The drunken driver who killed 18-year-old Nick Fournier in 2007 in Colchester had been previously convicted three times of driving under the influence. And the man charged with drunken driving in the Dec. 26 death of Kaye Borneman in Burlington had been convicted of driving under the influence again and again.
It’s cases such as these that prompted new legislation signed into law Tuesday by Gov. Peter Shumlin to bolster prison time for those convicted of multiple drunken driving offenses.
“It’s really a tribute to the determination and tenacity of the friends and family of Nick Fournier,” said House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bill Lippert, D-Hinesburg. “It was such a tragic loss that they worked hard to turn into a positive outcome, without in any way mitigating the tragedy of their family’s loss, and the community’s loss.”
Fournier’s family and friends attended the signing ceremony Tuesday at Missisquoi Valley Union High School. Fournier graduated from the Swanton school in 2007, months before he died in the collision on Interstate 89.
The death of Borneman, 43, of Burlington spurred lawmakers to action, said Rep. Brian Savage, R-Swanton.
“Unfortunate as it is, it took another death with which to bring attention to the repeat offender problem,” Savage said.
Under the new law:
• Someone convicted of letting an impaired person borrow a car faces up to six months in prison — or up to two years in prison if the person who borrowed the car seriously injures or kills someone else.
• Someone convicted of driving under the influence for a second or subsequent time, while having a blood-alcohol content of at least 0.16 percent, will for the next three years have his or her legal limit for driving reduced from 0.08 percent to 0.02 percent.
• Someone convicted of driving under the influence for a fourth or subsequent time faces up to 10 years in prison, with at least some mandatory jail time unless the court finds the sentence does not “serve interests of justice and public safety.”
• Someone convicted of driving under the influence a third or subsequent time, with serious bodily injury or death resulting, faces at least five years in prison unless the court finds the sentence does not “serve interests of justice and public safety.”
Shawn Burritt of Jericho, the man convicted of killing Fournier, was at the time of the crash driving in the wrong direction on Interstate 89. The car he drove was registered to someone else with no insurance. A judge sentenced Burritt to 10 to 20 years in prison.
“Anytime that we have increased penalties for people who are repeat drunk drivers, it’s a good thing,” Chittenden County State’s Attorney T.J. Donovan said. “The thing with DWI is it resonates with everybody, because everybody drives.”
Donovan’s office prosecuted Burritt’s case and is prosecuting the case against Timothy Dowd, the man charged in connection with Borneman’s death.
Because Dowd was charged before the bill became law, his case is not affected. Dowd is also facing stiffer charges: He’s pleaded not guilty to five charges including second-degree murder.
Dowd, 53, had four previous convictions for drunken driving and allegedly was fleeing police in someone else’s car at the time of the crash.
“The vast majority of people who commit a first offense, don’t reoffend,” Donovan said.
Lippert cited studies that suggest 75 percent to 80 percent of motorists convicted of driving under the influence do not repeat the crime.
“This is another step forward toward really trying to transform the landscape of Vermont around alcohol and driving,” Lippert said. “It’s going to be a challenge we’re going to have to continue to work on.”
