Thread: North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley approves tough new DWI laws

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/ ... 329816.htm

Posted on Tue, Aug. 22, 2006

Easley approves tough new DWI laws
Conviction rates are expected to rise
GARY L. WRIGHT
gwright@charlotteobserver.com

Gov. Mike Easley traveled to Charlotte on Monday to sign North Carolina's tough new DWI laws that will make it difficult for drunken drivers to escape conviction and are designed to be applied fairly and consistently throughout the state.

The governor, calling the new legislation the most comprehensive revision of North Carolina's DWI laws in the past 20 years, said he expects DWI conviction rates to rise.

"It'll make it more difficult for lawyers to cut deals for clients charged with DWI," the governor said. "There's not going to be a lot of room for wheeling and dealing.

"We want to send a clear signal that North Carolina is not going to allow people to drink and drive in the state without severe consequences."

The new laws, which go into effect in December, limit judges' latitude in deciding driving-while-impaired cases.

The laws stipulate that an alcohol level reading of 0.08 is enough for a conviction.

Under the current DWI laws, defense lawyers have been able to convince judges to acquit clients who had alcohol levels of 0.08 or more. The lawyers attacked the reliability of the Intoxilyzer, which measures alcohol levels, and argued that field sobriety tests did not demonstrate that their clients were impaired.

The new DWI legislation emerged from a task force on drunken driving and followed an Observer investigation that found that North Carolina's judges acquitted more than a third of DWI defendants who went to trial despite tests showing they had exceeded the alcohol limit.

The Observer also found conviction rates in judicial districts around the state varied wildly in 2002 and 2003, ranging from less than 10 percent to more than 90 percent.

Since the Observer's stories, published in 2004, trial conviction rates have risen steadily. N.C. judges convicted 72 percent of DWI defendants who tested over the alcohol limit and went to trial in 2005. The previous year, judges convicted 65 percent.

In Mecklenburg, the trial conviction rate rose from 71 percent to 80 percent.

The new DWI legislation also creates new crimes and stiffer penalties for drunken drivers with prior DWI convictions who injure or kill others in wrecks. For example, a drunken driver who kills in a wreck and has been convicted of DWI in the prior seven years could face up to 19 years in prison for aggravated felony death.

Also under the new law:

• Anyone purchasing a keg of beer must obtain a permit from the vendor. Authorities will then be able to trace the beer purchases.

• Anyone under 21 found with alcohol in their system could face misdemeanor charges. The current law forbids the purchase and possession of alcohol by those under 21.

• Prosecutors must report why DWI charges were dismissed. Observer stories showed that N.C. prosecutors dismiss more than 10,000 DWI charges each year -- mostly because the arresting police officers or the suspects themselves failed to show up in court.

The state's trial lawyers have criticized the new DWI laws for prohibiting judges from exercising their discretion, such as in cases where drivers show no signs of impairment other than the Intoxilyzer reading. The law relies too much on that one piece of equipment, officials with the N.C. Academy of Trial Lawyers said.

Prominent Charlotte defense lawyer George Laughrun criticized the new laws.

"If you're charged with DWI, a lot of your rights go out the window," Laughrun said. "These laws are going to make it tougher for defense attorneys to win acquittals."

Before signing the new DWI legislation, Easley told reporters that there were 549 fatalities in North Carolina involving drinking and driving last year. And he praised the Governor's Task Force on Driving While Impaired for its work in the two-year effort to help keep drunken drivers off North Carolina's highways.

"I believe this legislation will save lives in North Carolina," said Rep. Joe Hackney, D-Orange, one of the task force's co-chairs. "Drunk driving remains a serious problem in our state and we must continue to work together to prevent it."

Sen. Tony Rand, D-Cumberland, the other task force co-chair, said: "North Carolina roads will be safer thanks to this new law. It goes a long way toward making sure that DWI laws are applied equally around the state."

Rep. Becky Carney, D-Mecklenburg, called the DWI legislation "no nonsense" and said judges will now be able to convict drunken drivers even if the only evidence of impairment is an alcohol level is 0.08.

"I don't think people who drink and drive will be able to get off as easily as they have in the past," Carney said. "They can expect to be convicted.

"We now have accountability in our DWI laws that the public has been crying out for."

Some related articles on North Carolina's DUI problems with hispanics.

N.C. aims for stiffer DWI laws

http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=F ... ike+easley

Campaign aims to reduce Hispanic DUI's

http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=F ... nk+driving

Campaign to curb drunken driving

http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=F ... nk+driving

Hispanics in crashes lead DWI stats

http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=F ... nk+driving

The NC Democrats pulled the provision that would check legal status of those arrested for DWI out of this bill.

W

The NC Democrats pulled the provision that would check legal status of those arrested for DWI out of this bill.

W

Now they can still know everything about me but it's still "taboo" to know a persons legal status? Guess it's better to get them off the road atleast. It just makes no sense to me.