Pushing to Put Lock on Drunk Drivers : Dashboard Breath Test Would Be Only Way to Start Car Under Pilot Program

Convicted drunk drivers in San Diego County may soon have a surprise in store. If they try to go for a drive after quaffing a martini or throwing back a few beers, they could find that their cars refuse to start.

Under a new state law, judges can require ignition-locking devices--allowing a car to start only if its driver is sober--as a condition of probation for drunk drivers.

The San Diego Municipal Court is expected to be one of four judicial districts in the state that will soon be selected for a two-year pilot program to test the new anti-drunk-driving effort.

San Diego legal officials hope that use of the ignition-locking devices will prove effective in combating problems with individuals arrested repeatedly for drunk driving.

“We’re guardedly optimistic,” said Judge Herbert Exarhos of the San Diego Municipal Court. “We don’t know how well it will work, but we figured we didn’t have much to lose by giving it a try.”

Stuart Swett, a senior chief deputy city attorney who heads San Diego’s criminal division, agreed.

“Any program that would assist with the drunk driving problem is something we would be interested in pursuing,” Swett said. “If this will keep people from becoming repeat offenders, we’re all for it.”

The ignition-locking device--a small box installed atop a car’s dashboard--contains breath-testing instruments that measure blood-alcohol level when the driver blows through a tube. The device is connected to the car’s ignition system so that it cannot be started without taking the breath test.

If the driver’s blood-alcohol level is below 0.025, the car will start. If the level is higher, however, the car will not start. The state’s standard is 0.10 for drunk driving.

Under the law, convicted drunk drivers would have to purchase or lease the ignition-locking device. That won’t be cheap. Ray Biancalana, administrative manager for the state Office of Traffic Safety, said the devices cost $300 to $400.

But many authorities feel that the price tag will be far more palatable to convicted drunk drivers than tougher penalties.

As Exarhos and other judges see it, the new program will be applied primarily to persons arrested a second time for drunk driving. For a second offense, drivers face a mandatory one-year suspension of their license.

“Putting the shoe on the other foot, I think this would be an attractive alternative for the second-time offender,” Exarhos said.

Moreover, authorities hope that use of the ignition-locking device will help reduce the number of individuals convicted more than two times for drunk driving, easing the strain on the state’s overburdened court system and jails.

“We’re hoping that by treating them at the time of the second offense, we’ll avoid some of the third and fourth offenses that generally bring on severe penalties,” Exarhos said, noting that a driver convicted of a third drunk driving offense faces a mandatory three-year suspension of his or her license.

Biancalana said the pilot program, the first of its kind in the United States, will probably begin by spring. Although final selection of the four judicial districts will not be made until later this month, only San Diego and the municipal courts in Alameda and Sonoma counties and Long Beach have expressed interest, he said.

The state Office of Traffic Safety, which is overseeing the project, plans to sign up a network of service stations to install the devices, Biancalana said. The driver would have to get the work certified at a state automotive safety inspection station.

During the two years of the pilot program, state officials will monitor cases to determine whether the device proves effective in preventing repeat drunk driving offenses, Biancalana said.

“We’ve made the fines for drunk driving higher, we’ve increased the jail sentences, but the problem is still around,” he said. “This is an innovative measure that deserves a test to see if it will help.”