17 Drivers Cited By NH Police For Failing To Clear Snow

NASHUA, NH — More than a dozen drivers were cited by New Hampshire State Police Wednesday for failing to clear snow from their vehicles. Police said 17 drivers were cited in a four-hour span by a single state trooper in the Nashua-Manchester region. Two other drivers were cited and two more were arrested for unrelated violations.

"Jessica's Law," passed by state lawmakers in 2001, makes it illegal for citizens to drive snow- or ice-covered vehicles. The law was named after Jessica Smith, a 20-year-old Nashua woman who was killed in 1999 in Peterborough when a chunk of ice flew off a truck and struck a trailing vehicle, leading to a crash involving Smith's car.

Last month, a state Department of Transportation worker was seriously injured after a chunk of ice flew off a truck and crashed through his windshield on Route 101. Also last month, a chuck of ice flew off another vehicle and struck a bus with students aboard on Interstate 93. No one was hurt.

Jessica's Law includes penalties of $250 to $500 for a first offense, with stiffer penalties for subsequent offenses — including license suspension. Massachusetts has a similar law on the books.

In 2011, a woman was seriously injured in New Hampshire in Mason after flying ice from another vehicle struck her vehicle.

Photo: One of the 17 drivers cited by New Hampshire State Police for failing to clear snow from a vehicle following a snowstorm Feb. 12, 2019. (Credit: New Hampshire State Police)