On November 26th, MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) released a year’s end progress report showing the statistics on drunk driving nationwide.
The states where there were the least amount of fatalities are Utah, Kentucky and Nebraska. Rhode Island, South Dakota and Connecticut had the highest amount of drunk driving fatalities.
Colorado ranked at #35, with 177 drunken driving fatalities. The recent passage of an interlock law caused a decrease of 14% in drunken driving fatalities. MADD’s goals are to continue to improve this law further in 2008.
The Interlock law requires all convicted DUI offenders to have a breath alcohol interlock device installed in their vehicle’s dashboard. Before the vehicle can be started, the driver must breathe into the device. If the analyzed result is over a programmed blood alcohol concentration, commonly .02% or .04%, the vehicle will not start.
In Colorado, the Interlock Law became effective in January 1st of 2007. All drivers who test over 0.17 are required to install and drive with an interlock device on their vehicles for at least two years after any license restraint period. This is called a “restricted license.”
MADD reports that 46 states still don’t require interlocks for all drunk driving offenders, and 11 states still cannot do sobriety checkpoints.
Information on both MADD and the nationwide drunk driving report can be found at www.madd.org.
The attorneys at Bachus & Schanker can help if you or your family has been involved in a drunk-driving accident. We aggressively pursue claims against drunk drivers responsible for serious injuries and death. For more information about how we can help, please click here.
