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Senate sponsor, Unknown |
House Bill
303 S1:
Arrest and Jail Innocent Vehicle Drivers
by
statuator
Lee Perry,
house district 29, "Republican".
Summary: HB
303 S1 grants new police power to profile, molest,
arrest, and prosecute innocent drivers if they are suspected
of "being impaired to the slightest degree". Because it would
dramatically expand the power of police to forcibly invade the persons
and vehicles of gun owners to perform unjustified
seizures and arrests, UT Gun Rights considers it a gun rights
bill.
Status:
This substitute bill was
unanimously approved by
House Monarchess
Rebecca Lockhart's
hand-picked law [sic]
enforcement and criminal justice committee, and then
unanimously
(6-0-5)
returned to the Monarchess'
hand-picked rules committee
"with a recommendation for further study during interim",
where it died.
Note:
When the House Monarchess wishes to kill decent bills, it is
typically accomplished in three ways: (1) It is never heard by a committee;
(2) it is "tabled" by a committee; or (3) it receives an
"unfavorable" recommendation from a committee.
None of these has happened. UT Gun
Rights asserts that
this bill should never have been heard in the first place.
Barring that, the only acceptable outcome would be to "table"
it, thereby effectively putting it beyond reach of rules
committee manipulation. According to
HR3-1-101(3)(b): "In carrying out its functions and
responsibilities under this rule, the House Rules Committee
may not:... report out any legislation that has been tabled by
a standing committee...."
Since the action to "table" was not
taken, it has not been filed and/or its enacting clause has
not been struck, this bill remains a major threat. Rules
committee manipulation is standard operating procedure. The
fact that this committee felt that the sponsor and his
outrageous bill was worthy of interim study, in and of itself
demonstrates the fundamental contempt exhibited by the
Monarchess and her minions for the most essential principles
of justice.
UT Gun Rights opposed
this bill. See its
bill status page. To contact your statutators,
click here.
"REFRESH"
this page ("F-5" on most browsers) to
see latest version.
Last updated: 3/14/14
at 1:00a.
Click picture to enlarge. |
The Devilish Details:
Lacking the "Slightest Degree"
of Justice
It should
be first noted that the sponsor of the bill is a
Utah highway patrol
lieutenant. His
employment as a statute enforcement agent (SEA)
presents an obvious conflict of interest. HB 303 S1
increases "business opportunities" for the vast SEA forces of
which Perry is a part — along with their allies in the court,
lawyer, and prison lobbies. Perry's role is typical of
statutators — he represents the government against the
interests and rights of citizens.
Perry has directly indicated that the
purpose of his bill is for an
SEA
to stop a citizen for an unrelated matter such as a burned out
tail light and then charge the citizen with being impaired,
EVEN THOUGH THERE IS NO EVIDENCE OF ACTUAL DRIVING IMPAIRMENT.
The previous statutory language requiring evidence of
being unable to safely operate a vehicle has been REMOVED.
See "New
twists offered to Utah’s DUI, seat belt laws," via the Salt Lake Tribune, January 30, 2014.
As discussed in other threat briefings (example:
HB 276: Violence Against
Open Carry Gun Owners), Utah SEAs currently enjoy broad statutory
latitude to harass, intimidate, and arrest gun owners in public situations.
Under current statute,
one standard for "driving under the influence"
is as follows:
"(b) is under the influence of alcohol, any drug,
or the combined influence of alcohol and any drug to a
degree that renders the person incapable of safely
operating a vehicle...."
HB 303 S1 would alter this standard
to the following:
"(b) is impaired to the
SLIGHTEST DEGREE by alcohol, any
drug, any substance, or any combination thereof...."
[bold italics added]
Lines 30-46 of the bill outline this proposed statutory
change
(deleted language has strikethrough and new proposed language
is underlined and italicized):
(1) A
person may not operate or be in actual physical control of a
vehicle within this state if the person:
(a) has sufficient
alcohol in the person's body that a subsequent chemical test
shows that the person has a blood or breath alcohol
concentration of .08 grams or greater at the time of the test;
(b) is [under the influence of]
impaired to the slightest degree by alcohol, any drug,
[or the combined influence of
alcohol and any drug to a degree that renders the person
incapable of safely operating a vehicle] any
substance, or any combination thereof; or
(c) has a blood
or breath alcohol concentration of .08 grams or greater at the
time of operation or actual physical control.
(2) As used in Subsection
(1)(b), "substance" means any substance, preparation, or a
combination of substances and preparations, other than alcohol
or a drug, that is taken into a person's body, including
vapors or fumes, that may result in a condition of impairment
or intoxication.
(3) Subsection (1)(b) does not
prohibit a person from operating or being in actual physical
control of a vehicle in this state with any measurable or
detectable amount of alcohol in the person's body.
What does "impaired to the slightest
degree" mean? As far as UT Gun Rights can determine,
there is no statutory or court definition of this phrase.
It is certainly not included in HB 303 S1, as it would be if
Perry’s intent was not to provide virtually unrestricted power
to SEAs.
And what substances "other than
alcohol or a drug" are included? Again, there is no
statutory definition provided. What this means is that
entirely subjective and arbitrary grounds may now be used by
the police to apply the horrible force of government against
innocent people they don’t like.
