Utah DUI Convicts Face Innovative New Bill

I think this is pretty good.

According to KSLtv.com, a new Utah bill could force some DUI convicts to have a "no alcohol sale" stamp on their license.

From the article:

"HB437, sponsored by Rep. Steve Eliason, R-Sandy, advanced unanimously Wednesday out of the House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee. It moves to the full House of Representatives for a vote.

The bill would apply to people convicted of “extreme DUI” – meaning those with a blood alcohol level of at least three times the legal limit, or with a combination of drugs and alcohol in their system – but a judge could apply it to others as well." (LINK TO FULL ARTICLE)

I like this idea, obviously they can still figure out a way to get alcohol, but it just makes it more difficult. Seems like a no brainer.

Here are some DUI stats in Utah from highwaysafety.utah.gov: (LINK TO PAGE)

• Alcohol-related crashes in Utah are 14.7 times more likely to be fatal than all other types of crashes
• The average BAC for alcohol-related DUI arrests in Utah is 0.15 (three times the legal limit)
• Alcohol-related fatalities accounted for 20% of all traffic fatalities from 2020 to 2024
• In 2023 (SFY), there were 11,440 DUI arrests in Utah; that’s an average of 31 arrests per day

These are overwhelming.

I've always thought the reason our system is overly lenient on drunk drivers is because everybody drinkg-- lawyers, judges, etc...And many of them have probably driven home buzzed before and so they have a subconscious sympathy.

Let me know your thoughts.