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The Tennessee Conservative Staff –
Mothers Against Drunk Driving push for harsher penalties for people who drive under the influence after repeat offenders continue to claim the lives of innocent victims and injure countless others across Tennessee.
Most recently, Metro Nashville Police report that 22-year-old Giovanni Bolstad was allegedly under the influence while driving his Jeep Cherokee on August 3 when he flew through a flashing red light as he was leaving Rivergate Mall, hitting a Ford Focus.
Natalie White and Holly Wagner, both passengers in the back seat, were pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the vehicle was also injured.
At the time of the accident, Bolstad fled from the scene, but he later returned and was taken to the hospital. He was arrested the next day upon release from the hospital and is being held on a $332,500 bond.
He was charged with two counts of vehicular homicide, vehicular assault, and driving on a revoked license.
Bolstad’s license was revoked because of a previous DUI, which he just completed a year of probation for in April.
A Sevier County woman was also recently arrested for a DUI 3rd offense after seriously injuring a teen while driving drunk. Julie Huskey had been charged several times previously with driving while intoxicated.
MADD Regional Executive Director Alex Otte says that the group is in favor of privileges such as a driver’s license being taken from offenders, but they feel that it is not enough.
“People driving on a suspended license, people driving when their license has been revoked. For those reasons, MADD supports an ignition interlock device,” said Otte.
The group has been pushing for passage of the HALT Act which would require that “impaired driving prevention technology” be installed in all new vehicles by 2027.
According to Otte, the group does not want penalties that simply punish an offender but instead want to see sentences that would prevent individuals from being able to drive drunk again and become a repeat offender.
3 Responses
Drunk drivers pose a far greater menace to law-abiding Tennesseans than does the LGBT agenda. At least LGBT persons don’t run over pedestrians, cause highway accidents, kill people, or send people to hospitals as a result of their preferences. Why don’t the so-called Family Values crowd get as worked up about a child killed by a reckless driver under the influence as they do with harmless drag persons reading stories to children in the presence of the children’s parents. Gimme a break, Marsha Blackburn, Bill Lee, and Company!
I’m sorry I disagree. This twisted thinking is but grooming children into thinking that the adults mental illness is normal. It is not. That should NEVER be allowed to happen to children. Save it for your adult clubs and in your own home.
It’s my understanding that you can rape a woman & have that taken off your record, you can do a home invasion & get that taken off your record & many other crimes but if you have a DUI – you can’t remove it from your record even after 10 years or more – that’s wrong, particularly in light of the ability to clean your record for more serious crimes