Next year, Dane County plans to try a program that South Dakota successfully used to reduce drunk driving and domestic violence.
The program, called “24/7,” involves frequent blood alcohol testing of offenders. Alcohol testing, twice a day, will be tried next year on 100 people in Dane County convicted of drunk driving or domestic violence. It's described by Dane County Judge John Markson as way to be not only tough on crime, but smart on crime.
“One of the conditions that's often set for an alcohol offender is sobriety, but up until now we've had no real good way to monitor that,” says Markson.
Research on South Dakota's program found a 99 percent compliance rate for 3 million breathalyzer tests taken over a five-year period. Even more encouraging, says the RAND Corporation study, was a 12 percent reduction in drunk driving.
Dane County Executive Joe Parisi says he plans a pilot program lasting six months. “We're hopeful this evidence-based program will help us chip away at some of the tragic results that we see from driving under the influence and alcohol-related domestic violence.”
Parisi says the program will be included in the 2014 budget and, if approved, will be introduced in mid-2014. The program will cost $85,000, with much of that cost offset by a $2 fee offenders pay for each alcohol test.
