DUISearch results for category: DUI Prevention
Police Shift Tactics Against Ohio DUI/OVI
Roving patrols allow police to cover larger area seeking drunk drivers in OH.
Law enforcement agencies across the state are regularly employing a different tactic in their pursuit of suspected drunk driving in Ohio. Police are utilizing saturation patrols, rather than sobriety checkpoints or speed traps, to target OH DUI. This past Fourth of July holiday saw just such plans put into effect by both state highway patrol and sheriff’s department troopers.
DUI checkpoints have been a common tool of law enforcement since being allowed by a 1990 U.S. Supreme Court decision. However, it is required by law that the location of such checkpoints be made public in order to balance constitutional rights against unreasonable searches and seizures.
Saturation patrols allow officers to cover a much larger area and to less obtrusively target locations with statistically higher numbers of arrests for driving under the influence on Ohio. In addition to searching for signs of impairment, the patrols use moving violations such as not wearing seatbelts, breaking traffic laws and failure to maintain proper speed to initiate a traffic stop.
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Governor Creates Team to Address Wyoming DUI
New task force to review state's drunk driving laws and penalties.
Gov. Dave Freuenthal has announced the creation of a team to review the issue of driving under the influence in Wyoming. The task of the group is to suggest laws and inducements to reduce drunk driving.
The Governor's Team to Prevent Impaired Driving takes over for the Governor's Council on Impaired Driving. The prior group focused on penalties for WY DUI, and was responsible for passage of a new law requiring DUI offenders to install an ignition interlock devices in their vehicles. The council, however, had mixed results working with state lawmakers over the past two years, and the Governor hopes the new team will communicate better with the Legislature.
Wyoming has slowly taken the initiative to combat impaired driving, lowering the legal limit for blood alcohol content from .10% to .08%, and outlawing open containers in motor vehicles. As a result the number of arrests for Wyoming DUI has risen from 1,000 in 2005 to 1,400 in 2008.
The Governor's Team will develop specific recommendations for presentation to the Legislature. Research is underway to analyze efforts and laws in other states, such as enhanced penalties for refusing to submit to a breath, blood or urine test. Prosecutors would like to criminalize such actions. Currently, the penalty in Wyoming is a longer driver's license suspension.
The new team has fifteen months to develop a comprehensive plan to reduce incidents of driving under the influence in Wyoming.
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Kansas Cuts DUI Program Funds
Treatment of repeat offenders of drunk driving in Kansas will be limited.
The funds used to treat repeat offenders for driving under the influence in Kansas have been cut by 70% by state legislators. Last the past fiscal year the state spent approximately $1.2 million to treat drivers convicted of their fourth KS DUI. The funds have been slashed to $416,000, according to the director of addiction and prevention services for the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services.
Because the number of people requiring treatment will likely not change, there will probably be a reduction in the treatment period from twelve months to three. Professionals working with addiction say that the length of engagement is critical for effectiveness, and that a shortening of the programs could cause a rise in recidivism.
The decision to cut the funds comes after the passage of a new law requiring those with a third DUI conviction, rather than the fourth, to enter an alcohol treatment program. That is expected to add as many as 200 people to the rolls of those under treatment. Participants in the program may be required to pay some of the expenses. State lawmakers and officials hope local resources can fill in the gaps.
Treatment professionals, corrections officials and a few lawmakers hope that public safety concerns will help resurrect the funds and thus the DUI treatment programs. The issue could become one of the focuses of a new Kansas DUI commission established to review the state’s drunk driving laws.
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Dallas Police Want to Expand 'No Refusal' Blood Draw for Texas DWI
Effort calls for court ordered blood samples when drunk driving is suspected.
It has been over a year since the Dallas Police Department started its controversial 'no refusal' policy for drawing blood in cases of suspected driving while intoxicated in Texas. The initiative has been used on certain holiday weekends, and utilizes warrants that require defendants to provide blood samples if they refuse to submit to breath-tests or refuse to give samples voluntarily. Due to the success of the program, the police now want to expand it to a year-round effort.
The key restriction is availability of judges to sign the court ordered warrants. Currently judges volunteer their time to be available weekends and after-hours. When a driver is stopped for suspicion of drunk driving in Dallas, Texas, the judges can sign a warrant and the suspect is taken to the Dallas County Jail where a blood sample is taken by nurses from Parkland Memorial Hospital. The sample is then tested for blood alcohol content.
To make the blood draw initiative a year round effort, judges would always have to be available to sign warrants. County jail magistrates are on duty around the clock though under current state law they are prohibited from signing 'evidentiary' search warrants. The Dallas County prosecutor sees that has a 'fluke' in the law and has been working on legislation to change the situation. Wording to clarify the types of magistrates that can sign evidentiary warrants was placed in a bill during the current Texas legislative session, but was later removed.
Texas DWI defense attorneys cite a constitutional liberty against unreasonable search and seizure of evidence, and say the forced blood draw program is being used to negate a defendant’s legal right to refuse to submit to a breath, urine or blood test. Existing state law defines situations when a blood draw is appropriate, including accidents involving injury and repeat DWI offenders. There are also questions regarding the proper drawing, handling and storage of what amounts to key evidence in a criminal case.
A Dallas County District Attorney disagrees, adding that he does not foresee any effective legal challenges being made to the blood draw initiative. The County prosecutor believes there is still time to change the law during the current state legislative session.
