OWI Causing Death in Michigan: Elements, Causation and Penalties

In Michigan, OWI causing death is a felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison and/or a fine of $2,500 to $10,000.^[2] It applies to a person, licensed or not, who drives while intoxicated, visibly impaired, or with a Schedule 1 drug or cocaine in the body, and "by the operation of that motor vehicle causes the death of another person."^[1]

The offense is in MCL 257.625(4). The maximum rises to 20 years in two situations described below.^[3][4] This page covers the elements, the causation rule from People v Schaefer, related charges, and the license, vehicle and record consequences. For injury cases, see OWI causing serious impairment.

The elements

The model jury instruction M Crim JI 15.2a sets out what a jury must find; separate instructions (15.1a, 15.3a and 15.4a) cover the high-BAC, visibly-impaired and Schedule 1 drug versions. Among the elements are these.^[7][8]

1. The defendant operated a motor vehicle, which means drove or had actual physical control of it.^[9]
2. The defendant was operating while intoxicated (under the influence, or at 0.08 or more), while visibly impaired, or with any amount of a Schedule 1 substance or cocaine in the body.^{[1][10][11][12]}
3. The defendant voluntarily decided to drive knowing he or she had consumed alcohol or drugs and might be intoxicated (in the visibly-impaired version, "might be visibly impaired"; in the Schedule 1 version, knowing he or she had consumed or used a controlled substance).^[7][8]
4. The defendant's operation of the vehicle caused the death: but for the driving, the death would not have occurred, and the death was a direct and natural result of operating the vehicle.^[7]

"Operating" can continue after a vehicle stops. The Michigan Supreme Court held in People v Wood that a driver who puts a vehicle in motion, or in a position posing a significant risk of a collision, continues to operate it until it is returned to a position posing no such risk.^[13] The Court of Appeals applied that rule in People v Lechleitner to a death caused while the defendant's crashed car sat in the middle of a freeway at night.^[13]

Causation after People v Schaefer

In People v Schaefer (2005), the Michigan Supreme Court overruled part of People v Lardie and held that the plain text of the statute "does not require that the prosecution prove the defendant's intoxicated state affected his or her operation of the motor vehicle."^[5] The Court said: "The statute requires that the defendant's operation of the motor vehicle, not the defendant's intoxicated manner of driving, must cause the victim's death."^[5] Intoxication is a separate element, not part of the causal link.^[5]

That does not make causation automatic. The prosecution must still prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant's conduct was a proximate cause of the death.^[14] In People v Feezel (2010), the Court said a victim's intoxication is not a defense, but on those facts it should have been a factor for the jury on proximate cause.^[14]

Common belief	What the cases say
The prosecutor must prove the alcohol caused the crash.	No; the operation of the vehicle must cause the death (Schaefer).[5]
Any death involving an intoxicated driver is automatically this felony.	No; factual and proximate cause must still be proved (Feezel; M Crim JI 15.2a).[14][7]
The victim's drinking is a complete defense.	No; it is not a defense, though it may bear on proximate cause on some facts (Feezel).[14]

Penalties and the aggravated tiers

Subsection	When it applies	Maximum prison	Fine
MCL 257.625(4)(a)	Standard offense	15 years	$2,500 to $10,000, or both[2]
MCL 257.625(4)(b)	Alcohol 0.17 or more and within 7 years of a prior conviction (both required)	20 years	$2,500 to $10,000, or both[3][15]
MCL 257.625(4)(c)	Driving in a manner barred by the stationary-emergency-vehicle law (MCL 257.653a) and causing the death of a police officer, firefighter or other emergency response worker	20 years	$2,500 to $10,000, or both[4][15]

The emergency-responder tier applies whether or not the section 653a violation is separately charged.^[4] For a defendant with prior felonies, habitual-offender sentencing can increase the maximum further.^[16][17]

Sentencing guidelines

Under MCL 777.12f, OWI causing death is a class C offense, and the two 20-year tiers are class B.^[18] The class C grid runs from 0 to 11 months at the lowest cell to 62 to 114 months at the highest.^[19] The guidelines are advisory but must be scored and considered.^[20] Offense variable 3 (physical injury) has a specific 50-point score for a death resulting from an intoxicated-driving vehicle offense; how it applies when OWI causing death is itself the sentencing offense depends on case law not covered here.^[21] More is in felony OWI and the sentencing guidelines.

Multiple deaths, and other charges from the same crash

• One charge per death: a person may be charged with and convicted of OWI causing death for each death in the same incident, and the court may order the prison terms served consecutively.^[6]
• Murder and manslaughter: Court of Appeals decisions have held that convictions for both OWI causing death and involuntary manslaughter or second-degree murder for the same death do not violate double jeopardy.^[22]
• Driving while suspended causing death: convictions for both this and OWI causing death do not violate double jeopardy (People v Bergman, a Court of Appeals decision).^[22] DWLS causing death is itself a felony punishable by up to 15 years.^[23]
• Leaving the scene: if the driver caused the crash and someone died, leaving the scene is punishable by up to 15 years and/or $10,000.^[24]
• Child endangerment: may be charged and punished together with OWI causing death.^[25]
• Allowing an intoxicated person to drive: the owner who knowingly permitted it commits a felony punishable by up to 5 years if the driver causes a death.^[26]

The related misdemeanor: moving violation causing death

A separate, lesser offense applies to a moving violation that is the proximate cause of another person's death: it is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 1 year and/or $2,000.^[27] It does not require intoxication, and the statute does not prevent other charges for the same conduct.^[27][28] A conviction under it counts as a prior conviction for any later OWI.^[29] Reckless driving causing death is a felony punishable by up to 15 years.^[30] These are compared on the page about charges often filed with OWI.

License, vehicle and record

A single OWI-causing-death conviction requires the Secretary of State to revoke the license and deny a new one.^[31] No license may issue for at least 1 year (5 years if this revocation follows another within 7 years), and the driver must then rebut a presumption of being a habitual offender by clear and convincing evidence.^[32][33] The conviction carries 6 points.^[34]

The judgment may order the vehicle forfeited; if it does not, the court must order immobilization.^[35] See vehicle forfeiture and license revocation.

An OWI causing death can never be set aside.^[36] It counts as a prior conviction for a later OWI and is a "listed prior felony" under the habitual-offender statute's 25-year minimum provision for certain later serious crimes.^[37][38]

For families of people who were killed

A felony OWI case falls under the felony article of the Crime Victim's Rights Act.^[39] The court must order full restitution to the victim or the victim's estate.^[40] Victims have the right to make an oral impact statement at sentencing, in person or remotely.^[41] See crime victims' rights in OWI cases and rights of people injured by impaired drivers.