(Click on the above image for Chris Swonger and Rich Leotta's Maryland Reporter article)
- Alcohol-impaired drivers killed 10,265 people across the nation in 2015. Among those lost was Montgomery County Police Officer Noah Leotta. Just 24 years old, he was killed by the exact crime he was trying to protect us from—struck by a driver under the influence during a traffic stop of a suspected impaired driver.
- Unfortunately, Noah’s Law as originally enacted contains a dangerous loophole in its ignition interlock mandate. Many first-time DUI offenders in Maryland are not sentenced to install an ignition interlock because they are granted probation before judgment (PBJ).
- Here’s the problem: a first-time arrest for DUI doesn’t mean it’s the first time someone drove drunk. Driving while impaired is often a long-established habit for these individuals. In fact, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that drivers take an average of 80 vehicle trips under the influence before receiving their first DUI arrest.