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Idaho Code 18-8005 under title 18, or motor vehicle crimes and punishments, is a new law passed March 6, 2018, stating that first-time offenders for driving under the influence (DUI), will have stricter consequences and punishments for such actions. Those punishments, if proven or found guilty vary from jail time not exceeding six months, fines of no more than one thousand dollars, driving privileges suspended and newly an ignition interlock device installed into one’s vehicle(s). As this law continues to pursue across states it is local. Interlock on one’s ignition is a breathalyzer for one’s individual vehicle(s), with that it is required to be blown into on the mouthpiece placed on the device in order for the vehicle to work.
Policy History & Background
Having an ignition interlock placed in DUI offenders vehicles became law to help lower statistics and data behind driving under the influence. The purpose being behind this law is to make roads in the United States safer in any way possible that we can. Starting back in the United Kingdom a taxi driver in 1897 was the first person to be arrested for drunk driving. From then on there out New York had acquired a law against drunk driving, it didn’t define a level of inebriation it just banned drinking and driving overall in 1910 (Watts, 2019). Up until 1953, there was no device to detect whether one was inebriated or not. A doctor with the name of Dr. Harger joined teams with Robert Borkenstein to invent the breathalyzer, in which only improved for cops to detect a drunk driver or not.
An ignition interlock takes a place in the year 1969 coming to the scene to driving under the influence offenders. Although when it first came out it wasn’t very reliable but only advanced in technology to become reliable (Wutke, 2015). Fast forwarding to 1973 the first part of federal legislation, called The Federal-Aid Highway Act, created to tackle the issue of drug-impaired driving (Watts, 2019). A court case called Mackey v, Montry ruled that Administrative License Revocation or also known as ALR will from here on out allow a DUI offenders license to be removed if one refuses to take sobriety test or arrested upon being under the influence. With the time passing a thirteen-year-old girl had died in an accident from a hit-and-run drunk driver while walking down the street in California. After this situation occurred an organization called ‘Mothers against drunk driving’ or a.k.a MADD a nonprofit activist group grew rapidly in 1980 (Watts, 2019).
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National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in 1982 had finally recommended that the blood alcohol content level (BAC) define impaired driving to be set at 0.08% finally defining the law of inebriation while driving adopted back in 1910. Five years later, to continue the background a case South Dakota v. Dole, declared that the national legal drinking age is 21, as the case closed and settled every state met the national standard. (Watts, 2019).
As we hit the twentieth century, to be exact in 2003, it was to be reported that 17,013 people died in a collision that had to take part with alcohol, that in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported being 40% of total traffic deaths. The ignition interlock device became a utility in 2013 in Maryland, this device could gauge their motor skills and estimate one’s BAC. Lastly, to contribute Maryland was the 26th state to require an ignition interlock for all driving under the influence offenders, this took such place from the death of one of their very own cops. (Watts, 2019)
Ignition Interlocks slowly advanced through history and has gotten us to where we are today, leaving roughly 20 states to upgrade their laws, to keep roads safer and lower statistics. Catching up to current days, Idaho became the 32nd state to engage in requiring an ignition interlock device for first time offenders.
Current Situation
With more data and statistics being recorded, the issue continues to becoming secured, proving only to other states, having an ignition interlock will not give setbacks but only push through and break records for lowered DUI offenders, protecting the lives of american citizens. With the Interlock device being installed into cars, they have only had to advance the technology as time carried on. The insight behind them is, it can take an enormous amount of money out of one who violates the law, that being up the lowest amount of $1,000 and $2,250 in total cost of one year the device is required to be installed (Brown, 2019). Pricing can vary depending which company is used. With this bill being passed in another state, that in which being idaho it was a triumph for the MADD organization.
Adding to the money portion, the fine behind being pulled over and caught violating Idaho Code 18-8005 can lead to a $1,000 up to $5,000 depending on how many offenses one has had (DUI laws in Idaho, 2019). “Any person who has been found guilty of DUI within the prior 10 years, installation of an ignition interlock is mandatory” (State ignition interlock laws, 2018).
