Report Title:

Motor Vehicle; Defacing Identification Marks

 

Description:

Makes a class C felony and intentional defacing of serial number or identification of a vehicle with intent to mislead authorities in determining true identity of vehicle; makes it a class B felony to re-identify a vehicle's serial number to mislead authorities into determining true identity of vehicle.

 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

1197

TWENTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2001

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 


 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

RELATING TO DEFACING SERIAL NUMBERS, ETC., OF MOTOR VEHICLES.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. Section 286-43, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§286-43 Defacing serial numbers, etc., of motor vehicles. [It shall be unlawful for any person to willfully deface, destroy, or alter the serial number, a component part number, or identification mark of any vehicle, so placed or stamped on any vehicle by the manufacturer for the purpose of identifying the vehicle or its components parts, nor shall any person place or stamp any serial, motor, or other number or mark upon a vehicle, except one assigned thereto by the director of finance.] (a) Any person who willfully defaces, destroys, or alters the serial number, a component part number, or identification mark of any vehicle, so placed or stamped on any vehicles by the manufacturer with the intent to mislead authorities into determining the true identity of the motor vehicle is guilty of a C felony.

(b) Any person who willfully re-identifies by serial number, a motor vehicle identification number other than the number assigned to that motor vehicle by the manufacturer with the intent to mislead authorities into determining the true identity of the motor vehicle is guilty of a class B felony.

This section does not prohibit the restoration by an owner of an original motor, or other mark or number, when the restoration is authorized in writing by the director finance, nor prevent any manufacturer from placing in the ordinary course of business, numbers or marks upon new motor vehicles or new parts thereof."

SECTION 2. This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were begun, before its effective date.

SECTION 3. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

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