Bill would require special devices for drunk drivers
Bill would require special devices for drunk drivers
By Lucas Knowles
Editor
If a new bill sponsored by State Senator Lynn Bromley passes, those who are caught drunk driving in Maine may have a device installed in their vehicle designed to curb further incidents.
Bromley (D-Scarborough, South Portland, Cape Elizabeth) has submitted legislation, called An Act to Reduce Drunk Driving, which would make the installation of alcohol ignition interlock devices in vehicles mandatory for those that are convicted of operating under the influence.
Alcohol ignition interlock devices are designed to determine a person’s blood alcohol level. They are installed in a vehicle’s dashboard and the vehicle’s operator has to blow into the device to start the vehicle. If their blood alcohol level exceeds the state limit, the vehicle does not start.
Bromley said during the debate that surrounded “Tina’s Law,” which was passed recently as a way to crack down on suspended drivers in Maine, she received a great deal of e-mail saying that not only were the rules regarding suspended drivers not harsh enough, but the laws for drunk driving were not strict enough as well. It was then that she received word about New Mexico passing a law making alcohol ignition interlock devices mandatory last summer. She said she feels the measure being proposed in the Maine Legislature is about prevention.
“For most of us, our lives have been touched by alcoholism,” Bromley said. “This bill is about prevention, I feel…when you are intoxicated, you do not have good judgment. This device will make the stop and slow them down.”
New Mexico became the second state in the U.S. to adopt a law requiring the alcohol ignition interlock device after the first offense. Washington was the first. Other states require that the device be installed after the second offense.
Those in favor of the devices, including the organization Mothers Against Drunk Driving, claim that they help to decrease the number of drunk driving offenses. In other states, there have been instances of a decrease in drunk driving offenses after the devices were made mandatory.
According to Bromley, the debate that will likely occur in the Maine Legislature about the bill will have two major focuses – whether installation will be required after the first or second offense and what the penalty should be if someone else blows into the device for the person for who the device was installed.
Bromley said the offenders will have to pay for the installation of the devices, not the state, making the state’s financial contribution minimal. She said she has received a lot of interest from her fellow legislators about the bill and may have several co-sponsors for the legislation.
“This makes a lot of sense to me in many ways,” Bromley said. “A license is a privilege, not a right, and here’s a way to know you’re OK when you’re driving.”
The Maine Legislature will take up An Act to Reduce Drunk Driving during its current session. Bromley said another part of the debate surrounding the bill may be about when the law will take effect.
By Lucas Knowles
Editor
If a new bill sponsored by State Senator Lynn Bromley passes, those who are caught drunk driving in Maine may have a device installed in their vehicle designed to curb further incidents.
Bromley (D-Scarborough, South Portland, Cape Elizabeth) has submitted legislation, called An Act to Reduce Drunk Driving, which would make the installation of alcohol ignition interlock devices in vehicles mandatory for those that are convicted of operating under the influence.
Alcohol ignition interlock devices are designed to determine a person’s blood alcohol level. They are installed in a vehicle’s dashboard and the vehicle’s operator has to blow into the device to start the vehicle. If their blood alcohol level exceeds the state limit, the vehicle does not start.
Bromley said during the debate that surrounded “Tina’s Law,” which was passed recently as a way to crack down on suspended drivers in Maine, she received a great deal of e-mail saying that not only were the rules regarding suspended drivers not harsh enough, but the laws for drunk driving were not strict enough as well. It was then that she received word about New Mexico passing a law making alcohol ignition interlock devices mandatory last summer. She said she feels the measure being proposed in the Maine Legislature is about prevention.
“For most of us, our lives have been touched by alcoholism,” Bromley said. “This bill is about prevention, I feel…when you are intoxicated, you do not have good judgment. This device will make the stop and slow them down.”
New Mexico became the second state in the U.S. to adopt a law requiring the alcohol ignition interlock device after the first offense. Washington was the first. Other states require that the device be installed after the second offense.
Those in favor of the devices, including the organization Mothers Against Drunk Driving, claim that they help to decrease the number of drunk driving offenses. In other states, there have been instances of a decrease in drunk driving offenses after the devices were made mandatory.
According to Bromley, the debate that will likely occur in the Maine Legislature about the bill will have two major focuses – whether installation will be required after the first or second offense and what the penalty should be if someone else blows into the device for the person for who the device was installed.
Bromley said the offenders will have to pay for the installation of the devices, not the state, making the state’s financial contribution minimal. She said she has received a lot of interest from her fellow legislators about the bill and may have several co-sponsors for the legislation.
“This makes a lot of sense to me in many ways,” Bromley said. “A license is a privilege, not a right, and here’s a way to know you’re OK when you’re driving.”
The Maine Legislature will take up An Act to Reduce Drunk Driving during its current session. Bromley said another part of the debate surrounding the bill may be about when the law will take effect.
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