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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2013 - 2014
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | September 16, 2014 04:28 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Senator Anthony H. Williams |
| To: | All Senate members |
| Subject: | Enhanced DUI Penalties for Repeat Offenders |
| In the near future, I will be introducing legislation to amend Title 75 (Vehicles) and Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure) to close several loop holes in Driving Under the Influence (DUI) enforcement. On average, one person is killed each and every day in Pennsylvania as a result of a driver who is under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Over half of those convicted of DUIs in the Commonwealth are repeat offenders, compared to one in four nationally. An example of the problem is the recent case of a Chester County lawyer who accumulated no less than five drunk driving arrests in one year, yet was able to plead guilty to each count as a first-time offender. Shockingly, he was allowed to retain his driver’s license during that entire yearlong period because he had not yet been convicted of a DUI, despite testing positive for blood-alcohol levels well beyond the legal limit on each occasion (“Despite tougher Pa. DUI laws, many repeat offenders stay on the road,” The Philadelphia Inquirer, Sep 6, 2014). My legislation would enhance several areas of DUI enforcement brought to light in that article. First, it would re-grade a first DUI offense to allow a judge to impose a jail sentence if he or she believes it is warranted. Currently, a first-time offender may only serve up to six months of probation. Second, it would impose stiffer license suspension periods for habitual DUI offenders from the current eighteen months to ten years for those with three or more convictions in the highest category. Third, judges would be required to sentence multiple DUI convictions separately, following the sentencing guidelines contained within Title 75 for each, to prohibit multiple instances of impaired driving to be treated as “first-time” offenses. Most importantly, this bill would end the ability of multiple offenders to continue to legally operate a motor vehicle by requiring a license suspension for a second or subsequent arrest, not conviction, upon testing positive for a blood-alcohol level above acceptable limits. It is imperative that we remove habitual offenders from the road as quickly as possible. Please join me in co-sponsoring this important piece of legislation. If you have any questions you may contact Kyle Miller at (717) 787-5970 or kmiller@pasenate.com. |