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Prosecutors, sheriff's association and victim's family urge change to count prior DUIs in sentencing
Summary
Proponents told the Committee on Judiciary that House Bill 27 47 would close exceptions that prevent certain municipal or out‑of‑state DUI convictions from counting toward felony sentencing enhancements in cases such as involuntary manslaughter by DUI; donors included Sedgwick County prosecutors and the Carter family.
Jason Thompson, office of reviser of statutes, told lawmakers that House Bill 27 47 would amend KSA 21-68 11 to require courts to consider factors (jurisdiction name, elements, prohibited conduct) in determining whether prior violations are comparable when calculating criminal history for specified DUI‑related crimes.
Mark Bennett, district attorney for Sedgwick County, told the committee by Webex the bill is intended to eliminate exceptions created by municipal ordinances or differing out‑of‑state standards that have prevented prior DUI convictions from enhancing sentences. "We're simply asking to eliminate that exception and that anyone convicted of a DUI in their past who goes out and kills somebody... those prior DUIs will count and enhance their penalty," Bennett said.
Jerry Carter, father of Sedgwick County Deputy Sydney Carter, gave emotional testimony describing his daughter's death on Oct. 7 and said the offender's two prior Wichita DUI charges could not be used at sentencing under the current law, reducing what the family viewed as an appropriate term from roughly 15 years to about 3.5 years. "This is not right in my mind, and this is why we wanted this reform to be fixed," Carter said.
Jeff Easter, speaking for the Kansas Sheriffs Association, urged passage and described local case consequences and perceived sentencing shortfalls when municipal convictions are excluded from the state sentencing analysis.
Committee members asked about whether Wichita had fixed its ordinance; Bennett said his understanding is that the city ordinance has been corrected. Lawmakers also pressed the reviser on retroactivity and whether the bill would apply immediately on publication of the register.
The chair closed the hearing after receiving proponents' testimony; no written opponents were registered during the session.
