Posted on 02/23/2006 5:12:43 AM PST by Cagey
Baltimore television station WBAL reported that one bill would have convicted drunken drivers wear a Scarlet Letter of sorts.
According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration statistics, 45 percent of Maryland's traffic fatalities are related to alcohol. The House Judiciary Committee heard about 18 driving under the influence bills Tuesday, but none as controversial as the so-called Scarlet Letter approach.
Montgomery County Delegate Herman Taylor, D-District 14, introduced House Bill 1315, which would require the state's Motor Vehicle Administration to issue special license plates to people convicted on at least two DUI offenses.
WBAL reported critics have called the measure a bumper sticker solution to crash prevention.
"It's intended to track people who have had two or more offenses dealing with drunken driving," Taylor said.
The license plates would contain the letters "DUI" in bold. Taylor said a drunken driver struck him last May, and at the time of the crash, police had no idea that person was a multiple offender.
Taylor considers the DUI plate an ounce of prevention because it gives police a license to stop the driver at any time.
"(The bill) will allow (police) to, without probable cause, pull them over and check" their driving records, Taylor said.
Defense attorneys have raised questions as to the specter of possible civil rights and other violations.
"I don't think the answer is a license plate, I think the answer is certainly more treatment and rehabilitation, which the governor has supported (and) the House Judiciary Committee has supported, tougher penalties for subsequent offenders," said Montgomery County Delegate Luiz Simmons, D-District 17, a member of the House Judiciary Committee.
Other states have already instituted similar measures. WBAL reported Ohio issues to habitual drunken drivers a yellow license plate that has red numbers.
Last year, Florida's Legislature considered requiring those with multiple DUI convictions to use a bright pink license plate. WBAL reported a similar issue also came up some 10 years ago in California.
Michigan currently uses paper tags to identify repeat offenders, while Oregon and Washington state put a zebra sticker over the plate of habitual offenders.
Living in Maryland, rather than seeing habitual DUIers given special plates I would prefer if they were not given plates at all.
The only acquaintance of mine who has received a DUI in this state was pulled over driving 75 in a 40 with a BAC of 0.12. He received a temporary license that night on discharge from the police station, and was eventually sentenced to alcohol classes, received various fines, and was put on a probationary license for a year. On completion of that year, the entire event was stricken from his record.
In other words, he wasn't off the roads for 12 hours.
Maryland does not take DUI seriously.
Herman Taylor: Future Reichsfuhrer of Maryland.
I would make sure they had no license plate, and would be in a database prohibiting car dealers from selling vehicles new or used to these idiots. Whatever happened to real balls when it comes to dealing with inebriated louts on our public roads?
I don't agree with this either. A healthy stint in prison, plus a permanent ban on buying vehicles and a revokation of his license, may be the better way to help these multiple-offense losers come around. He'd better move to someplace near mass transit, heh-heh.
Hell why not just summarily execute 'em. especially if they haven't ever hurt anyone. Get 'em before they get the chance. And while you're at it lower the BAC limit to .01 like they do in DC.
I'm not one of them. The GOP is too slimy to earn that level of loyalty from me.
Would this include illegals? Or would pro illegal groups argue that they would be too stigmatized and should be exempt.
Apply that logic to guns, and you could quite probably justify every gun confiscation law implemented by tyrannical regimes around the world. After all, if a disarmed populace, rendered more vulnerable to crime, tyranny, and genocide, could prevent one mall shooting/school shooting/kid shooting another kid by accident, then it'll all be worth it.
Fascist prick.
I personally wouldn't execute a DUI. That would be a waste of good chemicals, and there's always some mass murderer or other sociopathic freak around infinitely more deserving of the needle. However, depriving him of his means of mayhem (the motor vehicle) and sending him "up the river" for awhile would help enhance real safety on our public roads. Repeat offenders should not be behind the wheel at all.
Oh, and another thing...I don't like the .08 laws, which I think are MADD-approved. They go too far.
The .08 laws were only MADD approved when the legal limit was 0.10. Now that they have their .08, their recommendation is .05.
What they really want is prohibition.
None other than what I have stated.
I think you do, though.
LOL! Cool pic.
Thx!
Better to be "schtopped" than "schtupped!"
We have party plates in Ohio..................... I think drivers might get them after 3 convictions?
DUI laws here seem to be aimed at raising revenue for the PDs and continuing the cycle of federal extortion.
Wouldn't it make sense for LEOs to focus on violent crime and deal with drinkers in other ways?
It could be argued that our tax dollars wwould be better spent subsidizing cab rides home than requiring 3 cruisers to be "out of service" for 4 hours booking an offender who blew a .08.
One thing is certain, it is a politically correctness sin to be on the unpopular side of this debate.
Maryland Bill Aims To Put 'DUI' On License Plates
Of course no one here would advocate putting party plates on ht eback of our vp's car, right? how about on the back of good 'ol gw?
Both have drunk driving records right?
Better to be "schtopped" than "schtupped!"
OY!
Maybe we should rename them CN-TAD (Carrie Nation - Totalitarians Against Drinking).
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