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Texas Senate Advances DWI Checkpoint Legislation
Bill would authorize sobriety checkpoints to check for drunk driving in Texas.
Last week the state Senate voted 21-10 to approve a bill that would allow police to establish checkpoints to check for motorists who are driving while intoxicated in Texas.
The bill's sponsor claims that sobriety checkpoints will save 300 lives each year. Opponents say that roving, saturation patrols looking for Texas DWI offenders are more effective and a better use of funds and manpower. The checkpoint locations would be publicized, and the traffic stop would be videotaped and audio recorded. The bill prohibits law enforcement officers to ask for a driver's license or proof of insurance. A random system for stopping vehicles must be in place to avoid the perception of profiling.
A Texas Court of Criminal Appeals ruled against sobriety checkpoints in 1994, though it said that state lawmakers could pass legislation making them legal.
Under the proposed legislation, only counties with a population of 250,000 or more and cities with at least 500,000 residents could engage in the practice. Cities that meet the criteria are Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio and El Paso. The county sheriff or the city mayor would have to approve the set-up of TX DWI checkpoints.
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New Mexico Schedules Spring DWI Campaign
Crackdown on NM DWI is part of Spring Superblitz.
Gov. Bill Richardson announced a spring crackdown on motorists who are driving while intoxicated in New Mexico. The Spring Superblitz will be conducted over the next 17 days. Law enforcement agencies will increase efforts to arrest suspected drunk drivers through sobriety checkpoints and saturation patrols. The campaign will run through the end of March.
A new state-wide anti-DWI ad campaign was also unveiled, titled 'Women Drive Drunk, Too'. The campaign hopes to educate the public to the dangers of driving while intoxicated in New Mexico, and to the fact that the number of female NM DWI offenders is increasing. The State DWI czar says that almost a quarter of all drunk driving arrests in New Mexico involve female drivers. They also reportedly account for 20% of the alcohol related traffic fatalities. The 'Women Drive Drunk, Too' message will be spread through use of billboards, radio spots and television commercials.
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Volunteer 'Designated Drivers' Try to Reduce DUI in Colorado
Colorado Springs group drives customers and their cars home for free.
Driving under the influence in Colorado leads to over 30,000 arrests each year in Colorado. When a men's health magazine ranked Colorado Springs as the third drunkest city in the country, a local group of volunteers decided to create a 'Designated Driver' program.
If someone feels they have had too much to drink, they can call the service and volunteers will get the customer and the customer's vehicle home safely. A spokesperson for 'Designated Driver' said while taxis offer a great service and help reduce Colorado DUI incidents, many who need a ride home after drinking are concerned about getting their vehicles home too. Customers of 'Designated Driver' frequently express their appreciation for the extra service.
Started in Pueblo, Colorado and then expanded into Colorado Springs, 'Designated Driver' relies on donations and sponsorships from local businesses to maintain operations.
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Kansas Considers Ignition Interlocks for All DUI Offenders
Proposed legislation would penalize even first offenders of KS DUI.
The state legislature has announced House Bill 2315 that will require all motorists convicted of driving under the influence in Kansas to install an ignition interlock device in their vehicle. Ignition interlocks act as mini-breathalyzers, measuring a driver’s blood alcohol content before a vehicle can be started. If the BAC exceeds a certain limit the ignition is disabled.
Current Kansas DUI law requires the devices for repeat drunk driving offenders. The new law will require them for even first offenders. Proponents say the approach will reduce DUI related accidents, citing reported lower death rates in states that have enacted similar laws. Opponents of the law, like the American Beverage Institute, say that the law makes no distinction between the social drinker who had one sip beyond the legal limit for intoxication and the average chronic drunk driver who usually has a BAC twice the legal limit. The ABI says the focus should be on identifying and treating the hard-core alcohol abusers who are repeat drunk driving offenders.
An ignition interlock device costs about a $1000 a year to install and maintain. The cost is paid for by the motorist.
The measure is expected to be passed out of committee for consideration by the full Kansas House. It is one of several Kansas DUI measures being considered by the legislature.
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Police Form Special Arizona DUI Patrol for NBA All Star Game
Several agencies form task force to combat drunk driving in Tempe around NBA game.
Five local police agencies and the Department of Public Safety have formed an Arizona DUI Task Force aimed at reducing the number of alcohol related accidents during the NBA All-Star weekend. Tempe police are in charge of the operation, with support from police departments from Scottsdale, Chandler, Gilbert and Mesa.
The NBA All-Star game will be held Sunday, February 15 at the US Airways Center, home of the NBA Phoenix Suns. The drunk driving task force will be conducting traffic stops Friday through Sunday.
The penalties for driving under the influence in Arizona can include loss of driver’s license, jail, thousands of dollars in fines and court fees, vehicle impoundment and mandatory installation of an ignition interlock device.
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Highway Patrol Receives Grant for Increased California DUI Programs
Grant from state office will fund increased CA drunk driving patrols and sobriety checkpoints.
The California Highway Patrol has received a $5.9 million grant to help keep drunk drivers off state highways. The funds from the California Office of Traffic Safety will be used for additional DUI patrols and sobriety checkpoints.
The grant money will be dispersed across the state, mainly to pay overtime for the officers conducting drunk driving patrols and staffing checkpoints. Over 35 California DUI task force patrols are planned for 2009, along with 110 DUI checkpoints. In addition to offenses of driving under the influence in California, officers will be looking for seatbelt violations, speeding and unsafe driving.
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