People v. Grund
| Decision Date | 27 February 1964 |
| Citation | 14 N.Y.2d 32,247 N.Y.S.2d 877 |
| Parties | , 197 N.E.2d 293 The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Richard GRUND Appellant. |
| Court | New York Court of Appeals Court of Appeals |
A. M. Luongo and F. P. Luongo, Brooklyn, for appellant.
William Cahn, Dist. Atty. (James J. Byrne, Mineola, of counsel), for respondent.
The decision of this appeal depends, not on whether appellant may have been guilty of speeding or reckless driving in the operation of his automobile, but on whether he and the driver of another vehicle were 'drag racing' in violation of section 1182 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law, Consol.Laws, c. 71 in force on that date (July 28, 1962). That section provides: 'No races or contests for speed shall be held and no person shall engage in or aid or abet in any motor vehicle speed contest or exhibition of speed on a highway without the permission of the authorities of the state, city, town or village having jurisdiction and unless the same is fully and efficiently patrolled for the entire distance over which such race or contest for speed is to be held.'
The term 'drag race' is explained in Webster's Third International Dictionary (p. 684) as 'an acceleration contest between automobiles' with special reference to 'hot rods'. The author of the book, 'Hot Rod It', * states:
Although the term 'drag race' has not been defined specifically by the Legislature, its import may be discerned from the language used in the particular statute which appellant stands convicted of having violated, which says that 'no races or contests for speed shall be held * * * on a highway without the permission of the authorities'.
The information by which this criminal prosecution was instituted charges appellant with 'drag racing'. This, as just indicated, refers to holding races or contests for speed upon highways. 'Drag racing' may be inspired by the same competitive spirit that makes some drivers want to beat other cars from a stop light, but it requires something more than this. Violation of this statute...
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People v. Senisi
...a violation of Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1182 and had no obligation to prove the elements of this offense as defined in People v. Grund, 14 N.Y.2d 32, 247 N.Y.S.2d 877. Senisi's argument concerning the sufficiency of the evidence, which for the reasons outlined above is meritless, conceals ......
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People v. Killane
...for the purposes of applying Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1182, in order to sustain a conviction under this count (People v. Grund, 14 N.Y.2d 32, 247 N.Y.S.2d 877, 197 N.E.2d 293). However, the fact remains that the trial court, without exception, instructed the jury that a conviction under th......
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Finn v. Morgan
...a challenge coupled with a response in speed and relative position indicating acceptance of the challenge (cf. People v. Grund, 14 N.Y.2d 32, 247 N.Y.S.2d 877, 197 N.E.2d 293, recognizing the same duty by statute but establishing a higher standard of proof for criminal conviction). While th......
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Kovach v. McCollum
...thus did not qualify as a "speed contest" within the meaning of Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1182(a)(1) (see People v. Grund, 14 N.Y.2d 32, 34, 247 N.Y.S.2d 877, 197 N.E.2d 293 [1964] ). The record here, however, supports conflicting inferences with respect to whether defendants' son was engag......