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Tucson, Arizona | Published: 05.16.2007
PHOENIX — Drive drunk. Get caught. Get a little something extra for your car. And it won't be fuzzy dice.
With only two dissenting votes, the Senate on Tuesday approved legislation requiring anyone convicted of driving under the influence to install an ignition interlock in any vehicle they use and keep it there for a year.
The devices prevent a car from starting unless it records a "clean" breath sample, meaning a blood-alcohol content no higher than 0.03 percent. That's less than half the legal limit of 0.08 percent. The approximately $60-a-month cost for installation and leasing would be borne by the vehicle owner.
Until now, the interlock requirement has been reserved for repeat offenders and those convicted of "extreme DUI," meaning a blood-alcohol content of at least 0.15. But lawmakers agreed, over the objection of the liquor industry, to make the interlocks mandatory in all cases.
The measure, Senate Bill 1029, now goes to the governor. If signed, Arizona would become only the second state in the country, after New Mexico, with such a requirement.
The law also would require anyone with an alcohol percentage of 0.20 or higher to serve at least 30 days in county jail. Technically, that's the law now. But currently judges can suspend all but 10 days of that if a person completes court-ordered drug or alcohol screening or treatment programs.
But it's the part about ignition interlocks for anyone convicted of drunken driving that is causing a controversy.
"The reality is, most people don't reoffend," said Sen. Jorge Garcia, D-Tucson, who called it an inappropriate penalty for those whose only crime is a single drunken driving conviction.
But Sen. Jim Waring, R-Phoenix, said that isn't always the case. "I've been told about 8 percent of people who get a DUI get another one within a year," he said. "Now you're not just a one-time person — you went to a party. Now you're a habitual offender."
Don Isaacson, lobbyist for the Arizona Licensed Beverage Association, complained of "prohibitionist-type legislators" cracking down on first-time offenders.
"What we're concerned about is creating such a prior restraint on socially consuming alcohol that it would have a chilling effect throughout the industry," Isaacson said.
Waring, however, said a first conviction doesn't necessarily mean a first offense.
"You probably did it 100 times to get caught the one time, if you talk to police officers," he said.
Those convicted of even a single drunken driving offense must serve at least one day in jail. They also lose driving privileges for 90 days — though they can drive to and from work in the last 60 days — and face fines and surcharges that can hit $1,500.
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