A bill being discussed this week in the Kansas legislature would mandate that persons convicted of a 4th time DUI in Kansas be sent to a special DUI prison for 18 MONTHS! If they are good they might be able to get out after 12 months. Holy moly.
As I mention often, the Kansas DUI laws change every single legislative session, because DUI is a political football that is easy for the legislature to kick around. This is crazy, though. Currently, the minimum sentence is 90 days in custody. This bill would remove all discretion from sentencing courts. Many times these cases are not filed for a year or more from the date of the offense. The statute of limitations is 5 years.
During the time between the offense and the case getting filed many people enter & complete treatment or otherwise make the changes in their livese to obtain and maintain sobriety.
This law would remove any incentive for a person to do so, since they will just get shipped off to the DUI gulag for 18 months regardless.
There are many people who plead to DUI charges back in the 1960’s, 1970’s, or 1980’s. It may have been 20 years since they were accused of a Kansas DUI, but if they get convicted of a fourth, they will get 18 months.
That kind of a sentence will usually result in a loss of career, loss of family and major loss of finances. Of course, this goes along with the loss of driving privileges (usually for 10 years). Making sure a person is jobless, divorced, homeless and without hope is no recipe for recovery. Let’s hope this doesn’t pass.
The amount of resources spent on DUI enforcement is already astronomical. Building, staffing, and operating a DUI prison would be an extreme waste of taxpayer money. The current law allows a judge to lock someone up for 12 months if they deserve it. Removing the possibility and hope of something less for those circumstances that deserve it is simply myopic.
Again, my fingers are crossed against this one.