New DWI laws take effect Saturday

Three new laws targeting driving while intoxicated take effect on Saturday, Louisiana State Police announced today.



The laws offer stiffer penalties to drivers who refuse to take a breath test; make driving with a suspended driver’s license a crime punishable with mandatory jail sentences; and limit defense questioning of police officers during administrative hearings for driver’s license suspension.

The laws, passed during the 2009 Legislature, are:

HB 445 - Strengthens the penalties for refusing to submit to a breathalyzer exam. As a condition of receiving a driver’s license, all Louisianans agree to provide a breath sample when properly requested. blood alcohol content can be the most important piece of evidence in the trial, but without it, prosecution is very difficult. Louisiana has one of the highest rates of refusal to submit to a breathalyzer in the nation. In fact, the national average for refusal of the test is 22.4 percent, but in Louisiana, it is 39 percent.

Laws to require drivers to submit to the breathalyzer are being strengthened nationwide. Refusal is now a distinct crime in 16 states and six states actually use warrants to forcibly obtain blood samples from drivers who refuse. In Arizona, this has decreased refusals from

With this new law, drivers’ license suspension penalties for refusing the breathalyzer will double from 180 days to one year on the first offense – and increase from 18 months to two years on the second offense.

These laws have been found to reduce DWI recidivism and the number of fatal crashes. In fact, he said research shows that license suspensions can reduce fatal crashes by up to 9 percent, which could translate to saving 35 lives in Louisiana in just one year.

SB 166 - Creates a law so that driving without a license that has been suspended due to a DWI arrest or conviction, is in and of itself a criminal offense with mandatory jail time. This new law provides real penalties for those drivers who continue to drive even after their license has already been suspended due to a DWI.


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