thedailystar.com reported. Several area officials who address drunk-driving issues applauded passage of a state law that increases the penalty for people who drive drunk with children.
Leandra's Law creates a new crime, aggravated DUI with a child, state Sen. James Seward, R-Milford, said in a media release on the law's passage.
Anyone who drives drunk with a child younger than 16 would be charged with a class E felony and faces up to four years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000, he said.
The legislation is named for 11-year-old Leandra Rosado, who was killed in October after a car driven by the mother of one of her friends was overturned on
the Henry Hudson Parkway.
The driver was charged only with misdemeanor DUI crimes, carrying a lesser sentence and spurring the calls for the stronger legislation, Seward said.
It also requires any person convicted of DUI or related crimes to install an ignition system that will prevent the car from starting if the driver's breath shows he or she is above the legal blood-alcohol limit. Violating that would be a class A misdemeanor.
"I think it's a good thing anytime you can get some preventive measures," said David Ramsey, executive director of the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Council of Delaware County.
"With a law like this, there is usually a honeymoon, where there is compliance and numbers come down," he said.
If the enforcement is not consistent, "the behavior will creep back," he said.
The interlock system is an important feature in making sure people obey the law, he said.
Oneonta High School Students Against Destructive Decisions adviser Catherine Lynch said it's unfortunate that tragedies have to happen before DUI laws are made tougher. But sometimes that is what it takes before a problem is addressed, she said.
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All DUI laws should be made tougher, but she was hopeful that this action will make people think twice in this situation.
Delaware County Stop DUI Coordinator Lisa Barrows said she agreed that the penalty should be increased. "There are a lot of choices people make in life _ drinking and driving should not be one of them," she said.
The decision is made worse when there is an "innocent victim" and the driver should be punished accordingly, she said.
"A vehicle is a ... killing machine in the wrong hands," she said.
Seward said, "Leandra's Law sends a clear message to anyone who even thinks of getting behind the wheel after drinking, especially if a child is in the car."
