Those drivers in Oklahoma who have run into trouble with the law now have yet more penalties to worry about. That’s because the Oklahoma legislature just passed a new measure that grants greater power to prosecutors seeking to punish those charged with DWI.
The law, House Bill 1112, would make it much easier for prosecutors to seize the vehicles belonging to drunk drivers, something that has always been difficult for law enforcement in the past. Previously, prosecutors could use their authority to have vehicles seized, but only in rare cases. The law limited such seizures to case where felons caused injury-producing collisions, something that only rarely occurred.
The new law says that prosecutors can more easily seize vehicles, beyond those who cause serious accidents that result in injuries to others; third-time offenders are also able to have their vehicles confiscated. The law says that to do this, the district attorney in charge of the case only needs to file a motion to request forfeiture of the motor vehicle and have that motion approved by a judge.
One issue that this law raises is what happens when the drunk driver is actually using a car that belongs to someone else. In these cases, prosecutors say that the rightful owner can simply attend the forfeiture hearing and ask the judge to toss out the motion. The true owner will have to prove to the court that the vehicle is actually theirs and that they did not know or did not have reasonable cause to know that the vehicle would be used for drunk driving.
Advocates of the new law say that they were looking for ways to increase the penalties associated with drunk driving without simply increasing jail time. Their hope is that a larger pool of drivers will be impacted by this law than those that would have been impacted by lengthier jail terms. By increasing pain on a greater number of people, the goal is that it dissuades others from driving dunk.
Others point out that the measure can be incredibly punitive to those suffering from serious alcohol problems and can lead to even more financial devastation than a typical DWI arrest. Already, many estimate that the cost of a DUI arrest comes close to $10,000. With the new ability of prosecutors to seize vehicles, it is possible that the cost associated with the DWI could double or triple.
For many people, their car may be the only substantial asset they own. While some people may not own a house, most either own or are making payments to own their vehicles. The loss of such an important asset will hit this group of drivers especially hard. Whether the law succeeds at lowering the rate of drunk driving remains to be seen.
Source: “New Law Makes It Easier For Oklahoma To Confiscate Drunk Drivers’ Vehicles,” by Emory Bryan, published at NewsOn6.com.
