Bill > S06203

This bill establishes two new criminal offenses related to recklessly endangering emergency service personnel: reckless endangerment of an emergency service person in the second and first degrees. The bill defines an "emergency service person" broadly to include firefighters, police officers, peace officers, emergency services professionals, code enforcement officers, fire inspection personnel, and building inspectors. Reckless endangerment in the second degree occurs when someone alters, converts, encloses, subdivides, or partitions a building without a required permit and in violation of building or fire prevention codes in a way that impedes evacuation during a fire or emergency, resulting in injury to an emergency service person. This offense is classified as a class E felony. Reckless endangerment in the first degree happens when the second-degree offense either results in the death of an emergency service person or when the offender has a prior conviction for a similar offense within the past ten years, and is classified as a class D felony. The bill aims to protect emergency service workers by creating specific criminal penalties for actions that recklessly put their lives and safety at risk during emergency situations.