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SALT LAKE CITY -- There have been several high-profile, hit-and-run accidents in the last few months. The latest accident happened Saturday night. These accidents are putting a spotlight on what some are calling a flaw in a new Utah law that goes into effect May 12. It makes leaving the scene of an accident a felony, but it only makes it a felony for some.
Right now, if you're drinking and driving, and hit someone, causing injury or even death and stay at the scene, it's a felony. If you leave and sober up, it's only a misdemeanor.
Rep. Chris Herrod, R-Provo, hoped House Bill 237 would make it a felony instead of a misdemeanor for anyone who left the scene of an accident that caused injury or death.
But, the bill was amended before it passed, and now it's only a felony if the person has a prior DUI conviction.
Herrod says it unfortunately ended up that way because of concern it would cost too much to prosecute and imprison those convicted of leaving the scene.
He says it's better than nothing. He said, "Sometimes, it's better to get a law on the books and continue to work on it that way I would have preferred to have it, but they figured it would be cost $100,000 if it was implemented immediately."
The law isn't really changing much. It's only changing for those who have DUI convictions, people who might already know the law.
"Most people that have had a prior alcohol-related offense, they know that, they know," Herrod said. "They'll go home, sober up and if their conscience hurts them enough, they'll come back, and the worst that can happen is a misdemeanor."
Officers arrested Rene Armando Lopez in connection with Saturday's hit-and-run. They say Lopez took a breath test at the jail and it showed his blood alcohol level was .233, nearly three times the legal limit.
He left the scene, but got caught before he could sober up. That means he could still face felony DUI charges. But for leaving the scene? Under the new law: a misdemeanor because he's never been convicted of a DUI.
Twenty-eight-year-old Nicholas T. Murdock of Millcreek is charged with leaving the scene of an accident, tampering with evidence and obstruction of justice.
A 57-year-old man was hit while riding his bicycle near 6200 South on Wasatch Boulevard Thursday, March 19. Murdock was caught weeks later. Police don't know if he was drunk. If he was and had stayed, it would have been a felony.
Prosecutors have charged John Bishop in connection with the April 1 hit-and-run on I-80. He faces automobile homicide and driving under the influence charges. He had a previous DUI conviction, so under the new law leaving the scene would be a felony.
So in any of them, regardless of the circumstances as the law stood, it would be a misdemeanor for leaving the scene.
E-mail: corton@ksl.com
