S.C. Legislators Very Close To A DUI Compromise

By Lee Bandy
SouthCarolina Insider

(4/5/08) Finally, after years of quarreling among themselves, South Carolina legislators are about to agree on compromise legislation that would toughen penalties for drunken driving.

It’s about time, critics say.

In recent years, South Carolina has ranked near the top nationally in the rate of alcohol-related traffic deaths.

Of 1,037 people killed in crashes in South Carolina in 2006, 523 – or 50 percent – died in alcohol related wrecks, according to data provided by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

“I think we are very, very close” to a compromise, said Sen. Larry Martin, R-Pickens, chairman of the conference committee considering the legislation.

This is progress. For decades, the warring factions in the Legislature have been unable to reach accommodation.

The pending compromise would create a tiered system tying penalties to the driver’s alcohol level and prior DUI record – the higher the blood alcohol content and more prior offenses, the stiffer the punishment.

Differences still remain, however.

Unresolved is the length of time a driver’s license should be suspended for drivers younger than 21 who refuse to take breath tests.

The members on the conference committee agreed to a proposal requiring all convicted offenders to undergo alcohol or drug treatment, and dropping the requirement that offenders be given multiple Miranda warnings by officers after be stopped.

State law enforcement officials said they were satisfied with the compromise.

But longtime DUI defense attorney Rees Joye of Charleston said lawmakers are focusing on the wrong issue.

He noted that out of about 113,000 DUI arrests last year, about 1,150, or less than 10 percent were repeat offenders.

“South Carolina does not have a problem with recidivism,” he said.

Instead, Joye said lawmakers could better prevent serious DUI accidents by requiring bar owners to carry liability policies of at least $1 million.