Lawmaker Proposes New Penalty for DWI's in Arkansas

Bill would not permit early jail release for felony drunk driving in Arkansas.

When Arkansas jails become overcrowded, lesser offenders are typically released before the end of their jail sentence to make room for those who have committed more serious crimes. A state legislator wants to enact a law that would prohibit the early release of those convicted of felony driving while intoxicated in Arkansas.

Representative Dan Greenberg, from Little Rock, said his legislation stems from a woman found guilty of her tenth DWI in Arkansas and sentenced to a minimum 20 months in jail, yet she was released before serving twelve months. Greenberg said that someone with ten DWI arrests “should be serving some serious time”.

According to Arkansas DWI law, a fourth offense and every subsequent offense for driving while intoxicated is a felony. Department of Corrections regulations classify Felony DWI as a non-violent offense, thus making offenders eligible for early release under Arkansas Emergency Powers Act. That Act was passed in response to chronic over crowding of Arkansas jails, and it was expanded in 2003 allowing non-violent criminals who have served at least six months of their sentence to be eligible for parole when there is a backlog of more than 500 state prisoners.

Greenberg stated that denying early release to felony DWI offenders would not create over-crowding because there are very few multiple DWI offenders. He went on to say that motorists with four or more Arkansas DWI arrests pose a danger to the general public. According to state police records, 46% of all traffic fatalities in Arkansas last year involved alcohol or drugs.

Other legislators propose increasing the penalties for AK DWI to require offenders to serve their sentence before being eligible for early release under the Emergency Powers Act. Greenberg said keeping felony DWI convicts in jail is only a short-term solution. He says Arkansas will only become safer after increasing jail capacity.