SECTION 1.Chapter 265 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after section 13D ½ the following section:-

Section 13D ¾. (a) For the purposes of this section, “bodily substance” shall mean any human secretion, discharge or emission including, but not limited to, blood, saliva, mucous, semen, urine or feces.

(b) Whoever commits an assault and battery upon a public transit worker when such person is engaged in the performance of his duties at the time of such assault and battery shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than 90 days nor more than 2 1/2 years in a house of correction or by a fine of not less than $500 nor more than $5,000.

An officer authorized to make arrests may arrest any person upon probable cause and without a warrant if the person has committed an offense under this section upon a transit worker when the employee was operating a public transit vehicle and the officer may keep the person in custody during which period the officer shall seek the issuance of a complaint and request a bail determination with all reasonable promptness.

Assault and battery upon a public transit worker shall include acts of expectorating or flinging a bodily substance at or onto a transit worker or of throwing or flinging any unspecified fluid at or onto a transit worker while such person is engaged in the performance of their duties.