§ 19 — Uniform navigation summons and complaint

§ 19. Uniform navigation summons and complaint. 1. The commissioner\nshall be authorized to prescribe the form of summons and/or complaint in\nall cases involving a violation of any provision of this chapter or of\nany ordinance, rule or regulation relating to navigation, or of any\nclass or category of such cases, and to establish procedures for proper\nadministrative controls over the disposition thereof. The provisions of\nthis subdivision shall not apply to offenses specified in paragraph b of\nsubdivision four of section forty-nine of this chapter.\n 2. The chief executive officer of each local police force including\ncounty, town, city and village police departments, sheriffs, and the\nsuperintendent of state police shall prepare or cause to be prepared\nsuch records and reports as may be prescribed hereunder.\n 3. The commissioner shall have the power from time to time to adopt\nsuch rules and regulations as may be necessary to accomplish the\npurposes and enforce the provisions of this section including\nrequirements for reporting by trial courts having jurisdiction over\nnavigation violations.\n 4. The provisions of this section shall not apply to or supersede any\nordinance, rule or regulation heretofore or hereafter made, adopted or\nprescribed pursuant to law in Nassau or Suffolk counties or in any city\nhaving a population of one million or over.\n 5. Any person who disposes of any uniform navigation summons and/or\ncomplaint in any manner other than that prescribed by law, rule or\nregulation shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.\n 6. If a person charged with a violation desires to plead guilty to the\nviolation as charged in the summons, he shall submit to the magistrate\nhaving jurisdiction, in person, by duly authorized agent or by\nregistered mail, a verified application or in lieu thereof, an\napplication affirmed under penalty of perjury setting forth (a) the\nnature of the charge, (b) the violations, if any, of the navigation law\nor of any local law or ordinance governing or regulating navigation, of\nwhich the defendant has been convicted within a period of two years\nimmediately preceding the date of the impending charge, together with\nthe date, the name and place of the court and the disposition, with\nrespect to each violation, (c) the information or instructions required\nby section one thousand eight hundred seven of the vehicle and traffic\nlaw to be given defendant upon arraignment, (d) that defendant waives\narraignment in open court and the aid of counsel, (e) that he pleads\nguilty to the offense as charged, (f) that defendant elects and requests\nthat the charge be disposed of and the fine or penalty fixed by the\ncourt, pursuant to this subdivision, and (g) any statement or\nexplanation that the defendant may desire to make concerning the offense\ncharged. The application shall be in such form as the commissioner shall\nprescribe and a copy thereof shall be handed to the defendant by the\nperson charging him with such violation. Thereupon the magistrate may\nproceed as though the defendant had been convicted upon a plea of guilty\nin open court, provided, however, that any imposition of fine or penalty\nhereunder, without suspension of execution of sentence, shall be deemed\ntentative until such fine or penalty shall have been paid and discharged\nin full, prior to which time the magistrate, in his discretion, may\nannul any proceedings hereunder, including such tentative imposition of\nfine or penalty, and deny the application, in which event the charge\nshall be disposed of pursuant to the applicable provisions of law, as\nthough no proceedings had been had under this subdivision. If upon\nreceipt of the aforesaid application the magistrate shall deny the same,\nhe shall thereupon inform the defendant of this fact, and that he is\nrequired to appear before the said magistrate at a stated time and place\nto answer the charge which shall thereafter be disposed of pursuant to\nthe applicable provisions of law.\n