Posted: | March 27, 2017 02:14 PM |
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From: | Senator Scott Martin |
To: | All Senate members |
Subject: | DUI Penalty Enhancement |
On July 8, 2014, Meredith Demko, an 18-year old recent high school graduate from Lancaster County was driving home in the middle of the afternoon when she was killed by an individual who was drunk, high on heroin, and driving on a suspended license due to a prior DUI conviction. Volunteer Fire Chief Rodney Miller was killed in the line of duty at the age of 45 in April 2013 by a repeat hit-and-run/repeat drunk driver. At the time of his death he was responding to earlier DUI-related crash in which the driver was drunk and high, and driving on a suspended license. In April 2013, 24-year old Liam Crowley was killed by a drunk driver with a suspended license and 5 prior DUI convictions. According to the Chester County District Attorney, the driver would have been eligible to drive as of 2012 had he completed the proper paperwork. Kaitlyn Berry died at the age of 24 at the hands of a drunk repeat DUI offender driving on a suspended license. The driver’s 7-year old son and Berry’s mother were also severely injured in the accident. Unfortunately, this list goes on for too long. In 2014, over 50 percent of the 170,000 Pennsylvanians who had suspended licenses due to DUI convictions were repeat offenders. The existing Pennsylvania DUI laws are inadequate and ineffective in combating the serious problem of repeat DUI offenders. This proposed legislation would amend:
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Introduced as SB635