Subcommittee approves bills to credit early ignition‑interlock use and make interlock periods more flexible
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Summary
A Virginia Courts of Justice subcommittee unanimously reported legislation to credit offenders who install ignition‑interlock devices before conviction and passed a separate measure letting judges limit post‑conviction interlock terms to six months on motion.
At a meeting of the Courts of Justice Subcommittee on criminal law, members unanimously reported House Bill 1006 with a substitute and later reported Senate Bill 1392, both aimed at adjusting how ignition‑interlock devices are treated in DUI cases.
The bills are recommendations of the Alcohol Safety Action Program (ASAP) commission. Senator Servile, who presented both measures, said the change to HB 1006 came after a National Conference of State Legislatures traffic‑safety session and is intended to encourage early installation of interlocks. “If an offender elects voluntarily to put an interlock on their vehicle before they're convicted, they get credit on the backside against their license suspension period,” Servile said, describing a hypothetical where three months of voluntary interlock placement would be credited against a longer suspension.
HB 1006, as substituted, also clarifies that two categories of license actions are eligible for credit: court‑ordered ignition‑interlock or restricted licenses, and administrative suspensions or revocations issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles pursuant to code section 46.23389. Counsel explained the substitute splits those categories so both court and DMV actions can receive pre‑conviction credit. The subcommittee voted to report HB 1006 with the substitute unanimously, 8‑0.
Senate Bill 1392, presented as a companion proposal, alters the default interlock term after conviction. Servile said the current practice defaults to a 12‑month interlock in many cases and that the bill allows a convicted defendant to file a motion asking the court to impose only a six‑month interlock; absent such a motion the longer term would remain the default. “On the motion of the offender … once they're convicted, they can make a motion to ask for only a 6 month interlock. Otherwise it just defaults to 12,” Servile said. The subcommittee reported SB 1392 unanimously, 8‑0.
Both measures were described as intended to increase early interlock adoption and to resolve drafting issues that left administrative DMV revocations unclear in earlier language.
The subcommittee also took up, and unanimously passed, a separate resolution requested by the Supreme Court to confirm the chairman of the Sentencing Commission (SJ 293); that procedural resolution was reported 8‑0.
Next steps: HB 1006 and SB 1392 were reported out of the subcommittee; the measures will move on in the legislature for further consideration.