Mass. cracks down on repeat drunk drivers

BOSTON, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- Massachusetts' tough new laws aimed at repeat drunken drivers get even tougher with the new year.

Starting Tuesday, those with more than one conviction who want driving privileges restored must have a device installed in their cars that allows the vehicle to be started only when the driver is sober, the Boston Globe reports. They must continue to use the device for two years.

Melanie's Law, signed in October by Gov. Mitt Romney, was named after Melanie Powell, a 13-year-old girl killed two years ago by a drunk driver. The law requires a one-year jail term for anyone driving with a suspended license and makes getting a hardship license more difficult.

Officials say 1,051 repeat drunken drivers were stopped in the two months after the law was signed, down 44 percent from the same period in 2004.

"I suspect there are a lot of people now who have been pulled over once or twice who became very, very well aware of the new law and saw the incredible ramifications," said Ron Bersani, Melanie Powell's grandfather. "That would be my hope, that they're smartening up."