Lawmakers are considering toughening the state's drunken driving laws, including one proposal that would require ignition locking devices for first-time offenders and another that would mandate five-year minimum prison terms for anyone convicted of manslaughter with a motor vehicle while intoxicated.
The legislature's Judiciary Committee heard emotional testimony from a woman whose 27-year-old daughter was killed by a drunken driver who received a sentence of 3 1/2 years in prison.
"Our sentence is for a lifetime, not just for 3 1/2 years,'' Angela Loprete told the committee, her voice shaking. She brought a pair of framed photographs of her daughter, Maryann, who was killed on Jan. 28, 2010 in Stamford.
"Holidays, anniversaries...[do not] mean anything anymore,'' Loprete said. "My husband will not have the honor of walking down the aisle or have grandchildren...I will never be able to see my beautiful daughter reach her potential."