RATING THE STATES
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VERMONT Vermont enacted an optional ignition interlock program for convicted drunk drivers in 2010. Efforts are needed to strengthen this law and improve the state’s DUI laws. MADD will work to advance a mandatory all-offender ignition interlock law, along with other anti-drunk driving countermeasures, including child endangerment legislation to protect Vermont’s children from drunk drivers. VIRGINIA In 2012, Virginia enacted a law requiring ignition interlocks for all convicted drunk drivers. Within a year, interlock installations have increased to over 8,500. MADD applauds Virginia on its continued efforts to keep road-users safe. Sobriety checkpoints and on-going refinement of the ignition interlock program are proven ways to continue saving lives. WASHINGTON Washington passed an all-offender ignition interlock law in 2009. Each legislative session since the law was enacted, improvements have been made to this comprehensive interlock law. Due in part to the all-offender interlock law, drunk driving deaths have dropped by an additional 20 percent. MADD calls on lawmakers to pass laws to allow for high-visibility law enforcement activities. Sobriety checkpoints could reduce DUI fatalities by an additional 20 percent. WEST VIRGINIA West Virginia is on the path to eliminate drunk driving. Due in part to the 2008 all-offender ignition interlock law, drunk driving deaths have dropped by 33 percent in West Virginia. The state needs to focus on no-refusal efforts to ensure that drunk drivers are held accountable. MADD applauds West Virginia on its continued efforts to keep roads safe. Sobriety checkpoints and ongoing refinement of the ignition interlock program are proven countermeasures to continue saving lives. WISCONSIN Wisconsin is the only state in the nation where a first drunk driving offense is not a crime. It’s “just” a traffic ticket. In 2009, the state made improvements to their DUI law by requiring ignition interlocks for first-time convicted drunk drivers with a BAC of .15 or greater. MADD calls on legislators to get tough on drunk driving and pass laws to require ignition interlocks for all convicted drunk drivers, legalize sobriety checkpoints, and to make a first offense a misdemeanor.
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