A gentler felony DUI

On July 1, with very little fanfare, Nevada's driving under the influence law lost some of its ferocity.

On Monday two men, each facing a year in prison for felony DUI, applied for deferral under the new law in Douglas County District Court.

Prior to July, someone who had been caught driving under the influence for a third time in seven years faced a year in state prison. There were people breaking into houses who did not face as harsh a penalty as the person who got behind the wheel after drinking too much too often.

The reason for the harsh penalty was to break Nevadans of a habit that they shared with most of the country. Drinking and driving was at epidemic proportions and called for a severe penalty to help curb it.

Those who were capable of getting the message got it and quit drinking and driving. But there was a segment of the population that would get drunk and then drive no matter what the consequences. When they weren't incarcerated, those people posed a significant danger to other motorists.

In 1999, Clark County started a program that required serious DUI offenders to undergo treatment during which they would have to remain under house arrest for six months. According to testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, the Clark County program lasted eight years and had 716 participants. Of those 177 went to prison, a rate of 12 percent, which is below the outcome achieved under the prior law.

The issue comes down to whether the effectiveness of treatment outweighs the threat of prison. Only time will answer that question.