By Shelby Stewart
Staff Writer
On Aug. 23, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed Public Act 78 of 2021, which allows people with only one drunk driving offence to have it expunged from their record after five years, given that the incident didn’t result in injury or death.
“I’m all for it for first time offenders,” said Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Brandon Substation commander Lt. Greg Glover. “Everyone makes mistakes.”
The PA, originally introduced as House Bill 4219, received bipartisan support. In the house it passed with 93 for and 17 against the bill. Representative John Reilly, (R-District 46 which includes Brandon Township), voted for the bill. Representative Mike Mueller, (R-District 51 which includes Atlas and Groveland townships and Goodrich), voted against it.
“If there’s not any injuries or an accident involved and you’ve learned from it, I don’t feel like that should haunt you for the rest of your life,” said Glover. “That time frame allows that person to prove they don’t have a drinking problem.”
The move will also help those with a drunk driving offense on their record when it comes to finding jobs, since it will no longer show on a background check that they have an alcohol offense.
“It’s an issue because it can really knock down the pool of people for any job,” said Glover. “With a driving offence, you’re not allowed to operate certain pieces of machinery, certain vehicles, so that could hurt somebody for a long time.”
Only first-time offenders are eligible for expungement, and only five years after the incident.