Lindsay Lohan will be performing the community service part of her driving under the influence conviction by working in a morgue. The 21-year old actress will spend two four-hour shifts at a Los Angeles County morgue. She will spend an additional two days working in a hospital emergency room. The expressed intent is to show her the consequences of drinking and driving.

Lohan was charged with a California DUI in Los Angeles twice last year, within a few weeks. As part of her plea agreement, she was ordered to alcohol rehab and sentenced to four days in jail. The judge on the case though reduced the jail time in exchange for 10 days of community service. Lohan has already worked with the American Red Cross as part of that agreement. She spent 80 hours in a Lynwood correctional facility to satisfy her jail sentence.

Lohan

The El Paso police department is developing a training program to certify its officers in the use of breath test equipment. The goalsare to help combat drunk driving in Texas and save tax money.

Breath testing equipment helps police test for blood alcohol content of a motorist and determine whether they are driving while intoxicated. For the results to be admissible, the officer must be certified in use of the equipment. Currently police officers are trained in the application of the Intoxilyzer in either Midland or San Antonio, through the Texas Department of Public Safety. That costs the El Paso police department around $1,500 per officer, including travel expenses, at an average total of $30,000 per year. Even with a nearly half-million dollar start-up cost and a $45,000 annual operating cost, the new program is expected to be cost effective by allowing more officers to be trained. The taxpayer will save because the cost will be underwritten by fines from DWI convictions and fees from nearby police departments that are expected to train at the regional facility.

The specially trained officers will combat drunk driving in far West Texas, where the percentage of alcohol related accidents and injuries are above the national average. It has taken nearly 18 months to develop the program, which is expected to start in March 2008.

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A member of the Kentucky State Senate has introduced legislation that would lower the blood-alcohol level for aggravated drunk driving.

Kentucky drunk driving laws establish .08% BAC as the threshold of legal intoxication. Currently a BAC of .18% or higher is considered an aggravated offense subject to additional penalties. Senate Bill 71 would establish .15% BAC as the new threshold for aggravated DUI.

Under the legislation, a highly intoxicated first offense driver would be required to spend a minimum of four days in jail. The bill also increases the penalties for drivers caught driving under the influence of drugs.

The bill has passed the Senate Judiciary Committee and will soon be introduced to the full Senate of the Kentucky General Assembly.

Kiefer Sutherland left a Glendale, California jail after serving his entire 48-day sentence for a drinking and driving and probation violation. The 41-year actor was released minutes after midnight, early Monday morning.

Wearing a shirt and blue jeans, Sutherland appeared pleased that he was leaving the facility. He spent Christmas, New Year