How could we possibly go
wrong giving one person such awesome power? |
This is ominous for gun owners. Last year, the
entire statute enforcement lobby joined forces to
stop HB 76 that would have provided greater ability for a
citizen to carry a firearm for self defense.
By this and other similar actions, the interests and
rights of gun owners are known to be held in
contempt by the SEA
lobby.
Would this bill mean that if you encounter a
traffic checkpoint after consuming diet Mountain Dew and are a
"little jittery", that you can now be
pulled out of your vehicle, handcuffed, and booked into jail,
and have your vehicle impounded and firearms seized?
UT Gun Rights believes the answer to this question is yes and
that this extreme power is in accordance with the wishes of
the SEA lobby and Perry.
It is possible to imagine a similar outcome with consumption
of 4 fluid ounces of Nyquil
or an energy drink. Even
a person having red eyes or sneezing while suffering from hay fever or a
similar allergy will not be safe when stopped by the police
for any reason unrelated to unsafe driving.
Individuals suffering more serious medical conditions, such as
diabetics, could be stopped, arrested, and thrown in jail for
being impaired despite no evidence of unsafe driving.
Given the propensity of SEAs to abuse and neglect citizens who
have done no wrong, it is not hard to imagine innocent people
with diabetes or similar conditions being ignored in an isolated jail cell,
without any medical
attention, and who thereby have their health and life placed
in jeopardy.
It is also not hard to imagine them escaping accountability
for their cruelty because SEAs enjoy special governmental immunity,
particularly when "following proper procedure." Learn
more
about the history of Utah's perverse government agent immunity
statutes by studying
SB 55 S1 enacted in 2004 and
SB 225 S1 enacted in 2003.
Thanks to this sickening attack mounted by Perry,
you may be stigmatized with a DUI
even though your driving was not impaired, potentially lose your
job,
face dramatically higher insurance rates,
spend up to 6 months in jail and
pay a $1000 fine, and spend thousands of dollars in a futile
effort to defend yourself in
court.
The sacrifice of your rights by HB
303 S1 has nothing to do with prevention of unsafe driving.
If Perry was actually concerned about it, he would not
have removed language now in statute that requires actual
evidence of unsafe motor vehicle operation.
Under HB 303
S1, your life and financial
resources could be devastated by malevolent SEAs who
can
create their own definition of "impaired to the slightest
degree" as
they please. The only real limit is their
imagination,
and the near universal reverence of the court to abuses
committed by government agents against citizens.
Rebecca Lockhart's Committees
Propel Bill to House Floor
In another demonstration of her inordinate power and support
of police state policies, House Monarchess Rebecca Lockhart
employed her
hand-picked committees to keep HB 303 alive.
HB 303 was assigned to her hand-picked law [sic]
enforcement and criminal justice committee. This
committee approved this new substitute version, and then returned it
to the rules committee (6
yeas, 0 nays, 5 absent).
Fascinatingly, supposed gun rights champion,
Curt Oda, was one of those absent for this committee vote.
He could have made a motion to "table" the bill, thus putting
it out of reach of further rules committee
manipulation. Oda was also less than impressive on
UT Gun Rights'
2013 Utah Government Corruption Report, receiving a
-75% rating
to demonstrate his strong
commitment to abuse of government power.
Note that, according to
House Rule 3-1-104, Monarchess
Lockhart can command
her rules committee to indefinitely delay the bill from going to the second reading
calendar (absent action by the house). It would be
unwise to count on that.
Appropriate Action: Contact
The Two People Who Own the Statutarium ("legislature")
As
the
2013 Utah Government Corruption Report amply demonstrates,
two monarchs abuse and dominate the house and senate and work
together to destroy your rights:
house speaker Rebecca Lockhart and
senate president Wayne Niederhauser. Contrary to what you
learned in civics class, your house and senate statutators
merely serve their gun control agenda.
How can two people possibly exercise
such control? As one example, the house speaker and senate
president alone appoint and remove EVERY member of EVERY
committee. Lockhart and Niederhauser are empowered to do this
without any review or confirmation process.
Sources: "The general duties of the
Speaker are to:... appoint the members of committees…" (House
Rules 1-3-102. Duties of the speaker) and "The general
duties of the president are to:… appoint the members of
committees…" (SR1-3-102.
Duties of the president)
Consider the vast implications of this
incredible power! No bill may be voted on in the house or
senate without going through a committee. As a result, bills
live or die almost entirely upon the calculated orders of
these two monarchs.
Their powers are so extreme, no
provision exists in the house or senate rules to fire the
monarchs before their two-year terms are over. They lord over
each body, trade favors, and sell your rights; all while
pretending that decisions are made by the will of the majority
instead of their monarchial authority.
The political buck stops with Lockhart
and Niederhauser for failing to advance positive gun owner
bills, and for every gun control bill enacted. Until more
statutators are motivated to oppose the iron fists of the
monarchs’ near absolute power, your rights will continue to be
undermined.
Because your house and senate statutators
merely serve their will and agenda, contacting them is often
just a courtesy call. Only two people hold the power
over Utah's statutarium ("legislature"):
For House Monarchess Rebecca Lockhart's contact
information (and the rest of the house statutators),
click here. For Senate Monarch Wayne
Niederhauser's contact information
(and the rest of the senate statutators),
click here.
Other views & opinions to compare and contrast:
Utah Political Capitol
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