Originally Posted by John E
This reminds me of Michele Young's murder[1] of CeCe Krone in Marin County. I believe the silent courtroom observer tactic helped stretch Ms. Young's too-short sentence; thanks for being involved in this case.
1) I am not alone in equating vehicular manslaughter while inebriated or stoned with murder.
Alcohol should not be an excuse, and you should be just as responsible for your actions, drunk as when your stone cold sober. The reason I believe this, is that the drinking of alcohol is a voluntary action, if you can not control your actions, under it's influence, then it's simple, don't drink alcohol.
Penalties for drunk driving, even without affecting someone else, are nowhere near harsh enough, a 5 year driving ban, followed by having your licence cancelled, should be the bottom end of the scale. Of course after your licence is cancelled, you can apply for a learners permit, to start the process over. If you are caught driving during the ban, it's an automatic 2 years in prison, and the ban starts all over when you get out.
You start charging drunk drivers who kill someone with murder, and the ones that don't, with long term bans, and you will see fewer drunks on the road, maybe.
Around here, (Ontario, Canada) the police have a program called RIDE (Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere), from the middle of November, until early January, they will pick a street, block it off to a single lane, and check every car going through. This year is the 30th anniversary of the program, and they still lay thousands of 12 hour suspensions (.050 - .079), and hundreds of DUI charges (.080 and over) every year, makes one wonder, why are people that stupid.