According to MADD, the devices generally cost about $2.50 a day to run. (Istock Image/Representational Image)
Automobile "interlocks" that require motorists to breathe into a tube before trying to start their cars have stopped 1.8 million cases of drunk driving nationwide, according to a report released Wednesday by officials from Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) who called for wider use of the technology.
MADD dedicated the findings to Noah Leotta, 24, a police officer who was killed two months ago just north of Washington. Leotta was struck by a suspected drunk driver while he was working a special detail aimed at getting drunk people off the road.
"MADD knows ignition interlocks save lives, and they could save even more lives if every offender is required to use the device after the first arrest," Colleen Sheehey-Church, the group's president, said in prepared remarks Wednesday.
In its research, MADD found that every state uses the devices, although the terms and frequency vary. The group, using data from interlock device companies, added up the number of times they stopped someone who was legally drunk from starting a car. The failed attempts came from drivers who already had been arrested for drunk driving at least once.
"The fact that so many people have attempted to drive impaired - even after being caught and ordered to use an ignition interlock - tells us that we must put technology between all offenders and their cars," Sheehey-Church said.
States use a sliding scale when requiring drivers to use the devices. About half of states mandate the devices for those convicted of driving at or above the legal blood-alcohol limit of 0.08 percent. That level is the equivalent, MADD said, of a 160-pound man drinking four beers in an hour. In other states, mandatory use of the devices kicks in at higher blood-alcohol levels.
In Maryland, where Leotta was an officer for the Montgomery County police force, drivers convicted at 0.15 percent or higher must use an interlock to avoid having their licenses suspended, officials said.
Motorists convicted a lower blood-alcohol levels - from 0.08 percent to 0.14 percent - can still enroll in the state's interlock program. But unless a judge orders a person to do so, the program is not mandatory and requires attending a $150 administrative hearing, said a spokesman for the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration. Under new regulations expected to take effect soon, those convicted at the lower levels can enter the interlock program without attending the hearing.
But it's not required.
"The state of Maryland must do better. Our nation must do better," Leotta's father, Rich Leotta, said Wednesday.
According to MADD, the devices generally cost about $2.50 a day to run. Many states have set aside money for motorists who can't afford them.
© 2016 The Washington Post
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