was killed in a Brooklyn hit-and-run collision in December. Investigations from the police department have yet to lead to a prosecution.
“He was my life, my friend, my confidant, my son. I only ask for justice,” Gloria Guerrero, DJ Jinx Paul’s mother, said in Spanish.
