Proposed Drunk Driving Laws In Texas Target ‘Buzzed’ Drivers

A proposal being considered by Texas lawmakers would make it a punishable offense for drivers to get behind the wheel if their blood alcohol level is between .05 and .07.

DWI offenders have a blood alcohol level of .08. Instead of being charged with a DWI, these drivers would be booked for “DWAI”– Driving While Ability Impaired.

Criminal defense attorney Michael Gibson told ABC-7 it seems like an unreasonable and unnecessary piece of legislation. “Everybody wants to make everything a crime,” he said. “(The proposal) would affect everyone who eats out at a restaurant and drinks a couple of glasses of wine…and that’s a lot of people.”

According to blood alcohol charts, it would take about 2 drinks over a period of 1 hour for a female weighing 120-140 pounds to score a .05 blood alcohol level on a breathelyzer test.

Mary Ellen Hernandez with the Rio Grande Safe Communities said she supports the proposal in an interview with ABC-7. “Even if you’re not .08. If you’re .05 and you’re involved in a traffic crash, would you want to live with (the fact) that you killed someone with just a little bit of alcohol in your system?”

She pointed out the hundreds of DWI offenders in the borderland. So far this year 2,872 people have been charged with a DWI. 630 of them are repeat offenders.

“For our community, I think it’s a good idea,” she said of the proposal.

Still, some bar owners have serious concerns over the fallout if such a bill was drafted and passed in the state legislature. “That sort of law would just cripple this industry,” said Jim Fynquist, a member of the Bar Owner’s Association. He said clients would likely stop drinking at bars and start drinking at home or out in the desert to avoid being pulled over.

The DWAI debate could be going to Austin during the next Texas legislative session in January. The details of the proposal, including the penalty for a DWAI, are still being worked out in the Senate Criminal Justice Committee.