Lawmakers consider ignition interlock for all DWI offenders
Joe Fryer // KARE 11 TVMarch 3, 2010
ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The state Senate's transportation committee heard testimony Tuesday from supporters of a bill that would require ignition interlock systems for all drunken driving offenders -- even first-time offenders.
Ignition interlock forces drivers to blow into a machine and prove they haven't been drinking before their vehicles will start.
"This is a good bill," Tim Leslie of the state's Public Safety department told lawmakers. "It provides both public safety on our roadways and legal driving opportunities for DUI offenders."
In addition to mandatory ignition interlock, the bill would lengthen license revocation periods for all DWI offenders. And offenders would have to pay for ignition interlock, which costs about $100 a month, the Public Safety department said.
The American Beverage Institute feels the bill is too harsh. It's asking lawmakers to amend the bill so judges would have discretion on whether first-time offenders need ignition interlock if their blood-alcohol concentration is below 0.15.
"What we don't want to see is somebody who's one sip over the legal limit being punished the same way or to the same degree as someone who's had 10 drinks prior to driving," said Sarah Longwell, the American Beverage Institute's managing director.
Smart Start, a company that provides ignition interlock services in Minnesota, said the system is effective.
"We separate drinking from driving," said Ed Cohen, Smart Start's vice president. If you choose to drink and you're in this program, you won't be able to drive."
One of Smart Start's clients, Rick, who asked us not to use his name, started using ignition interlock in November. He lost his license for six years after getting multiple DWIs, and said he couldn't drive until now.
"It has been working good because I'm able to get to work and do the things I have to do," Rick said. "It has been keeping me from drinking, so it does work."
The technology is not foolproof. Offenders can just drive someone else's car if they've been drinking. But Cheri Marti, director of Minnesota's Office of Traffic Safety, said of the state's 700 offenders who have used ignition interlock, only one has reoffended.
The bill is just starting to work its way through legislative committees. It has strong support from Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
(Copyright 2010 by KARE. All Rights Reserved.)
Richard Berman has been a regular front man for business and industry in campaigns against consumer safety and environmental groups. Through his public affairs firm, Berman and Company, Berman has fought unions, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, PETA and other watchdog groups in their efforts to raise awareness about obesity, the minimum wage, the dangers of smoking, mad cow disease, drunk driving, and other causes. Berman runs at least 15 industry-funded front groups and projects, such as the Center for Union Facts and holds 16 "positions" in those organizations.
Each year, Berman, using his front groups to spread misinformation, spends millions of dollars distracting the public with misleading ads.
As a result of his largesse, in 2006, Richard Berman used $2,000,000 in cash to buy this $3.3 million house.
