Convicted drunk drivers who are caught a second time will be facing harsher statewide penalties, according to new laws passed by the state Senate that will take effect Oct. 1.
Several Senators sponsored the bill which went through the Senate Judiciary Committee. The legislation, which combine a set of 32 bills, was passed unanimously through both the Senate and House of Representatives.
The essence of the laws recognizes that repeat offenders "are causing a disproportionate number of injuries and deaths on the highway," said Sen. William Van Regenmorter (R-Hudsonville), chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The repeat offender laws increase penalties, create new drunk driving crimes and define a repeat offender.
Police officers who pull over second-time offenders will be required to confiscate the metal license plate and replace it with a temporary paper one on the spot, Ann Arbor Police Department Sgt. Greg O'Dell said.
Other penalties include vehicle immobilization, denial of vehicle registration and an ignition interlock system, which requires a breathalyzer test before being able to start the ignition.
Added to the list of crimes that drunk drivers face will be child endangerment for those drivers with a passenger under the age of 16.
Drunk drivers can also face felony charges of up to 15 years in prison when a death is involved and five years for an injury.
"These laws are designed to limit a repeat offender's access to their vehicles," said Elizabeth Boyd, a spokesperson for Secretary of State Candice Miller.
The new laws also define a repeat offender as someone who has had two or more alcohol convictions in seven years, three or more convictions of driving with a suspended or revoked license within seven years, or three or more alcohol convictions in 10 years.
"It does give us greater enforcement possibilities," said Sen. Alma Wheeler Smith (D-Salem Twp.)
The repeat offender laws were passed as a supplement to two other drunk driving laws passed in 1992 and 1997 after a series of incidents involving repeat offenders, Van Regenmorter said.
"We found that the repeat offenders were a much greater danger on the road," Van Regenmorter said, adding that they have long histories of drunk driving.
But Smith said that the number of drunk drivers in Washtenaw County and Ann Arbor are no greater than in other parts of the state.
Approximately 300 drunk drivers are arrested per year, O'Dell said.
Of the 6.9 million licensed drivers in the state, this law is really only geared at 2 to 3 percent of the driving population, Boyd said.
In the past year there have been 17 arrests on campus for drunk driving, said Lt. Bob Neumann, a Department of Public Safety official. Neumann added that "there are way too many people driving with suspended licenses.
"I think the only way to take care of it is to take away their car," he said.
Smith said that she expects this law to finally show drunk drivers that their behavior will not be tolerated.
"We are actually saying that enough is enough," Smith said.
- Daily Staff Reporters Nick Bunkley and Nicole Tuttle contributed to this report.
09-23-99
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