Clock ticking to raise state DUI penalties
HARRISBURG » With a limited number of Session days remaining, families who have lost a loved one to an impaired driver are hoping DUI laws will soon be updated.
Senate Bill 961, which would increase penalties for repeat DUI offenders including those who in-
jure and kills, is currently in the PA House Judiciary Committee, after passing in the Pennsylvania State Senate in April in a vote of 45-4.
Members of Pennsylvania Parents Against Impaired Driving (PAPAID) noted that the state House of Representatives has an opportunity to pass legislation that will address DUI offenders who kill hundreds of loved ones every year across the Commonwealth. They believe that failure to pass SB 961 will result in additional deaths that could otherwise be avoided.
Senate Bill 961 would increase penalties to repeat DUI offenders who continue to break DUI-related laws. Changes to existing laws would include:
1) Felony penalty for a
third-time DUI conviction within 10 years, if third offense involves blood-alcohol content of .16 or higher; and in all other cases at fourth offense. Pennsylvania is one of four states that does not treat repeat DUI as a felony, regardless of the number of prior DUI convictions.
2) Increased penalties for homicide by vehicle while DUI, which is currently a three-year minimum sentence regardless of offender’s DUI history. Specifically, if convicted of a prior DUI, the minimum sentence for causing a death is five years; if convicted of two or more prior DUIs, the minimum sentence for causing a death is seven years. Penalties would also be increased for those driving on a DUI-related license suspension.
Liam Crowley, 24, of Tredyffrin, was killed in April 2013 in Chester County by a drunk driver who had
seven prior DUI arrests. The other driver had a suspended license due to his prior DUI when he was arrested for the crash that killed Crowley. His father, Pat Crowley, is among those advocating for changes that calls for stricter penalties for repeat DUI offenders.
This proposed legislation would update many of the existing DUI-related laws in Pennsylvania which do not distinguish between first time and repeat DUI offenders as well as those who continue to drive on a DUI-related suspended license. PAPAID said both of these groups are part of the high risk population that is the cause of the majority of deaths and injuries related to DUI crashes in Pennsylvania. The proposed law would result in more series penalties for repeat future DUI-related offenses.
PAPAID noted the need for this legislation by the following Pa. DUI facts:
• Repeat DUI offenders are responsible for approximately 40 percent of all DUIrelated fatalities.
• In 2016, more than 10,000 individuals were convicted of their second or subsequent DUI.
• An estimated 70,000 to 105,000 individuals with DUI convictions continue to drive on a suspended license.
• There are more than 50,000 new DUI cases annually.
• On average in each of the past eight years, there are more than 12,000 impaired crashes, resulting in 8,700 injuries and 320 deaths.