Driving under the influence (DUI)

Jul 29, 2008 Editorial

At long last, it appears that one of the major contributory causes of the carnage on our roads is going to be addressed – driving while intoxicated (DWI) or driving under the influence (DUI).

In the United States, 17,941 people died in 2006 in “alcohol-related” collisions — representing some forty-one percent of total traffic deaths in the US — while over half a million persons were injured in alcohol-related accidents.

While we do not have the comparable statistics for our country, if it is one area that we can safely assume that we are equal to the US, it would be in the arena of consumption of alcohol; and that proficiency certainly spills over into, if not surpassing, “driving under the influence”.

Last week, the Parliament passed a bill, the Evidence and Motor Vehicles and Road Traffic (Amendment) Bill 2008 that proposes to apply penalties to those who are caught “driving while intoxicated”.

This is a good beginning, and the fact that the bill was passed unanimously – that is, with the Government and all the Opposition parties voting in its favour – demonstrates the widespread acceptance that DUI is a major problem in our land.

However, we must not assume that it will be all smooth sailing to enforce the new law once the President gives his assent. The devil, as usual, is in the details.

What, for instance, will be the probable cause for pulling someone over on suspicion of DUI? In other jurisdictions, the most common reason for stopping a suspect is that an officer on patrol has observed erratic, suspicious driving, or a series of traffic infractions indicating the possibility that the driver may be impaired.

These will have to be spelt out. Will there be sobriety checkpoints or roadblocks? After stopping the driver, the officer usually will look for telltale signs of intoxication, such as slurred speech, then apply one or more field sobriety tests (FSTs).

FSTs are “divided attention tests” that theoretically test the suspect’s ability to perform the type of mental and physical multitasking that is required to operate an automobile.

The most commonly administered FSTs include the horizontal gaze nystagmus, the “walk-and-turn (heel-to-toe in a straight line)” and a “one-leg-stand” tests.

Because these tests have been challenged in the courts, officers are increasingly being equipped with handheld breath testing devices, called a PAS (“preliminary alcohol screening”) or PBT (“preliminary breath test”) that, while not definitive, are better able to assess the suspect’s sobriety.

The suspect would then be transported to the nearest police station, which would have to be equipped with the more sophisticated instruments, the EBTs (“evidentiary breath test”).

While it was mentioned that the grounds for DUI would be the consumption of more than two beers, the actual standard for determining blood alcohol concentration (BAC) would obviously have to be more precise.

In most states in the US, it is a refutable presumption that a person with a BAC of .08 or higher is driving under the influence.

At the police station, the arrestee is usually offered a chemical test of breath, blood or, much less frequently, urine.

If it is determined after arrest that the person’s blood alcohol concentration is not at or above the legal limit of .08, the person will probably be released without any charges.

Most of the time, the driver will either be kept in a holding cell (sometimes referred to as the “drunk tank”) until he is deemed sober enough to be released on bail, or on his “own recognizance” (“O.R.”).

A date to appear in court for an arraignment will be given to him. Is this also going to be our system?

As was mentioned by several lawmakers, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Traffic Police division will have to embark on a massive campaign to bring home the effect of the new law.

Secondly, and most importantly, the police themselves will have to be fully supported so that they can enforce the law in a fair and transparent manner.

Do we have the resources to equip them adequately? As with any new law that gives the police the power to stop and detain citizens, there will have to be a very rigorous programme to instill the greatest degree of professionalism into the newly empowered police officers.

We will have to do whatever it takes to ensure the success of the new law. Our lives are literally at stake.

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Driving under the influence (DUI)

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