GOVERNOR NIXON CONVENES PANEL TO INVESTIGATE TOUGHER DWI PENALTIES

Missouri Governor Jay Nix has convened a panel of more than two dozen law enforcement officers, attorneys, judges and anti-drunk driving activists in Jefferson City for the purpose of developing ideas for tougher DWI legislation, which will be proposed during the 2010 legislative session.

Governor Nixon advised the panel of his desire for tougher DWI penalties in Missouri. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that Nixon said one-third of repeat DWI offenders are charged with a misdemeanor instead of a felony, and that there are obstacles preventing police and prosecutors from sharing information about prior offenses.

Among those attending was Dwight Scroggins, a prosecuting attorney from St. Joseph. The Post-Dispatch reported that Scroggins told the gathering that one of the biggest problems is that those pulled over for DWI are often treated as first-time offenders who just made a mistake. "The reality is someone who gets arrested on a first-offense DWI is in all likelihood a multiple-time repeat drunk driver who has just gotten caught for the first time," Scroggins said.

The proposed solutions include making it a crime to refuse to submit to a breathalyzer test; removing DWI cases from municipal courts, which have low DWI convictin rates; creating a public database for drunk drivers, similar to the state's sex offender registry; and further expanding the use of ignition interlock devices.