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House panel kills DUI bill

Move to toughen laws must wait on task force's review

Alan Gathright, Rocky Mountain News

Published March 8, 2007 at midnight

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Lawmakers Wednesday killed a bill to toughen drunken-driving penalties, saying they first want a new task force to review Colorado's patchwork of DUI laws.

House Judiciary Committee members voted 7-4 against the bill, despite moving testimony by Gerda Gavrilis.

She told committee members how her 25-year daughter, Arlene, was killed by a drunken driver the night before her wedding in 2005. The truck driver who slammed into Arlene's red Volkswagen Bug at 100 mph had been convicted in a prior DUI crash that injured a couple.

"In split second . . . the wedding guests became mourners, wedding flowers were converted funeral arrangements" and "Arlene was buried in her wedding dress," said her mother, holding a red-and-white ribbon bouquet from Arlene's bridal shower.

"Because of my personal tragic loss, I'm here, with my daughter's spirit, to support legislation that will (prevent) this from happening to another family's loved one," she said.

Lawmakers expressed commitment to prevent such tragedies but couldn't rally behind House Bill 1189.

Sponsored by Rep. Joel Judd, D-Denver, it would have offered first-time offenders a choice between a one-year driver's license suspension or agreeing to use an intoxication detector in their car for 11 months with a one-month suspension. The carrot-and-stick punishment would escalate with each offense.

The bill hit a fiscal roadblock when Judd proposed diverting $3 million in sales tax revenue normally used to fund highway improvements to pay for low-income offenders who couldn't afford the $850-a-year ignition-lock device installation and monitoring fees. The money would also be used to double police DUI crackdowns up to 15 weekends annually.

Democrats and Republicans said lawmakers had ordered the state DUI task force to propose an overhaul of DUI laws.

Panel recommendations are expected by next year's legislative session.

A world view: DUI penalties

UNITED KINGDOM:

• Blood-alcohol limit: 0.08% Fines up to $4,800. Maximum 6 months jail and a minimum of 1-year license revocation.

SWEDEN:

• Legal Limit: 0.02 %

Fines imposed by income and blood-alcohol content. For BAC of 0.03-0.10%, licenses may be revoked 2-12 months. Above 0.10%, a 12-36 month loss of license plus 1-2 months jail.

CANADA:

• Legal limit: 0.08%

Minimum fine of $600. License revocation up to 3 years for a first offense. Requires installation of an in-car breath-alcohol device.

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