QUINCY, ILL. -- The State of Illinois hopes a new high-tech tool will help curb drunk driving accidents, and possibly even save lives.
Starting January 1, 2009, first-time D-U-I offenders will be ordered to install Breath Alcohol Ignition Interlock Devices, or BAIIDs, in their cars.
The driver must blow into the device and pass a breathalyzer before the vehicle's ignition will start.
KHQA spoke with a Quincy man who used to install the devices about how they work and their effectiveness.
You could call Roger Niehaus an expert when it comes to these Breath Alcohol Ignition Interlock Devices, or BAIIDs. He's installed more than 400 of them during the last 8 years and has done quite a bit of research on the devices.
How does it work?
Roger Niehaus said, "When you first get in your car, you just turn on the green light. It will come on and tell you to wait 'til the system warms up. It will then tell you to blow into it. "
You blow into this mouthpiece for about 6 seconds. The machine will then test your breath. If you haven't been drinking, the car will start right away. But if you have been drinking, the car won't start if your alcohol content is above .025.
How effective has it been?
Niehaus said, "The new systems that have come out are very effective."
Offenders must pay for the machines, which cost about $1000. The State of Illinois is on the forefront of requiring these BAIIDs for first-time offenders. Only a few other states have done so. Neihaus says Illinois' new "first-time offender" law will mean 50-thousand more people will be required to get them in 2009. And offenders aren't the only ones who've been known to use them. Niehaus told says that during the past 8 years, a few parents have asked him to install the device in their kids' vehicles to ensure that they won't drink and drive.
By the way, Niehaus stopped installing the Breath Alcohol Ignition Interlock Devices about three months ago.
But he says Spring Street Automotive and The Bump Shop in Quincy will install them from now on.
They're called breath alcohol ignition interlock devices, or BAIIDs (bades).
Is drinking and driving a problem in this area?
Adams County Assistant State's Attorney Jennifer Cifaldi said, "I think it absolutely is. We've seen the numbers grow. Right now, we're on schedule to having 600 DUI's if we keep going at the rate we're at."
Cifaldi says some DUI offenders might try to fool the system by driving someone else's car or having someone else blow into the devices to get the car to start.
But she says the Illinois legislature has come up with some pretty stiff penalties for drivers who get caught trying to cheat the BAIIDs.
