Tougher DWI rules in MN prompted by Park Tavern crash passes Senate
New DWI laws pass Senate in Minnesota
The deadly crash at Park Tavern in St. Louis Park was on the minds of legislators at the Capitol on Wednesday as they passed stricter DWI rules for those who drive drunk.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - The deadly crash at Park Tavern in St. Louis Park was on the minds of legislators at the Capitol on the day of the driver's guilty plea.
A legal solution
Interlocks for longer:
Lawmakers are trying to find a better way to protect people from drunk drivers.
Their focus is on ignition interlock devices and a vote on Wednesday means repeat drunk drivers will have easier access to them and have to use them longer, which could’ve stopped the Park Tavern driver.
Kristina Folkerts and Gabe Harvey died when Steven Bailey crashed into its patio while his blood alcohol content was more than four times the legal limit for drivers.
Despite his five prior DWIs in Minnesota and one in Wisconsin, the law as it stood allowed him to drive unrestricted.
"The remedy that we came up with is now in the bill that is presented to you here today," said Sen. Ron Latz (DFL-St. Louis Park).
Sen. Latz and Rep. Larry Kraft (DFL-St. Louis Park), wrote up a new law forcing repeat drunk drivers to use ignition interlock devices for a lot longer if they want to drive again.
Right now, the longest is six years for drunk drivers with four or more priors.
The bill would extend that to ten years after three prior offenses.
It looks back at 20 years of driving history instead of ten, and it increases the punishment for driving without the device.
"Once they're in, they'll be in it for a longer period of time," said Sen. Latz. "So people like the guy who killed people in St. Louis Park would have been on interlock if this law had been in place at the time."
No silver bullet
Improvement not elimination:
Lawmakers don’t expect the law to stop all drunk driving, but the CDC says ignition interlocks reduce repeat DWI offenses by about 70%.
Senators passed the bill unanimously on Wednesday, and the House passed their version last week.
The new law won’t bring back Folkerts and Harvey, but Park Tavern’s owner told us when the bill was introduced that it’s a step in the right direction.
"If anything can be done to prevent it, it's up to everybody to really try the best we can to make sure it does not happen," said a still mourning Phil Weber.
31 other states require ignition interlock devices after a first offense, so even after this becomes law, Minnesota won’t have one of the harsher punishments for DWI.
What's next:
The bills passed in the House and Senate are slightly different, so they'll go through a conference committee and get new floor votes in both bodies. The new bill is expected to pass easily and get the governor's signature.
The law would take effect on Aug. 1, 2025.