Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Source: rilin.state.ri.us
In light of a recent tragedy in Scituate where an alleged drunk driver who had nine previous arrests- including one for breathalyzer refusal- killed a mother of six, Rep. Douglas W. Gablinske (D-Dist. 68, Bristol, Warren) will hold a news conference to discuss his legislation to crack down on drunk drivers.
The news conference will be held tomorrow, Wednesday, April 15 at 2:30 p.m. in the House Lounge of the State House.
Representative Gablinske’s legislation (2009-H5039) would allow a police officer to request a search warrant to take a blood, breath or urine sample if probable cause exists to believe that an individual has been driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, after that individual has refused a to take a breathalyzer test.
Joining Representative Gablinske at the news conference will be Rep. Jon D. Brien (D-Dist. 50, Woonsocket), co-sponsor of the legislation; Colonel David Randall, Chief of Police for the Scituate Police Department; representatives from the Rhode Island Police Chiefs Association, the Rhode Island State Police and the Attorney General’s office; representatives from the Department of Transportation’s Office of Highway Safety, the Rhode Island Traffic Safety Coalition and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD); and Cathy Andreozzi, the mother of a victim of a hit-and-run drunk driving accident and founder of the Tori Lynn Andreozzi Foundation.
“The issue of drunk driving is very personal to me and I won’t give up until our state does more to prevent tragedies like this from occurring over and over again,” said Representative Gablinske, whose father was killed by a drugged driver 38 years ago. “Rhode Island needs to come down on the side of the victims and their families, not the side of a defendant, who killed a mother and left her children motherless. We have ignored this growing issue for far too long, causing more innocent people to fall victim to negligent and thoughtless individuals who drink and get behind the wheel of a car in an impaired state. The time is now for our state to enact policies that will serve as deterrents to drunk drivers.”
For more information, contact:
Shana Mancinho, Publicist
State House Room 20
Providence, RI 02903
(401) 222-2457
