William Ham was convicted of DUI manslaughter nearly ten years ago in the auto death of 36 year old Sandra Allen. Ham was 21 at the time. As reported here from Fox Tampa Bay, he was recently released from prison early and was just re-arrested for another DUI.

The victim’s family is outraged at his release and is demanding action by the court. Ham may see that action as this new arrest is a violation of his early release probation. Add to the violation a new DUI charge and it is possible that he will be back behind bars if convicted of the new charge.

A probation violation means Ham will go before the judge in a violation hearing. Because drinking and violating laws are both in direct violation of his early release, Hams probation will likely be revoked and he will serve what was remaining of his decade old conviction. read more

A bill expected to be signed by Georgia Governor Sonny Purdue would stiffen penalties for those convicted of multiple drunk driving offenses. Currently, Georgia’s DUI laws are considered some of the weakest in the nation, when it comes to people with prior DUI convictions.

Under the proposed new laws, a 4th DUI offense within 10 years would be a felony charge, with penalties of up to 5 years in prison.

The penalty for a 2nd offense conviction would include a mandatory clinical evaluation for alcohol or drug abuse, as a means to reduce the likelihood of chronic substance abusers committing DUI offenses in the future.

In addition, the bill would also increase the window in which prior offenses enhance the serious of a current offense from 5 to 10 years. So, any drunk driving/DUI convictions within the previous 10 years would be considered priors for sentencing purposes.

If you are facing a DUI charge in Georgia, please contact us for a criminal defense case evaluation and legal consultation as to your defense options and rights under the law.