Proposed New Tougher Arizona DUI Laws

Arizona state lawmakers have introduced two bills which would increase the penalites for individuals convicted of DUI in Arizona.

Senate Bill 1184, provides for harsher penalties for Arizona DUI offenders, including increasing from one to two years the time an interlock device must be installed on the offender's car if they are convicted of an aggravated DUI. This bill would also allow Arizona DUI prosecutors to consider an offender's DUI convictions from the past seven years instead of three years when considering sentencing, allow the court to decide in cases of extreme or aggravated DUIs whether an offender shall be barred from consuming alcohol or subjected to twice-daily alcohol testing upon release, allow the Arizona Department of Transportation's Motor Vehicles Division to suspend an offender's driver's license for 90 days if he or she doesn't participate in or complete a treatment program, require an interlock device to be installed for two years in the vehicle of a DUI offender who had someone under 15 in the vehicle at the time of the offense.

Senate Bill 1008, would allow law-enforcement officers to immediately suspend for 90 days the driver's license of someone who is arrested for causing a serious traffic accident while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Current Arizona DUI law allows an officer to order a suspension that takes effect 15 days after it is issued.

Both bills cleared the Senate's public-safety committee and have to pass another panel before heading to the full Senate.

Jeff Weintraub

View current Arizona DUI penalties at http://www.azattorneys.com/


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Bill would force judges to impose full sentence in extreme DUI cases

Judges would have no option to suspend part of the sentence for those guilty of a first or second extreme DUI under a bill that received a Senate committee's endorsement Thursday.SB 1004, sponsored by Sen. Jim Waring, R-Phoenix, would eliminate conflicting language in statues governing DUI sentencing.A change approved last year forbids judges from suspending part of the sentence for someone guilty of extreme DUI. But language elsewhere continued to say judges could suspend some of the sentence if an offender had a blood-alcohol level of less than 0.20 and enrolled in some type of treatment.

That left judges citing one or the other, Waring said."It makes it so the judges are clear on sentencing and takes away any discrepancies," said Waring, who sponsored the legislation that made last year's changes.The Senate Committee on Public Safety and Human Services endorsed the bill unanimously and referred it to the Rules Committee. The measure includes an emergency clause, meaning it would become law immediately if two-thirds of both houses approve it and the governor signs it or allows it to become law without her signature.A person is driving under the influence if he or she has a blood-alcohol level of 0.08 or more. Extreme DUI applies when a driver has a blood-alcohol level of 0.15 or more.For a first extreme DUI offense, a judge previously had the right to reduce the sentence from 30 days to 10 for those who completed court-ordered screening, education or treatment. For a second offense, a judge could cut the sentence from 120 days to 60 under those conditions.Waring's bill also would change the law to allow judges to prohibit a person convicted of extreme DUI from consuming alcohol for a specific period of time. The offender would be continuously monitored or would have to submit to testing no less than twice a day.Jerry Landau, director of government affairs for the Arizona Supreme Court, told the committee that the court supports judicial discretion but in this case simply wants consistency in the law."It is necessary to remove one of the laws; it doesn't matter which one," Landau said.

Lauren Proper
Cronkite News Service

The information in this blog is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. Please contact us to obtain legal advice pertaining to your situation.

NY Giants player arrested on suspicion of DUI

Lindsey Collom
The Arizona Republic
Feb. 1, 2008 03:32 PM

A New York Giants backup player has been arrested on suspicion of DUI. The Arizona Department of Public Safety confirmed that an officer stopped the vehicle of reserve defensive end Adrian Awasom at 3 a.m. Friday. Blood test results aren't yet available, Sgt. Tim Mason said, but Awasom was cited on suspicion of driving under the influence and extreme DUI and was released. The threshold for extreme DUI is a blood-alcohol content of 0.15 or above. The legal limit is 0.08.

Awasom is on the team's injured reserve list. He was placed there Sept. 18 with a fractured back.Giants spokesman Pat Hanlon said the team was aware of the situation but would not confirm any details.Awasom was sent home by the team, Hanlon said. In his third year in the league, Awasom played in the first two games this season, injuring his neck in the second game against Green Bay.He was signed as a free agent in May 2005 and played in five games that season, mostly on special teams.Awasom was waived before the start of the 2006 season and then signed to the practice squad. He was signed to the 53-man roster Oct. 26, 2006, and played in 10 games, finishing with 10 tackles, a sack, five quarterback hurries and four special teams tackles.

The information in this blog is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. Please contact us to obtain legal advice pertaining to your situation.

71 arrested in Scottsdale for liquor violations

Carol Sowers
The Arizona Republic
Feb. 4, 2008 06:26 PM

SCOTTSDALE - Arizona liquor agents made 71 arrests for liquor violations in and around the FBR Open golf tournament and the Super Bowl parties in downtown Scottsdale.Forty-six of those arrests were at the FBR at the TPC Scottsdale and the golf tournament's nearby Birds Nest party tent.Six of those were for so-called "administrative charges" against liquor license holders at the golf tournament.

Lee Hill, a spokeswoman for the Arizona Department of Liquor License and Control, said those arrests could have been for a range of violations, such as not posting a license or "over-serving" partying patrons.The department used every investigator available in a crackdown on liquor violations during last week's super-charged partying, Hill said.For the first time, the agency required booze buyers at the FBR to wear a free wristband to prove they were old enough to drink. Patrons also were limited to buying no more than two drinks at a time. "The wristbands were a marked improvement from last year in our ability to curb underage drinking," Hill said.Liquor agents nabbed another 25 people at rousing Super Bowl-inspired parties in downtown Scottsdale.In addition, they levied 41 administrative charges against: Leather and Lace, the Bud Bowl, Sugar Daddy's, the 944 Super Village, Devil's Martini, Chronic Taco, Dirty Devil Bungalow, Myst and The Door. Scottsdale police, the Arizona Department of Public Safety and other East Valley police agencies made more than 120 DUI arrests since their special enforcement began Jan. 24.

The information in this blog is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. Please contact us to obtain legal advice pertaining to your situation.