Effective next year, those convicted of a first-time DUI in Mississippi will be assigned by a judge to either a 90-day license suspension or a 30-day suspension and the use of an ignition interlock device for six months.
First-time DUI offenders will face two options once convicted due to a new law intended to strengthen DUI laws in Mississippi.
Gov. Phil Bryant signed House Bill 481 into law last week. It will go into effect July 1, 2014.
The law states that first-time DUI offenders now have the option to have their license suspended for 90 days or have it suspended for 30 days and be required to use an ignition interlock device for six months.
The device prevents a car from starting if the driver has alcohol on his or her breath. To be convicted of a DUI, one must have a blood alcohol content of .08 percent.
Speaker of the House Philip Gunn, R-Clinton, supports the law because it provides offenders with an option that does not affect their mobility.
Those who choose the interlock device will still be able to provide their own transportation, unlike the other option, which suspends their licenses for 90 days.
“The intent of the bill is to help curb drunk driving,” Gunn said.
“The interlock device helps bring accountability and responsibility into the process.”
Rep. Mark Formby, R-Picayune, co-authored the bill because of his personal connection to the issue of drunk driving.
Two months ago Formby’s niece was killed and his brother and sister-in-law were seriously injured in an accident caused by a driver who was allegedly under the influence of alcohol and also had prior DUI convictions.
Formby said the accident could have been prevented if the driver had had an ignition interlock device installed in the car after a prior DUI because the car would not have been able to start.
“It could have saved the life of my niece, it could have saved the misery of my brother and sister-in-law, and it would have saved the driver the pain, agony and suffering she will go through having taken the life of a child,” Formby said.
The majority of lawmakers voted in support of the bill, but some did not approve. Rep. Reecy L. Dickson, D-Macon, said she does not support the bill because she did not see enough evidence presented to show that the ignition device would make a difference.
Sarah Longwell, managing director of the American Beverage Institute, said in a news release that the bill is too harsh a punishment for first-time offenders who accidentally have too much to drink and that it should be used for hardcore offenders instead.
Formby did not agree with those who opposed the bill; he said it is difficult to argue that lawmakers should not do everything possible to keep people from driving drunk.
Gunn agreed that the law was not too strict.
“This is a serious offense,” Gunn said.
“This puts people’s lives in jeopardy, so we shouldn’t even be looking at ways to make it easier; we ought to look at ways to make it more difficult for people to drink and drive.”
