hb 0210

CHAPTER 169

HB 210-FN - FINAL VERSION

AN ACT relative to the penalties for persons convicted of subsequent DWI offenses and correcting the ignition interlock program laws.

SPONSORS: Rep. Tholl, Coos 5; Rep. Almy, Graf 14

This bill changes the penalty for fourth or subsequent violations of the intoxication or under the influence of drug laws from a misdemeanor to a felony. This bill extends the period of time which may be considered in determining prior offenses from 7 years to 10 years, and clarifies the applicability of habitual offender penalties.

This bill also makes technical corrections to the alcohol ignition interlock laws.

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

AN ACT relative to the penalties for persons convicted of subsequent DWI offenses and correcting the ignition interlock program laws.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

169:1 Motor Vehicles; Rules of the Road; Serious Traffic Offenses; Penalties for Intoxication or Under Influence of Drug Offenses; Extension of Period of Prior Offenses Considered. Amend the introductory paragraph of RSA 265:82-b, II to read as follows:

Upon conviction of any offense under RSA 215-A:11, RSA 265:82, or RSA 265:82-a, based on a complaint which alleged that the person has had one or more prior convictions under RSA 215-A:11, RSA 265:82, or RSA 265:82-a, or RSA 630:3, II, or under reasonably equivalent offenses in an out-of-state jurisdiction, within [7]10 years preceding the date of the second or subsequent offense, the person shall be subject to the following penalties in addition to those provided in paragraph I:

169:2 Motor Vehicles; Rules of the Road; Serious Traffic Offenses; Penalties for Intoxication or Under Influence of Drug Offenses; Fourth and Subsequent Offenses; Felony. Amend RSA 265:82-b, II(c) to read as follows:

(c) For a fourth or subsequent offense, any person convicted under this paragraph shall be subject to all the penalties of subparagraphs (a) and (b) except that the person shall be guilty of a felony, and the person's driver's license or privilege to drive shall be revoked indefinitely and the person shall not petition for eligibility to reapply for a driver's license as provided in subparagraph (b)(1) for at least 7 years.

169:3 Motor Vehicles; Rules of the Road; Serious Traffic Offenses; Penalties for Intoxication or Under Influence of Drug Offenses; Prior Convictions Considered. Amend RSA 265:82-b, III to read as follows:

III. If any person is convicted of a violation of RSA 215-A:11, RSA 265:82, or RSA 265:82-a, and the conviction is not based upon a complaint which alleges prior convictions as provided in RSA 265:82-b, II, but the person is found to have had one or more such prior convictions in this state or in an out-of-state jurisdiction within [~~the 7-year period~~] 10 years preceding the date of the offense, the person's driver's license or privilege to drive shall be revoked for not less than 180 days nor more than 3 years. The license shall not be restored until the person has successfully completed a 7-day program at the state-operated multiple DWI offender intervention detention center program or an equivalent 7-day residential intervention program approved by the director of the office of alcohol and drug abuse prevention, as provided in RSA 172-B:2-b and RSA 263:65-a, at the person's own expense. The court may order attendance at a residential treatment center, for a period not to exceed 30 days, at the person's own expense.

169:4 Motor Vehicles; Habitual Offenders; Penalty. Amend RSA 262:23, III to read as follows:

III. Notwithstanding paragraph I, any person who qualifies under RSA 259:39[~~, who does not have a conviction under RSA 265:82 or any misdemeanor or felony motor vehicle convictions pursuant to RSA title XXI,~~] shall not be subject to the minimum mandatory provisions of paragraph I if, and only if, that person's certification was not based on any conviction under RSA 265:82 or any misdemeanor or felony motor vehicle conviction pursuant to RSA title XXI, and that person has not been convicted of any such offense, or any reasonably similar offense in any jurisdiction within the United States and Canada, since the date of the certification; provided, however, that any such person shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor and may be sentenced to one year or less. Any person incarcerated upon the effective date of this paragraph, pursuant to certification as an habitual offender under RSA 259:39, who does not have a conviction under RSA 265:82 or any misdemeanor or felony motor vehicle convictions pursuant to RSA title XXI, may apply immediately to the superior court for sentence review and reduction.

169:5 Applicability; Period of Prior Offenses. For purposes of enforcing RSA 265:82-b, II, as amended by section 1 of this act, complaints shall not allege prior convictions occurring more than 7 years prior to the effective date of this act.

169:6 Technical Correction; Renumbering of Alcohol Ignition Interlock Laws. The director of legislative services is hereby authorized to renumber the provisions of the Alcohol Ignition Interlock Program subdivision, enacted as RSA 265:82-e - 82-g, to read as RSA 265:93-a - 93-c, in order to correct the placement of the subdivision within RSA 265. The director of legislative services is authorized to make technical corrections to any RSA sections amended or inserted by 2000, 287 or any other act as necessary to accommodate the renumbering herein. The authority granted to the director of legislative services under this section shall not include the power to make any substantive changes.