Wednesday, July 18, 2012
New law treats cases continued without a finding as convictions.
The governor has signed a bill toughening the state's repeat drunken-driver statute, better known as "Melanie's Law." And it happened fast—Gov. Deval Patrick signed a bill closing a "loophole" in the law less than two months after the Supreme Judicial Court ruled that the statute did not apply to people who had their cases continued without a finding. Melanie's Law passed in 2005. It stiffened drunken-driving penalties by requiring an offender's license to be suspended for three years on a second offense. The law was named after 13-year-old Melanie Powell, who was killed by a repeat drunken driver as she crossed a street in Marshfield in 2003. The law, however, did not apply to those who admitted to sufficient facts of the crime but had …
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Proposed measures would stiffen penalties for repeat offenders.
If all goes as Senate and House leaders expect, the state will have tougher law against drunken drivers this summer. The two chambers are both pursuing separate means to the same end, which is closing the so-called "loophole" in Melanie's Law, which was passed in 2005 to stiffen penalties for driving under the influence. It's named after 13-year-old Melanie Powell, who was killed by a repeat drunken driver as she crossed a street in Marshfield in 2003. While the current law calls for an offender's license to be suspended for three years on a second offense, it does not count cases that are continued without a finding (CWOF) as an offense. In those cases, a defendant will admit to committing the crime but the charge against him or her will…
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Valets should be given more training, power, Consalvo said.
City Councilor Robert Consalvo wants valets to truly become “the last line of defense” when it comes to relevant instances of drunken driving in Boston. The District 5 councilor said at Wednesday’s Boston City Council meeting that he wants the city to work with valet companies to implement a plan that would better train valets to identify drunk drivers and give them the power to withhold a suspected drunk driver’s keys and vehicle for a designated period of time. “The ultimate goal is not to be punitive,” Consalvo told his fellow councilors, “ … it’s to keep drunk drivers off the road.” Consalvo’s proposal will go on to the council’s Committee on Public Safety. Consalvo said he’s not trying to vilify Boston’s valets now, he just saw an …
42.36029
-71.057309
Boston City Council
1 City Hall Sq Ste 550, Boston, MA
/articles/consalvo-city-should-work-with-valets-to-curb-drunken-driving
1601222
/locations/6294174
Brian Simoneau
7:17 pm on Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Thanks Kim. Excellent story otherwise, objective and very well written. more ›