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The Canadian Government generally will not allow U.S. citizens to visit Canada if you have a DUI conviction. When a U.S. citizen who has been convicted of a DUI arrives in Canada, the Canadian border security will request that you leave Canada generally the same way that you arrive. This is another example of the importance of fighting a drunk driving case.

According to the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, a native of El Salvador who had three prior drunk driving convictions was rendered ineligible for asylum. The court found that the Attorney General reasonably found the DUI convictions were particularly serious even though they were not aggravated felonies. The Attorney General concluded that the alien would be a danger to the community.

In Indiana, as part of a sentence after being convicted of drunk driving causing serious bodily injury, a woman was required to leave the wrecked car in her front yard until she completes three years of probation. The woman also had a blood alcohol level of a .317, nearly four times the legal limit in Indiana. This was also her third drunk driving offense. What the sentencing judge probably did was create a traffic hazard as a result of the distraction caused by placing the wrecked car in the woman's front yard for three years. It looks like Alabama may be one of the first states in the country to require DUI convictions to stay on a person's record for life. Almost all states have a limit as to when prior misdemeanor DUI convictions can be considered when there is a new offense occurring within a certain number of years.

From Canada comes another example of government using drunk driving prosecutions to generate money.In Ontario, a new law will allow the courts to impound a vehicle involved in a drunk driving offense if the vehicle was either owned or driven by somebody whose license was suspended for drunk driving at least twice over a 10 year period. After the vehicle is sold, anyone injured in a drunk driving incident can apply for compensation to spend the proceeds. It wouldn't surprise me that the government in Ontario takes a substantial portion of the proceeds before any compensation is paid to any victim. There is an exception to the forfeiture in that the vehicle can be released to the owner if the owner agrees to install an ignition lock that requires the driver to pass a breath test or agree that convicted drunk drivers will not have access to the vehicle.

In Alabama, a new law would make it clear that anybody who has three prior drunk driving convictions and picks up a fourth drunk driving offense during their lifetime, the forth offense can be charged as a felony.In California, a fourth DUI offense within 10 years can now be alleged as a felony. I am sure that in the near future California will also eliminate the 10 year window and will have DUI convictions stay on a person's record for lifetime. Consequently, a fourth offense picked up during a person's lifetime will be considered a felony.