The students backing an overhaul of the immunity provision simply asked that the language be changed to specifically include drinking while driving as a breach of the peace. This would ensure that legislators who decide to drink and drive can face the same penalties that they hand down to ordinary Minnesotans.
Though it might seem like an obvious bill to support, legislators didn’t take long to raise concerns with the reform. Some questioned whether the change was necessary and others argued that there was no real evidence that legislators had ever used the get out of jail free card to avoid drunk driving charges.
However, students who researched the case say that an intensive review of legislators’ driving records showed that arrests for drunk driving were made between May and December, when the legislative session is over, yet not a single such arrest has occurred during the months when the legislature is in session. The students said that either this was an amazing and improbable coincidence, or that legislators had indeed used their pass to avoid DWI charges.
For now, the measure appears to have lost momentum and will remain stalled in the judiciary committee. Advocates of change say they hope to muster enough support to eventually get the bill out of committee, perhaps next year. They say that it is high time that legislators be held to the same standard as normal Minnesota motorists.
Source: “Senate deals blow to DUI immunity repeal,” by Dan Linehan, published at MankatoFreePress.com.