Prosecutor and defense attorney weigh in on Pennsylvania's new DUI law
Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala sent a letter to local police chiefs alerting them about a change to DUI law.
Previously, the Supreme Court had affirmed that someone who'd completed a diversionary program for a first-time drinking and driving offense and then got caught driving under the influence again would be charged as if it were their first DUI.
"The legislature came in and said, 'no, we're not going to go that way,'" Zappala said.
The new offense created by lawmakers is DUI following diversion. Effective last December, anyone who gets accused of a DUI within 10 years of completing a diversionary program will now be treated as a repeat offender.
"This might be challengeable under cruel and unusual punishment," said defense attorney Phil DiLucente.
"ARD, always, since the beginning of time, was for a clean slate," DiLucente said. "Now, those persons won't have technically a clean slate, because that additional DUI, if it's within 10 years, or if it's following 10 years, they can now consider that a second DUI."
A first-time DUI, even in the diversion program, will cost someone $1,000 in fines and $1,800 in fees. But the second time someone's caught driving drunk, they're going to pay more than $5,000. And there's mandatory minimum jail time, at least five days, all the way up to six months.
"First time DUI, second time DUI, third time DUI," DiLucente said. "This is a game-changer. Get a lawyer. There are ramifications that are not only punitive in nature but also financial."
Zappala says the whole point of a diversion program is to help someone address the issue that led to getting behind the wheel drunk or high on prescription drugs.
"I don't want you to come back in the system," Zappala said. "If there's a problem that brought you into the system in the first place, let's fix it. Let's work together. I mean, there are a lot of people that want to help, and we try to bring all those assets to bear."
DiLucente says the change in the law means prosecutors don't have as much leeway to work with defendants.
"Now we have a situation where it's still at the discretion of the district attorneys in the various counties for ARD," DiLucente said. "However, it is not anymore when it is a potential repeat offender."
"I just want to make sure the public's aware this is the law," Zappala said. "This is how they've told me to apply it. This is how I have to apply it."
Zapalla says if you drive drunk and hurt or kill someone, there's not much anyone in the system can do for you.
"You're probably going to go to prison," he said.
But he says the change in the law may not be making people much safer.
"Are you really helping the people who are subsequent offenders? If you got a problem, man, you got to address it."
"Please don't drink and drive. It's expensive, very expensive," he said.