An Act Regarding Criminal Liability in an QUI Case When the Passenger Is Also under the Influence of Alcohol or Drugs
Maine Legislature, Session 121, LD 0694
Committee: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
Sponsors: GLYNN
Amends: 29-A MRSA §2411, 29-A MRSA §2411-A

12lst MAINE LEGISLATURE 
Legislative Document 
No. 694 
H.P.511 
House of Representatives, February 14,2003 
An Act Regarding Criminal Liability in an QUI Case When the 
Passenger Is Also under the Influence of Alcohol or Drugs 
Reference to the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety suggested and ordered 
printed. 
Presented by Representative GLYNN of South Portland. 
Printed on recycled paper 
1f/~/h.1l1~~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 29-A MRSA §2411, sub-§6, as amended by PL 200L c. 
332, §l, is further amended to read: 
6. 
Aggravated punishment category. 
An operator commits a 
Class C offense if the State pleads and proves that the operator, 
while operating a motor vehicle in violation of this section: 
A. 
In fact caused serious bodily injury as defined in Title 
l7-A, section 2, subsection 23 to another person or in fact 
caused the death of another person; or 
B. 
Has either a prior conviction for a Class C crime under 
this 
section 
or 
a 
prior 
criminal 
homicide 
conviction 
involving or resulting from the operation of a motor vehicle 
while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs or 
with a blood-alcohol content of 0.08% or greater. 
In any prosecution under this subsection, 
the State need not 
prove that the defendant's condition of being under the influence 
of intoxicants or having a blood-alcohol level of O. 08°b or more 
caused the serious bodily injury or death alleged. 
The State 
must prove only that the defendant's operation caused the serious 
bodily injury or death. 
The court shall apply the definition of 
causation in Title l7-A, section 33. 
In 
using 
a 
sentencing 
alternative 
involving 
a 
term 
of 
imprisonment for a person convicted of violating this section 
when the person who suffered serious bodily injury or death was a 
passenger in the driver's motor vehicle, and the passenger was 
also under the influence of intoxicating li~uor or drugs and knew 
or reasonably should have known that the driver was under the 
influence of intoxicating 
li~uor or drugs ( a court shall assign 
special weight to this fact in determining the basic term of 
imprisonment as the first step in the sentencing process. 
The sentence must include a period of incarceration of not less 
than 6 months, a fine of not less than $2,000 and a court-ordered 
suspension of a driver's license for a period of 6 years. 
These 
penalties may not be suspended. 
Sec. 2. 29-A MRSA §2411-A is enacted to read: 
§24ll A. 
Criminal liability of passenger in aggravated QUI case 
1. 
Violation: penalty. 
A person commits a Class E crime if 
that person: 
Page l-LR0768(1) 
A. 
Is a passenger in a motor vehicle that is involved in an 
accident that causes 
serious 
bodily injury or 
death 
to 
another human being; 
B. 
Is under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs; 
C. 
Knows or reasonably should know that the driver of that 
motor vehicle is under the influence of intoxicating liquor 
or drugs; and 
D. 
Takes no action to prevent the driver from operating 
that motor vehicle. 
2. 
Application. 
This section applies only to persons 18 
years of age or older. 
SUMMARY 
This bill requires a court, in 
person convicted of aggravated OUI 
serious bodily injury or death, to 
fact that there was a passenger in 
the time of the accident, and the 
influence of intoxicating liquor or 
should have 
known that the driver 
intoxicating liquor or drugs. 
determining the sentence of a 
when another person suffered 
assign special weight to the 
the driver's motor vehicle at 
passenger was also under the 
drugs and knew or reasonably 
was under the influence of 
This bill also creates 
a 
new Class 
E crime. 
A person 
commits a Class E crime if the person is a passenger in a motor 
vehicle, is under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs, 
knows or reasonably should know that the driver of that motor 
vehicle is under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs, 
takes no action to prevent the driver from operating that motor 
vehicle and that motor vehicle 
1S involved in an accident that 
causes serious bodily injury or death. 
The bill specifies that 
only persons 18 years of age or older may be charged with the new 
crime.