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AP: Kansas urged to toughen DUI laws
Published 6/16/2009 in News
LAWRENCE (AP) — Kansas lawmakers are being urged to tighten restrictions on drunken drivers and expand the mandated use of vehicle ignition interlock devices, which measure a motorist's blood-alcohol content, to even first-time offenders.
Ignition interlocks prevent engines from starting until drivers blow into the alcohol detectors to prove they're sober. If the blood-alcohol reading is too high, the car won't start. Kansas law currently requires anyone convicted of two or more DUIs to use the interlocks for at least one year.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving wants Kansas to join 11 other states in requiring all DUI offenders to use ignition locks, including first-time offenders. The group started its nationwide campaign in 2006 in an effort to have the device requirement for every offender in every state.
"We want to keep people from repeating these offenses," MADD state policy specialist Frank Harris said.
A bill introduced in the Kansas Legislature this year would have required the device after one DUI conviction and called for anyone convicted of five or more DUIs to use it for life, but it failed to win passage. Legislators instead approved a measure that established a DUI commission to review state laws and recommend changes. The commission meets July 1 and is required to submit a preliminary report by January.
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