A quick look through the police reports in your daily Butler Eagle confirms it.

There are people driving our county roads under the influence of alcohol. Many are repeat offenders — charged with their second, third and sometimes sixth offense.

Some are not yet 21 — the age our state has determined people have enough sense to make the decision to have an alcoholic beverage or two or more or not.

Behind the wheel of a 3,000 pound vehicle, more than one drunk has ended a life of someone’s parent or child.

According to the Pennsylvania DUI Association, there were 7,700 alcohol-related crashes in 2020 and 293 were fatal.

And it happens here. A Dec. 4 crash in Cranberry Township took the life of a family man. Police say alcohol and possibly drugs were involved in the three-vehicle fatal crash. Among charges in this case: homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence.

But why do repeat offenders keep getting their keys back?

Jackson Township Police Chief Terry Seilhamer said he hopes a new law, Deana’s Law, will straighten out what exactly classifies as a prior DUI conviction — because sometimes if a DUI arrest hasn’t gone through the court system yet, it might not count as a consecutive conviction. This makes a difference when sentencings are handed out.

Deana’s Law, which went into effect. Dec. 1, raises penalties for repeat offenders. It increases the grading for certain DUI offenses, which requires consecutive sentencing for certain repeat DUI offenders. It also imposes an 18-month driving privilege suspension for a DUI conviction graded as a felony of the second degree.

We also hope this new law will help take repeat offenders off the road so we can all get home safely.

— LZ