Bill would make 5th DUI a felony
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Driving under the influence is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail — no matter how many times you’ve been convicted of the crime before. On Tuesday, the state House unanimously passed a bill that would send people convicted of five DUIs within seven years to prison. House Bill 3317 now moves to the Senate for consideration. “Prosecutors tell us that repeat drunk drivers are getting off too easy,” said Rep. John Ahern, R-Spokane, who sponsored the bill. Under the bill, a fifth DUI would be a felony, usually punishable by a minimum of 15 months in prison, Ahern said. The bill would provide $9.3 million to house the additional prisoners, said Rep. Pat Lantz, D-Gig Harbor, another of its sponsors. Lantz estimates that about 110 DUI offenders each year would face prison time under the proposed law, based on 2004 figures from the Judicial Information System, a statewide court database. In Washington, roughly 40,000 people are cited for DUI each year, said Rod Gullberg, research analyst for the State Patrol. The agency doesn’t track repeat offenders, but Gullberg estimates that 2 percent of those have received at least one previous DUI. Washington is one of six states without a felony DUI law, according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving. MADD supports stricter DUI laws like those in Oregon and California, where a fourth conviction results in a felony, said Amy George, communications director for the advocacy group. Repeat drunken drivers in Washington now are sentenced to more than a year in jail only if they commit another alcohol-related crime, such as vehicular homicide, said Margaret Nave, a senior King County deputy prosecutor. David Arganian, a Seattle criminal-defense attorney specializing in DUI, said most judges show leniency when sentencing first- and second-time offenders. But on the third, fourth or fifth offense, Arganian said, most judges already issue the maximum of a year in jail. A felony DUI law would only provide a short-term fix, said Arganian, who described most of his clients as average people who make mistakes. He thinks the state should do more to discourage drinking in the first place. “I don’t think it’s right to send someone to prison where we traditionally send violent criminals,” Arganian said. But supporters say a felony DUI law offers chronic drunken drivers something that county jails can’t always provide — treatment. Under the bill, convicted drunken drivers who complete a 10-month treatment program could be released early, Lantz said. In 2004, about 220 traffic-related deaths statewide involved alcohol or drugs, said Steve Lind, deputy director of the Washington Traffic Safety Commission. The commission is neutral on the felony DUI measure because it hasn’t found a direct link between longer sentences and reduced accident rates, Lind said. Earlier this session, Ahern sponsored a similar bill that died in committee. That version would have created a felony DUI for drivers convicted of their fourth offense. |