{"id":3598,"date":"2014-12-17T16:35:37","date_gmt":"2014-12-17T23:35:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/scramsystems.com\/blog\/?p=3598"},"modified":"2018-09-12T21:03:20","modified_gmt":"2018-09-12T21:03:20","slug":"will-colorados-felony-dui-bill-reduce-drunk-driving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scramsystems.com\/blog\/2014\/12\/will-colorados-felony-dui-bill-reduce-drunk-driving\/","title":{"rendered":"Will Colorado’s Felony DUI Bill Reduce Drunk Driving?"},"content":{"rendered":"

In January, Colorado lawmakers will consider a new DUI bill (HB 1036)<\/a> making repeat DUI offenses a felony. Currently, Colorado is one of just five states plus the District of Columbia without a felony DUI law.\u00a0DUIs in the state\u00a0are treated similarly in the eyes of the court whether it is a first or tenth offense.<\/p>\n

Extreme DUI\u00a0Case Raises Questions<\/h3>\n

Recent news about Denny Lovern, who racked up 16 DUI convictions in 30 years<\/a>, has raised concerns that the state legislature hasn’t done enough to address serial drunk driving. If passed, the new law would create minimum jail sentences for drunk drivers with three or more offenses in the last five years.<\/p>\n

Similar Colorado bills have failed in the past. Some debate whether\u00a0a felony DUI bill would really make a difference in preventing impaired driving. They claim that some\u00a0individuals will\u00a0drive drunk no matter how severe the proposed punishment. And they point to\u00a0figures from\u00a0the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)<\/a>\u00a0showing that\u00a0while alcohol-involved highway deaths increased in 2012 (the latest year for which state-level data is available), DUI deaths decreased in four of the jurisdictions without felony DUI laws, including Colorado.<\/p>\n

Prevention, Punishment, and Public Safety<\/h3>\n

But supporters of the bill counter that a felony DUI law is about more than just dissuading potential drunk drivers or even punishing offenders\u2014it is about public safety. Some believe putting\u00a0hardcore drunk drivers<\/a> behind bars is the only way to take people like Lovern off the road to keep them from injuring or killing others. Without the option of a felony DUI, the prosecutor in Lovern\u2019s case is using\u00a0charges like attempted first-degree assault and attempted manslaughter to\u00a0try to obtain\u00a0a jail sentence.<\/p>\n

Why hasn\u2019t a felony DUI law been passed in Colorado? Many believe it has to do with the high cost of incarceration, as well as a preference for\u00a0treatment. However, treatment and punishment are not exclusive to one another and a felony DUI bill may give prosecutors and judges more choices for handling\u00a0repeat offenders<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Do you think felony DUI laws and mandatory incarceration help reduce\u00a0intoxicated driving, or do states need to\u00a0focus on\u00a0other options to deal with extreme repeat offenders?<\/p>\n