Charges filed Monday against a St. Paul Park man for his suspected 20th drunken driving offense are spurring calls for tough measures to prevent repeat offenders from getting behind the wheel.
Paul D. Garay, 55, faces only gross misdemeanors, carrying a maximum jail sentence of one year. Minnesota law make a fourth offense within 10 years a felony punishable by three years in prison and a fine of not less than $14,000, but only two of Garay's previous convictions occurred within the past decade, said Newport City Prosecutor Frederic (Fritz) Knaak. Had Garay had three convictions within a decade, a fourth charge would have been a felony.
For Mother's Against Drunk Drivers, his repeated violations -- the latest occurred Christmas Eve -- are clear examples of the need for mandatory drunken driving sentences that include ignition interlock devices for every convicted drunken driver. The devices require a person to blow into them periodically; if alcohol is detected the car will not start or continue running.
"It's very irritating that the law has not caught up to folks like this," said Lynne Goughler of Mothers Against Drunk Drivers in Minnesota. "It's scary. He's not done harm to anyone else, or property, just to himself. But the odds are that he will at some point hurt somebody, or drive into their property."
James Backstrom, Dakota County attorney and an advocate for tougher drunken driving laws, agreed.
"Someone with 19 DWIs certainly should be charged with a felony, regardless of how many occurred in the last 10 years," he said Monday. "There should be a lifetime limit to enable a felony to be charged."
Doug Johnson, Washington County attorney, said he believes that the only way to reduce repeat drunken driving offenses is to exact hefty jail sentences for first offenses. Johnson points to Europe, where laws are much stricter and drunken driving far less common.
The real problem, said Johnson, is that Minnesota taxpayers don't want to pay the expenses for more jail time. He said getting tough with first-time offenders would get drunks off the roads while making use of plenty of empty beds in Minnesota jails.
