A new bill in Louisiana would mandate all DWI suspects spend at least 48 hours in jail prior to their initial arraignment and release.

The bill is part of a prevention effort rather than a punishment effort. MADD Louisiana is in support of the bill, saying it would help deter individuals from making the decision to drink and drive. If a person knows he or she will spend the two days in jail for an arrest, regardless of conviction, then the chance a person will drive with even a low BAC may be reduced, according to proponents of the bill.

Further, the bill offers a "detox" period for drivers prior to allowing them back on the road. Surprisingly, there is a higher than expected incidence of repeat DWI offenses within a short period of time. In specific, some drivers leave the holding cell to return to the road, and their BAC may still be too high to drive safely. The bill was filed by Rep. Rickey Hardy after a local school bus driver was behind the wheel of a commercial vehicle not long after a DWI arrest.

Opponents of the policy point to the fact it punishes individuals who have not yet been convicted of an offense; that offense is a misdemeanor in most cases, and even a convicted individual may not have to spend two days in jail. This also allows law officials to hold an individual for two days while establishing probable cause and investigating the accident, which is controversial in some minds.

The bill will go to committee at the end of this month. It will have to pass committee to be entered into the next legislative session for voting.