file photo Boyd Loving
DWI legislation would replace drunken driving suspensions with ignition locks
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 1, 2014 LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY JANUARY 1, 2014, 10:49 PM
BY KIBRET MARKOS
STAFF WRITER
THE RECORD
Most convicted drunken drivers in New Jersey could avoid mandatory license suspensions under a new bill making its way through the Legislature — a proposal that constitutes a major shift in how the state deals with the offense.
The bill would require all drivers convicted of DWI to install an ignition interlock device on their cars that would prevent them from starting the engine unless they are sober. More than 35,000 drivers are convicted of DWI in New Jersey every year, including more than 3,200 in Bergen County and more than 1,500 in Passaic County, according to state court figures.
But the proposal to eliminate license suspensions — a sanction which has long been a fixture in the state’s drunken-driving laws — has provoked debate among lawmakers, anti-drunken driving advocates and defense attorneys. Among the bill’s staunch supporters is Mothers Against Drunk Driving, or MADD, which said the bill is its top legislative priority in New Jersey.
“Taking away the license of a driver is not the best approach,” said Frank Harris, state legislative affairs director for MADD. “This is about a change in behavior and saving lives. It’s more of an effective approach to stopping drunk driving.”
– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/DWI_legislation_would_use_ignition_locks_instead_of_license_suspensions.html#sthash.Ag21nlt3.dpuf
