El Paso leaders meet with families, advocates to push tougher DWI enforcement, penalties

EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14/CBS4) — El Paso leaders met with families impacted by drunk driving on Monday as advocates pressed for urgent changes aimed at reducing DWI-related crashes and repeat offenses.

The meeting followed a promise made during a March City Council session, bringing the mayor, the district attorney, and multiple law enforcement agencies together to discuss next steps.

Advocates with the Sober Streets Movement called for stricter enforcement, stronger penalties for repeat offenders, and for the city to declare DWI a public safety crisis. They also pushed for more oversight of bars and better coordination among local agencies.

City leaders said emotional testimony from families helped drive the push for action.

“They have to relive it everytime they tell it, they brought the photos in, they told us the stories, they shed the tears and it was very moving to hear that and its up to us now to go out and make action on this, but I don’t want this to be the last conversation we have this should be the beginning and we got a lot of work to do,” Mayor Renard Johnson said.

Lupe Hernandez Lucero, founder of the Sober Streets Movement, said changes are needed at the state level.

“Our laws need to change because so many families are being impacted from young children to grown adults, and our laws just need to change, and we’re hoping our state leaders stand with us,” Lucero said.

Several proposals were discussed, including lowering the legal blood-alcohol concentration limit, requiring ignition interlocks after a first offense, and increasing funding for enforcement.

This is not the first time Sober Streets has called for tougher DWI laws, as the local advocacy group, along with other community members, gathered outside the El Paso County courthouse last month to urge El Paso District Attorney James Montoya to strengthen laws and increase accountability for drunk driving offenses.

The demonstration highlighted growing frustration over what participants described as insufficient deterrents for repeat offenders.

Officials from the district attorney’s office said they engaged directly with attendees during last month’s event, holding what they described as an open and candid discussion about how drunk driving cases are currently prosecuted and where improvements could be made.

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