Tag Archives: senate bill 6090

DUI Advice, DUI Risk, DUI Tips

Bill to change DUI law dies in Washington State Senate

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If you follow this blog then you know Im a DUI lawyer in Seattle. One of the things that I do for my practice is try and stay up to date on any potential changes of existing DUI laws. Not only is this important to keep my practice current, but it also forces me to read the news.

If you recall last year during the 2013 legislative session there were a bunch of changes to DUI laws that were proposed. They were all set to make the existing DUI laws harsher and increase the penalties one would face if charged with a DUI. Most of these proposed laws did not pass due to the budget constraints. But the Washington State Legislature is at it again for the 2014 legislative session.

However last month one bill to change Washington’s DUI laws died in the state House of Representatives, when it wasn’t approved. The proposal House Bill 2506 would have raised a felony DUI conviction from a Class C felony to Class B, but the measure failed to move out of a House committee after a public hearing earlier this week. The bill would have increased maximum sentences for felony DUI convictions from five to 10 years, and increased fines from $10,000 to $20,000.

Now even though that bill died another bill has been proposed in the Senate and it is gaining ground quickly. Senate Bill 6090, sponsored by Rep. Mike Padden from Spokane, would cut that number of DUI convictions from four to three for a felony DUI. Currently a DUI becomes a felony if a person has four or more convictions in 10 years.

If I was a betting man I think this law will eventually pass. It may not be this legislative session. Quite frankly there are still budget concerns and monies are needed for another areas. But eventually the proponents of making Washington State have the Toughest DUI laws in the Nation will prevail.

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About the author: Matthew Leyba is a DUI lawyer in Seattle. His practice focuses on representing those charged with DUI and DUI related arrests. He has rated as a 10/10 by Avvo.com when it comes to Seattle DUI Lawyers, and he was named a Rising Star in that area of law by the Seattle Met Magazine.

Bellevue DUI Laws, DUI Tips, Seattle DUI Laws

Senate panel weighs new felony DUI bill in Washington State

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A Senate panel is weighing a measure that would make it a felony charge to drive under the influence when the driver has three prior offenses within 10 years. The Senate Law & Justice heard testimony on Senate Bill 6090 on Monday, and will likely take a vote on it in the coming days.

Under the existing law, a DUI is a felony only if there are four or more prior offenses within 10 years. Last year the idea was originally proposed but eventually was cut due to the estimated cost. However the same work group is at it again and Governor Inslee as well as some other higher ups have put their full weight behind it again.

I’m really torn about how I feel about this. As a Seattle DUI Attorney this is something that will directly affect my practice and my clients. Although 99% of my clients have no criminal history when they get arrested for a DUI in the King County area. So it’s not like the majority of people will feel the full brunt of this change if it were to occur.

However when you look at the difference in penalties from a gross misdemeanor to a felony this proposed change is kind of a big deal. Instead of 90 days in jail a defendant would be facing prison time in addition to all the collateral consequences that comes with a felony conviction.

I suspect if the budget is better this year than we will see this change. Despite the horrendous vehicular homicide and vehicular assault cases 2013 had. They didn’t seem to stop as the year went on. And it seems like every time you watch the news or read the paper another repeat DUI offender has gotten arrested in Seattle.

In fact I saw a tweet from the WSP that there were something like 16 people arrested for DUI in King County following the Seahawks game. Which was more than double what happened the past 2 weeks combined. The proponents of this bill will just continue to point to these numbers and DUI arrests in Seattle to support their position. And unfortunately for the opponents of this bill there is not a lot to say other than pointing out the cost and the increase in prison population for these nonviolent offenders.

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About the author: Matthew Leyba is a DUI Lawyer in the Seattle Bellevue area of Western Washington. His has been rated a 10/10 Superb Seattle DUI Lawyer by Avvo.com. He was also nominated as a Rising Star by the Seattle Met Magazine in the field of DUI Defense, an honor less than 2.5% of all Attorneys receive.