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Keeping Repeat DWI Offenders Behind Bars

Keeping you safe on the roads by keeping DWI repeat offenders behind bars longer. On Tuesday, one Texas lawmaker aims to fix a system he views as broken.

Those behind House Bill 517, up for a second reading Tuesday, point to a recent study claiming repeat drunk drivers and others convicted of similar crimes serve on average as little as 10 to 15 percent of their sentence before becoming eligible for parole.

Now they want to see them serve more of that sentence.

House Bill 517 targets those serving 25 years or more for certain alcohol-related crimes.

If passed, not only could those people no longer be released to mandatory supervision, they also could not be eligible for release on parole until they serve at least half of their sentence, or 30 years, whichever is less.

Good conduct time would not matter.

So what about the impact on the prison system? Lawmakers say they've crunched the numbers and at least in the first five years, they say it would not make a significant impact on the workload or programs.

Rep. Jim Pitts (R-Waxahachie) wrote the bill.Keeping Repeat DWI Offenders Behind Bars

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