DUI Bill Nears Final Hurdle

DUI Bill Nears Final Hurdle


Save Story
Leer en espaƱol

Estimated read time: Less than a minute

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- State lawmakers have pushed a bill to strengthen restrictions on repeat drunk drivers past its penultimate hurdle -- leaving only Gov. Jon Huntsman's signature to make it law.

Utah already makes it illegal for people with a previous DUI conviction to drive with any amount of alcohol in their system for two years. But the bill by Sen. Carlene Walker, R-Cottonwood Heights, extends the period of time for zero-tolerance enforcement to five years on a second offense and a lifetime alcohol restriction on a third offense, which is considered a felony.

The bill also institutes a five-year alcohol restriction on drivers who refuse a Breathalyzer or blood test, whether they are criminally charged with a DUI or not.

Senators and representatives approved the measure without a single opposing vote.

The only opposition to the measure came from the American Beverage Institute, which argued the law would create an unfair legal system with different standards for different people.

(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Most recent Utah stories

Related topics

Utah

STAY IN THE KNOW

Get informative articles and interesting stories delivered to your inbox weekly. Subscribe to the KSL.com Trending 5.
By subscribing, you acknowledge and agree to KSL.com's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

KSL Weather Forecast