21 May 2015

OFFICIALS TO HIGHLIGHT SOBRIETY COURT PROGRAM

Original Story: record-eagle.com

TRAVERSE CITY — A whiff of alcohol is all it takes for an ignition interlock to stop a vehicle from starting, or risk failure in a local sobriety court.

The device is used by 31 defendants in the 86th District Court's sobriety court, a program that's being highlighted statewide. The district's chief Judge Michael Stepka and other local court and government officials will gather Thursday at 9 a.m. in the Robert P. Griffin Hall of Justice to view a live video conference from Lansing. An Ossining DWI lawyer is following this story closely.

The event coincides with the release of a study about interlock devices in Michigan's sobriety court programs. Stepka said the study found sobriety court defendants who had an interlock device are much less likely to fail treatment programs.

"According to this study, people who have the interlock device tend to be more successful in a drug or sobriety program, likely because they have the ability to be mobile," he said. A New York DWI lawyer represents clients facing drunk driving charges.

Stepka said sobriety court defendants with an interlock device have a 11.7 percent failure rate. Sobriety court defendants without such devices have a 33.9 percent failure rate, according to the study.

No comments: