According to Louisiana DWI laws, refusing a breathalyzer test can help drunk drivers avoid DUI penalties, so state Rep. Tim Burns, R-Mandeville, is looking to pass stricter DWI laws in Louisiana to combat this problem.
If a person refuses a breathalyzer today, he or she may face a 180 day driver’s license suspension. The new DWI laws Burns is purposing would suspend a driver’s license for one year for refusing a breathalyzer test the first time.
The bill has been passed by Louisiana lawmakers and is waiting Governor Bobby Jindal’s signature. The law would become effective Sept. 1.
“The tide has really shifted in this issue,” Burns told the press. “It wasn’t that long ago that you could have open containers in the cars, and that’s slowly been gotten rid of, and I think as we move to a society and a state that’s more conscious of this issue, it’s just trying to provide for the public safety of it’s citizens.”
The bill has been criticized by some for infringing on people’s civil liberties, but it is receiving support in most communities.
A response was sent by Mothers Against Drunk Driving, MADD, supporting the bill. MADD expressed that eventually, the group would like to see breathalyzer refusal a criminal offense.
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Monday, August 31, 2009
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Official Passes out in Meeting with Whiskey Bottle
Many of us dread work meetings and may need a little pick-me-up to help get us through like a soda or afternoon coffee.
For the most part, the meeting is over in an hour or two and we move on about our day. That was not the case for one Lehigh Valley, Pa. government official.
According to police, elected Plainfield Township Supervisors Chairman Tim Frankenfield passed out drunk at a public meeting with a bottle of whiskey next to him.
Frankenfield, who had a blood alcohol content of more than twice the legal driving limit of .08%, was taken to the hospital before the meeting was over.
The police cited Frankenfield for public drunkenness. He was fined $119.50 as a penalty.
According to court records, Frankfield was cited for public drunkenness before. In December 2006 he was fined $219.50 for public drunkennes at a liquor store in Lower Nazareth Township.
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For the most part, the meeting is over in an hour or two and we move on about our day. That was not the case for one Lehigh Valley, Pa. government official.
According to police, elected Plainfield Township Supervisors Chairman Tim Frankenfield passed out drunk at a public meeting with a bottle of whiskey next to him.
Frankenfield, who had a blood alcohol content of more than twice the legal driving limit of .08%, was taken to the hospital before the meeting was over.
The police cited Frankenfield for public drunkenness. He was fined $119.50 as a penalty.
According to court records, Frankfield was cited for public drunkenness before. In December 2006 he was fined $219.50 for public drunkennes at a liquor store in Lower Nazareth Township.
Source
Monday, August 3, 2009
DUI crackdown over 4th of July in Chicago, Illinois
The Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists recently issued its 2008 rankings of DUI arrests by community for towns in Illinois outside of Chicago. With 651 DUI arrests in 2008, Naperville came in second only to Rockford, which had 785.
“The 4th of July weekend is a little different for us because we also have one of our major events — Ribfest — that weekend,” Waitkus said. “But our DUI enforcement that weekend isn’t much different. It just is an enhancement to what we’re doing the rest of the year, and not a major change.”
Other local police departments employ varying strategies for the holiday weekend. Wheaton Police Chief Mark Field said the city receives grant money from IDOT to hire additional officers to help provide extra patrols — known as “saturation patrols” — on major roadways, particularly near problem intersections like Naperville and Butterfield Roads.
“We try to focus on those areas where we know there are DUI problems but also where the most accidents occur,” Field said. “That’s the approach we’ve taken instead of checkpoints, and that’s been more successful for us.”
Glen Ellyn Police Chief Phil Norton said the holiday weekend means that his department has all hands on deck. With such daylong activities as a parade, and fireworks at Lake Ellyn, every member of the force works the 4th of July, he said.
“Earlier in the evening, we’re typically responding to numerous calls of fireworks, parties and loud noise and things like that,” Norton said. “Once things settle down, because we have so many people on duty, some of our officers turn their concentration toward DUIs.”
Oakbrook Terrace has one of the smaller police forces in DuPage County but has long segments of several of the county’s busiest thoroughfares, including Roosevelt Road, Butterfield Road, 22nd Street and Illinois Highway 83. Police Chief Mark Collins said his department made four DUI arrests in one night on a recent Friday.
“We’re going to be out there like we normally do every weekend,” Collins said. “We’re definitely going to add additional people on the 4th. We always do.”
With the official start of summer here and the road-clogging 4th of July holiday approaching, local police departments are redoubling their efforts to pull impaired drivers off the roads.
“We have more people that are injured and killed as a result of vehicle crashes,” said Naperville Police Cmdr. Gregg Waitkus. “We’re not saying that they’re all DUI-related, but it’s a real safety issue for us.”
The number of alcohol-related fatalities declined slightly statewide in 2008, with 1,043 fatalities reported, of which 35.5 percent resulted from a crash where at least one driver had a blood-alcohol level of 0.01 or greater, the Illinois Department of Transportation said. That compares with just more than 36 percent in 2007. The legal threshold in Illinois is 0.08.
“We have a reputation for being a town that makes a lot of Illinois DUI arrests,” Waitkus said. “We’re proud of that reputation. We really instill in our officers that DUI enforcement is a priority for our department.”
Source
“The 4th of July weekend is a little different for us because we also have one of our major events — Ribfest — that weekend,” Waitkus said. “But our DUI enforcement that weekend isn’t much different. It just is an enhancement to what we’re doing the rest of the year, and not a major change.”
Other local police departments employ varying strategies for the holiday weekend. Wheaton Police Chief Mark Field said the city receives grant money from IDOT to hire additional officers to help provide extra patrols — known as “saturation patrols” — on major roadways, particularly near problem intersections like Naperville and Butterfield Roads.
“We try to focus on those areas where we know there are DUI problems but also where the most accidents occur,” Field said. “That’s the approach we’ve taken instead of checkpoints, and that’s been more successful for us.”
Glen Ellyn Police Chief Phil Norton said the holiday weekend means that his department has all hands on deck. With such daylong activities as a parade, and fireworks at Lake Ellyn, every member of the force works the 4th of July, he said.
“Earlier in the evening, we’re typically responding to numerous calls of fireworks, parties and loud noise and things like that,” Norton said. “Once things settle down, because we have so many people on duty, some of our officers turn their concentration toward DUIs.”
Oakbrook Terrace has one of the smaller police forces in DuPage County but has long segments of several of the county’s busiest thoroughfares, including Roosevelt Road, Butterfield Road, 22nd Street and Illinois Highway 83. Police Chief Mark Collins said his department made four DUI arrests in one night on a recent Friday.
“We’re going to be out there like we normally do every weekend,” Collins said. “We’re definitely going to add additional people on the 4th. We always do.”
With the official start of summer here and the road-clogging 4th of July holiday approaching, local police departments are redoubling their efforts to pull impaired drivers off the roads.
“We have more people that are injured and killed as a result of vehicle crashes,” said Naperville Police Cmdr. Gregg Waitkus. “We’re not saying that they’re all DUI-related, but it’s a real safety issue for us.”
The number of alcohol-related fatalities declined slightly statewide in 2008, with 1,043 fatalities reported, of which 35.5 percent resulted from a crash where at least one driver had a blood-alcohol level of 0.01 or greater, the Illinois Department of Transportation said. That compares with just more than 36 percent in 2007. The legal threshold in Illinois is 0.08.
“We have a reputation for being a town that makes a lot of Illinois DUI arrests,” Waitkus said. “We’re proud of that reputation. We really instill in our officers that DUI enforcement is a priority for our department.”
Source
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