The State Bar Association of North Dakota Spring 2014 Gavel Magazine | Page 29

NEW LAW CREATES TOUGHER CONSEQUENCES
FOR DUI CONVICTIONS
Since July 2013, the approximately 6,500 annual North Dakota
driving under the influence (DUI) arrests are being prosecuted
under a more stringent state law.

previous DUI. Substantial or serious injury caused by DUI is a
Class C felony, with a one-year mandatory sentence that increases
to two years with a previous conviction.

“This was the most significant legal legislation passed by the 2013
North Dakota Legislature,” says Aaron Birst, executive director of
the North Dakota States Attorneys Association (NDSAA).

“Before, it was hard for prosecutors to apply the traditional
homicide law when someone was harmed or killed by a drunk
driver,” Birst says. “It was difficult to prove intentional or
negligence offenses.”

The alarming annual increases in traffic fatalities in North Dakota
were among the reasons for the harsher law, says Birst. The state
had averaged between 80 to 90 fatalities a year for several years,
but they began to spike in the past three years, reaching 170
fatalities in 2012. “That’s nearly double what had been the longtime average, and half of them involved alcohol impairment,” says
Birst.
There were other troubling statistics, he adds. Of the 7,000 DUI
arrests each year, the average blood alcohol count was .17, which
is double the legal limit of .08. And, North Dakota traditionally
was ranking nationally in the top 10 states for DUI fatalities,
based on the percentage of miles traveled in a year.
Many felt it was time for a more aggressive law, including
Governor Jack Dalrymple, Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem,
Representative Kim Koppleman of West Fargo, and Senator
Ed Gruchella of Fargo. “Once the legislation was introduced,
the states attorneys became involved shaping it to become more
workable,” says Birst, who also recognized the involvement and
influence of Senator Kelly Armstrong, a Dickinson lawyer.
The House version of the bill, HB 1302, was the legislation that
passed, resulting in tougher consequences for DUI, especially with
jail time and probation conditions.

The fourth significant change eliminated hard driver’s license
suspensions, which Birst says is good for defendants. “Now,
those with DUI convictions can continue to drive as long as they
continue to comply with 24-7 testing requirements.”
Since the new law took effect less than a year ago, Birst says its
impact is still too early to measure. This year’s fatality statistics as
of the end of March are encouraging, he says, with two alcoholrelated deaths, compared to 12 and 13 at the same time in the
last two consecutive years. “It’s too early to tell if this decline will
hold,” he says.
Overall, North Dakota’s 135 states attorneys, assistants and city
prosecutors have been supportive of the new law, Birst says. “It’s a
step in the right direction, even though it has caused more work
with more paperwork and defense motions. They appreciate the
new tools that the law provides them.”

More information on the new DUI laws can be found at this North
Dakota Department of Transportation online link:
www.dot.nd.gov/divisions/safety/penaltiesdrinkingdriving.htm

Birst notes four of the most significant changes.
There are tougher minimum mandatory sentences, resulting in
longer jail time and probation periods. There is also increased use
of the 24-7 alcohol testing program, requiring two blood alcohol
tests each day at local sheriff ’s offices.
A refusal of blood alcohol testing can now be treated as a crime
and punished the same as a DUI. Birst says this has been debated
among lawyers. “Some lawyers argue the criminalization of refusal
makes any consent coerced and therefore should not be allowed.
Clearly this will have to be answered by our Supreme Court.”
It establishes a new vehicle homicide statue where a death
caused by DUI is considered a Class A felony, with a three year
minimum mandatory sentence that increases to10 years with a
SPRING 2014 29