Maine: David Burns

AUGUSTA, Maine — By a 10-3 vote, a majority of the Legislature’s Criminal Justice Committee has rejected a bill that would suspend the driver’s license of a person found guilty of operating a recreational vehicle such as a snowmobile or ATV while drunk.

“If one person is stopped from doing this, we have made progress in finally drilling the message home that we are not going to condone OUI while driving your car or truck and we are not going to condone OUI if you are driving something else,” said Sen. John Nutting, D-Leeds. His statement set off sharp comments from other committee members who opposed the bill.