The first Friday of the new year, 2019, 23 people had been booked into the Ada County Jail for driving under the influence. 23 people that could have caused fatalities, accidents or so on now are required first-time offenders or not to have an ignition interlock take place in their vehicle(s). Concluding statistics in the 2017 holiday season, in which meaning thanksgiving and Christmas, there were 292 people arrested for driving under the influence (Brown, 2019). To include other information behind ignition interlocks and what they have done to make our roads safer. Mothers Against Drunk Driving has roughly prevented 1.77 million drunk driving attempts (Snyder, 2016).
The ignition interlock use to only be required to second-time offenders but as the law has changed, only for the better, security has gotten safer behind the interlock. This extra safety precaution is a camera. With the camera it takes a snapshot twice, this being when it asks for the sample and when the sample is being taken. This is now required due to offenders asking people who are sober in the passenger seat or somewhere to take the breathalyzer for them (Rosbach, 2013). The law will only continue to work until the right amount of refinements are made about the law, but not completely abolishing drinking.
To start off with one of the most known organization to fight against impaired driving, whether it be from alcohol, illegal drugs, or prescription drugs. Organization, mothers against drunk driving (MADD), as talked of a little earlier fights to make a change everyday. This group started off as mothers coming together after one mom faced the tragedy of losing her daughter. It’s not only here to prevent but to support all the people affected but impaired driving and create stricter policies. With years passing, since more people have joined, more statistics and data have been collected, to prove stricter policies decreases the rates of accidents and increase in safer roads.
Throughout this graph it has all the states in America rated on a scale of one to five for the states that have the law requiring an ignition interlock device for DUI offenders; those being all red, coming from the MADD organization (Mothers against drunk driving, 2019). On this map Idaho is rated with a 2, meaning behind this being in 2018 the rate of annual drunk driving deaths lowered to 77, missing any star rating for sobriety checkpoints in idaho, but having half stars for such things as, all-offender interlock law, license revocation, child endangerment, and no refusal.
Continuing onto the next organization, National Highway Traffic Safety Association (NHTSA). Their goal is to keep pursuing to fight for safer highways, not having anyone’s life at risk during one’s travel. They formed together to inform the people, those being of the world, about how alcohol can affect driving ability. For instance how when alcohol increases in a person’s system that takes affect, negatively, on the central nervous causing it to rise (National Highway Traffic Safety Association, 2019).
As NHTSA shows in their statistics, as laws were implemented from the 1900’s up to the 20th century and got stronger statistics of fatalities only decreased, saving lives every day. As the graph states they have decreased 50% in the period of 1982 to 2016 (NHTSA, 2019).
The overall topic behind the ignition interlock there are no controversies, the only new stories are statistics decreasing throughout the years, in which is only accomplishing the United State goals.
Differing Viewpoints
With the DUI law and requiring ignition interlocks there are two experts who fully support and behind the idea of safer roads, as mostly everyone is. Starting off with the first expert which was already stated being ‘Mothers Against Drunk Driving’. This is an organization, behind this organization, it started off all as mothers only to expand to people who have been affected by ones who violate the law of driving under the influence. They dedicate so much of their time and effort to create and fight against current law to only make them stronger.
That is their main mission, to create a law that has consequences if violated that teaches a lesson. An organization that is up and running 24/7 (MADD, 2019). Although its nonprofit they are a group that strives for stricter impaired driving policies and to prevent underage drinking, driving under the influence for all ages. They were the first group to maintain and create the ignition interlock and call for it to be a required law.
Lastly is the National Highway Traffic Safety Association or also known as NHTSA, they are an organization but also an agency for the Executive Branch of the United States government. “Save lives, prevent injuries, reduce vehicle-related crashes.” that is their main purpose (NHTSA, 2019). They fight for many things to keep highways safe, but impaired driving is a big one.
