HB 1265: Traffic offenses; fleeing or attempting to elude a pursuing vehicle or law enforcement officer performing duties; provisions

Georgia already has laws against fleeing police, but this bill adds a new, more specific offense that applies when a driver refuses to stop or tries to elude a pursuing officer working for the Department of Public Safety's Capitol Police Division, Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division, or Uniform Division (which includes the Georgia State Patrol). The officer must be in uniform with a visible badge and driving a marked official vehicle, and must have signaled the driver to stop by hand, voice, light, or siren. Punishment depends on how far the driver traveled while fleeing. A first offense is a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature with a fine of $1,000 to $5,000 and 30 days in jail per mile fled, capped between 30 days and 12 months. A second offense becomes a felony with steeper fines and longer jail time, and a third or later offense within ten years carries even higher fines and up to ten years in prison. Certain aggravating factors, like speeding 20 mph over the limit, hitting another vehicle, causing an accident, or leaving the state, automatically make the offense a felony with a mandatory sentence that cannot be reduced, suspended, or served concurrently with other charges.

• Creates a new criminal offense, O.C.G.A. § 40-6-395.1, for fleeing or refusing to stop for a marked Department of Public Safety vehicle or uniformed officer after being signaled to stop.
• Sets penalties based on the number of miles a driver actually traveled while fleeing, adding 30 days of jail time for each mile on top of base fines and jail terms.
• Escalates punishment from a high and aggravated misdemeanor on a first offense to a felony on a second offense, and to a more severe felony on a third or later offense within ten years.
• Makes the offense an automatic felony with mandatory, non-reducible sentencing if the driver speeds 20 mph over the limit, causes a collision or accident, endangers the public, commits certain other traffic violations, or leaves Georgia while fleeing.
• Presumes the distance traveled to be zero miles if it cannot be determined, though the distance itself is not a required element of the crime.
• Allows judges to let defendants pay fines in installments if the fine would cause economic hardship, enforceable through contempt or probation revocation.

Drivers who flee or refuse to stop for officers of the Department of Public Safety's Capitol Police Division, Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division, or Uniform Division, including Georgia State Patrol troopers. It also affects prosecutors, judges, and municipal courts that will enforce and sentence under this new offense.

Drivers who flee from these specific state officers would face criminal penalties that scale sharply with distance traveled and prior convictions, including mandatory prison time and unreducible sentences for aggravated cases. This creates a distinct, potentially harsher legal track than existing fleeing-and-eluding laws for this category of officers.

• Section 1 adds new Code Section 40-6-395.1 making it unlawful to refuse to stop or to flee a marked Department of Public Safety vehicle or uniformed officer after a visual or audible stop signal.
• Subsection (b) directs the trier of fact to determine the distance traveled while fleeing beyond a reasonable doubt, though distance is not an essential element of the offense.
• Subsection (c) sets tiered penalties: first offense fines of $1,000-$5,000 and 30 days per mile fled (30 days to 12 months); second offense within ten years, $2,500-$7,500 and up to 2 years; third or subsequent offense, $5,000-$10,000 and up to 10 years.
• Subsection (d) makes the offense an automatic felony with fines of $5,000-$10,000 and up to 10 years in prison if aggravating factors occur, such as speeding 20 mph over the limit, causing a collision, or leaving the state.
• Subsection (e) bars suspending, probating, deferring, reducing, or merging sentences for the most serious repeat or aggravated violations, and bars serving them concurrently with other offenses.
• Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-02-19House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
2. 2026-02-12House Second Readers (House)
3. 2026-02-11House First Readers (House)
4. 2026-02-10House Hopper (House)

• Lauren McDonald (R, HD-026)Primary sponsor
• Tyler Smith (R, HD-018)
• Clint Crowe (R, HD-118)
• Bill Hitchens (R, HD-161)
• Trey Kelley (R, HD-016)
• Alan Powell (R, HD-033)

• traffic offenses
• fleeing police
• Georgia State Patrol
• criminal penalties
• law enforcement