A repeat drink-driver responsible for killing three people in separate incidents on WA roads walked free from prison on Monday - and the son of one of his victims has voiced his concerns that he will "do it again".
Kevin David Barron was four times the legal blood-alcohol limit when he ran over and killed John Donnelly, as the father-of-three walked along the side of a Sawyers Valley road in 2007.
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Drink and drive for an alcohol interlock
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On Monday, he was released from prison after serving seven-and-a-half years for the 60-year-old's death.
Mr Donnelly was the third innocent victim to die as a result of Barron being behind the wheel, after he previously killed his brother and a friend in separate driving incidents.
Mr Donnelly's son, Daniel, issued a heartfelt warning to the community to "stop him taking another innocent life".
"There's that small pocket of offenders in the community, who offend no matter what bans they're given, no matter what time they spend in prison, and he fits into that category," he said.
"Any reasonable person would surely learn their lesson after being caught over the blood-alcohol limit once, let alone killing someone because of it.
"But Barron has never learnt his lesson. He's continued to reoffend."
Barron, 54, was previously sentenced to 12 months' jail for killing his brother in a car crash in 1983.
Thirteen years later, he received 18 months in prison after killing his good friend and work colleague, who was a passenger in the car he was driving.
Barron also has five convictions for driving without a licence and three drink driving convictions.
He was given a life driving ban at his sentencing for Mr Donnelly's death.
Daniel Donnelly believes Barron will return to live in Northam, and has warned residents there to be vigilant he does not get behind the wheel.
"My concern is that he could do it again. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I haven't spoken up and said something," he said.
"If it's out there, and everybody knows that he's out, it might be as simple as someone seeing him getting behind the wheel, or someone seeing him leaving the pub about to get into a car.
"I think it's something we all need to keep an eye out for – so it's up to the community in a way, because we can't rely on him, I don't think, given his history."
Although accepting that Barron had served his time, Daniel Donnelly believes harsher penalties need to be imposed on repeat drink drivers in the future.
The maximum penalty for dangerous driving causing death in WA is 10 years' imprisonment.
Prominent Perth lawyer John Hammond said the law needed to be changed for dangerous drivers to be better rehabilitated and lose their licence for longer periods.
"I have always advocated that all new drivers and those that offend in this way should work in a spinal rehab ward and see what road trauma really means," he said.
"Interestingly there is only a loss of licence for two years [for those convicted of dangerous driving causing death].
"This is too short a period...the law should be changed to make it a lifetime ban for the first offence if there are aggravating circumstances, alcohol or drugs involved."
The call for tougher penalties comes as another repeat drink-driver, Suzanne McKenzie - who killed a woman in a head-on collision five years ago - was caught drink-driving her children to school in October.
McKenzie was fine $400 and suspended from driving for an additional nine months, after already serving two years' jail and a five-year driving suspension for the death.
Tougher laws to penalise drink-drivers were introduced by the state government in October.
Motorists caught driving with a blood-alcohol reading more than three-times the legal limit, and repeat drink drivers, will now have to have an alcohol lock-out system installed in their vehicle for at least six months.
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