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Ahern's felony DUI law helps to reduce
traffic fatalities
One-year anniversary shows 13 percent reduction of
impaired driving deaths
Just days from its
one-year anniversary, a new felony DUI law is proving to save lives in
Washington, said the bill's prime sponsor,
Rep. John Ahern, R-Spokane.
House Bill 3317 was
approved by the 2006 Legislature, making a fifth DUI conviction within a
10-year period a Class C felony punishable by prison time of up to five
years. The law took effect July 1, 2007.
"Traffic deaths this year
in Washington are down nearly 17 percent from January through June
compared with the same period in 2007. A report released earlier this
year by the Washington Traffic Safety Commission cited a 13 percent
reduction in impaired driving-involved fatalities in 2007," said Ahern.
"Although stepped-up enforcement certainly is one factor, I do believe
there is a direct correlation between this tougher DUI law and keeping
drunk drivers off our highways, especially when they realize they could
spend several years in prison."
Since the law went into
effect last year, the Washington State Patrol says its troopers have
arrested 33 people on suspicion of felony DUI. That does not include
arrests made by county and local law enforcement agencies in Washington.
Although prosecution
figures were not immediately available, Ahern notes county prosecutors
across the state are using the law to lock up repeat DUI offenders.
Earlier this month, a
35-year-old woman who had four previous DUI charges within the past
decade was sentenced in King County to three-and-a-half years in prison
after being convicted of felony DUI.
The latest conviction came
Tuesday in Everett when a 23-year-old Mount Vernon man who had racked up
four drunken-driving convictions in less than a year was sentenced to
more than three years in prison under Ahern's law. Prosecutors in
Snohomish County said it was the second person they have convicted under
the new law.
"Prosecutors and law
enforcement across Washington support this law, but they also realize
that we could save even more lives by making it stronger. That's why I
have introduced legislation that would make DUI a felony for those with
two or more convictions within seven years," said Ahern. "Although my
bill didn't advance this year, I plan to introduce it again in the 2009
session.
"We've got to keep working
to send a strong message that drunk driving will not be tolerated in
Washington," Ahern added. "We also have to let people know that if you
drink and drive, it won't be a slap on the wrist that you'll hear -- it
will be the sound of a prison door slamming behind you."
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For more information, contact:
Sarah Lamb, Public Information
Officer - (360) 786-7720
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