How a new law could reduce drunk driving fatalities.
By Andrea Wright
Hawaii ranks number one in the nation in alcohol-related traffic fatalities, according to the federal government’s annual traffic safety assessment. In 2006, 52 percent of Hawaii traffic fatalities involved alcohol. The national average was 41 percent. Hawaii averages about 6,000 driving under the influence (DUI) arrests each year.
Although stricter laws were enacted over the past few decades, lowering the legal blood alcohol content (BAC) limit to .08 percent and a zero-tolerance policy for drivers under age 21 doesn’t seem to be enough. Organizations such as Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), the American Automobile Association, the Hawaii Department of Transportation, and the state Legislature have joined forces to combat this problem.
These groups support a new law mandating that those convicted of DUI have an ignition-interlock device installed in their vehicle. This device prevents vehicles from starting until the driver takes a breathalyzer test proving that their BAC is under the legal limit.
Interlock devices are instruments about the size of a cell phone installed into a vehicle’s starting circuit. The driver blows into the device while a camera snaps a photo of the person performing the test. The device determines the driver’s BAC and will start the engine only if the person is sober. Retests are required during the drive to ensure the accuracy of the device and that the person isn’t drinking while driving or idling for too long. Offenders will have a monthly status report indicating the number of times the device was tried successfully and unsuccessfully, and to determine that it hasn’t been tampered with.
The cost of the device is about $75 to install and about $75 per month for service. The law will require offenders, not taxpayers, to pay for it. The cost, MADD’s volunteer legislative liaison Arkie Koehl notes, “is equivalent to the cost of one beer per day.”
According to statistics, 50 percent to 75 percent of drunk drivers whose licenses are suspended continue to drive; many of them are repeat offenders. Carol McNamee, founder of MADD-Hawaii, says, “The main reason why people continue to drive drunk today, despite 26 years of intense public education and law enforcement’s efforts, is because they can! The next stage may not be education, but technology.”
According to Koehl, “There is a myth that first-time offenders are just unlucky, occasional drinkers who got caught. The fact is that that’s rarely the case.” Studies show that first offenders have driven drunk an average of 87 times before they’re convicted. The new law states that anyone convicted of driving with a BAC level of .15 or more be required to install the ignition-interlock device. Those with a level between .08 and .15 will have the choice of the device or license suspension, but many supporters of law want the device used for all persons convicted of DUI.
Currently, Hawaii is one of five states without an ignition-interlock law in effect. In other states, especially New Mexico, it’s proven extremely effective. Studies show that the device decreases repeat drunken driving offenses by 50 percent to 90 percent. An important fact, says Koehl, is that research in places like New Mexico shows that “offenders driving around with these devices are very much in favor of it because, unlike the present system, you can drive any time and anywhere you want.” Rather than having their license suspended, offenders retain driving privileges as long as they pass the sobriety test.
The length of time that offenders are required to use the device will depend on their number of offenses, their BAC, and the results of their monthly status report. Koehl stresses that if offenders’ reports show that they haven’t tried to start the car too many times unsuccessfully or to tamper with the device, the court may lessen their sentencing time. Of course, those caught trying to defraud the system will have to keep using it longer.
Hawaii’s new law was sponsored by Sharon Har (D-Kapolei). In 2007, Har was hit head-on by a 24-year-old drunk driver with several DUI offenses and a revoked license. "This law will save lives and the many benefits far outweigh the costs. It will help protect the people of our state and make our streets safer for us all," Har said.
The bill was passed unanimously by the House and Senate in May and signed into law by Gov. Lingle in June. Koehl admits that there are still a lot of unanswered questions about the law, but a task force is working on the details before it goes into effect in mid-2010.
McNamee believes that within 10 years, “technology will put a device in all cars manufactured.” Until then, MADD urges the people of Hawai‘i to act responsibly to help prevent drunk driving, the nation’s most common, and completely preventable, violent crime.
