Attorney General Peter Kilmartin will once again try to make drunk driving penalties more stringent in the Ocean State.
Kilmartin’s office says he has filed legislation for the past five years to try to stiffen sentencing and intends to do so again this legislative session. He wants drivers who kill someone while under the influence to face a maximum of 30, up from 15, years in prison. And drivers who injure someone while intoxicated would face increased penalties as well. That’s a provision the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island has opposed in the past.
Kilmartin also hopes to increase something called the “look back” period from five to 10 years. That’s the period a drunk driving offense remains on a driver’s record. In Massachusetts, the look-back period is a lifetime.
