Section 17B: Drag racing; penalties
Section 17B. No person shall operate a motor vehicle, nor shall any owner of such vehicle permit it to be operated, in a manner where the owner or operator accelerates at a high rate of speed in competition with another operator, whether or not there is an agreement to race, causing increased noise from skidding tires and amplified noise from racing engines. Whoever violates this section shall be punished by imprisonment in the house of correction for not more than 21/2 years or by a fine of not more than $1,000. The registrar shall suspend such violator's license for a period of not less than 30 days for a first offense and for not less than 180 days for any subsequent violation.
Notwithstanding the penalties provided in the first paragraph, a holder of a junior operator's license or learner's permit who commits a violation of this section shall be punished by a fine of not less than $250 for a first offense and the registrar shall suspend the junior operator's license or learner's permit for 1 year. A subsequent violation shall be punished by a fine of not less than $500 and the registrar shall suspend the junior operator's license or learner's permit for 3 years. A holder of a junior operator's license or learner's permit who commits a violation under this section shall also be required to complete the state courts against road rage program sponsored by the trial court and the department of state police.
The registrar shall impose a $500 reinstatement fee upon a junior operator who seeks to have his license or learner's permit reinstated following suspension for a first offense under this section and a $1,000 reinstatement fee shall be imposed upon a junior operator who seeks to have his license or learner's permit reinstated following suspension for a subsequent violation under this section. A junior operator whose license is suspended under this section shall not be eligible for license reinstatement until he also completes a program selected by the registrar that encourages attitudinal changes in young drivers who have committed a violation of the motor vehicle laws and until he successfully completes a driving test as required by the registrar. A junior operator whose learner's permit is suspended under this section shall be required to complete a program selected by the registrar that encourages attitudinal changes in young drivers who have committed a violation of the motor vehicle laws and shall be required to reapply for his learner's permit before he may be issued a license to operate a motor vehicle pursuant to section 8.