Automobile "interlocks" that require motorists to breathe into a tube before trying to start their cars have stopped 1.8 million cases of drunk driving nationwide, according to a report released Wednesday by officials from Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) who called for wider use of the technology.
MADD dedicated the findings to Noah Leotta, 24, a police officer who was killed two months ago just north of Washington. Leotta was struck by a suspected drunk driver while he was working a special detail aimed at getting drunk people off the road.
"MADD knows ignition interlocks save lives, and they could save even more lives if every offender is required to use the device after the first arrest," Colleen Sheehey-Church, the group's president, said in prepared remarks Wednesday.
"The fact that so many people have attempted to drive impaired - even after being caught and ordered to use an ignition interlock - tells us that we must put technology between all offenders and their cars," Sheehey-Church said.
States use a sliding scale when requiring drivers to use the devices. About half of states mandate the devices for those convicted of driving at or above the legal blood-alcohol limit of 0.08 percent. That level is the equivalent, MADD said, of a 160-pound man drinking four beers in an hour. In other states, mandatory use of the devices kicks in at higher blood-alcohol levels.