Dec. 19, 2012
Last week, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommended that all 50 states adopt laws requiring motorists convicted of drunk driving, even first-time offenders, to have an ignition interlock system installed on vehicles they are driving. FOX 59 News reported that the Indiana State Legislature would likely support such policies.
An ignition interlock device is a piece of electronic equipment tied into the wiring that starts a vehicle’s engine, requiring a motorist to have their breath checked for alcohol before the vehicle will start. Laws requiring the devices have already been implemented in 17 states, and they have reportedly been successful in reducing the number of drunk drivers on the road.
Experts say interlock devices can potentially save as many as 7,000 lives per year, including those involved in Indianapolis Auto Accidents. Every week, 11 people die and nine more are seriously injured due to drunken driving accidents. These numbers were determined by an NTSB study examining data collected from more than 1,500 crashes over a five-year period. Roughly 70 percent of those accidents involved drivers with blood alcohol limits above legal levels.
The Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers at Stewart & Stewart Attorneys support measures that aim to successfully reduce the number of individuals who are injured or killed in Indiana drunk driving accidents.