A proposal in the Nevada Legislature aims to toughen the state’s vehicular homicide law by applying it after a person’s first DUI conviction if they drive impaired and kill someone.
Currently, the law only applies after a third DUI offense.
Under the existing law, which is rarely enforced because of Nevada’s DUI with death statute, offenders face a potential prison sentence of at least 25 years.
Republican State Senator Jeff Stone wants to increase that minimum to at least 30 years.
“We live in basically the alcohol consumption capital of the world here in Las Vegas,” said Stone, who represents a large part of eastern Clark County.
“I want to make Las Vegas and Southern Nevada not only a safe place for residents but also send a message to visitors that if you kill someone while driving drunk, you will be held accountable.”
Stone believes the current penalties aren’t enough. Nevada’s DUI with death law allows a sentence of 2 to 20 years.
However, a bipartisan 1995 law requires judges to set a sentencing range for most felonies, with the minimum sentence set at 40% of the maximum.
This means the longest time a DUI driver who causes a death can serve without parole is eight years.
An example of this is the case of Jemarcus Williams, 47, who drove impaired on Nov. 30, 2023, and crashed into Sgt. Michael Abbate and Trooper Alberto Felix on an Interstate 15 offramp near Downtown Las Vegas.
The officers were investigating another DUI case when Williams hit them. Williams took a plea deal and received the maximum sentence of 16 to 40 years for two counts of DUI with death.
“I attended those funerals and saw the devastation in those families,” Stone said. “This man should have gotten life in prison for killing two troopers while knowing he was driving under the influence.”
Stone’s proposal, Senate Bill 304, would amend Nevada’s vehicular homicide law to require only one prior DUI conviction instead of three for the stricter penalty to apply. Several other Republican senators and assembly members have co-sponsored the bill.
“If you’ve already been prosecuted once for DUI and then kill someone while driving drunk, you shouldn’t be able to walk away with just two years after ruining a family’s life,” Stone said.
Republican Governor Joe Lombardo also supports tougher penalties for DUI drivers. He told 8 News Now that he wants impaired drivers who kill someone to be charged with second-degree murder.
“You knew you were drunk; you chose to drive, and someone died because of your decision,” Lombardo said.
Nevada’s second-degree murder law carries a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison.
However, a 2020 Nevada Supreme Court ruling prevents prosecutors from charging DUI drivers with second-degree murder under the current law.
Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson, a Democrat, supports the governor’s proposal and any effort to increase penalties for impaired driving.
Stone hopes the new vehicular homicide law will carry a minimum of 30 years in prison.
“We need to value life more in Nevada and protect not only our residents but also visitors from the dangers of drunk driving,” Stone said.
No hearings have been scheduled for either proposal as of Tuesday.
Democratic leaders in the Legislature have noted that there is an educational aspect to addressing drinking and driving and that Nevada already has some of the toughest DUI laws in the country.
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