HSC.014.a07

WHEREAS, the maintenance and enhancement of public safety are the highest priorities of the U.S. Department of Transportation and law enforcement agencies internationally; and

WHEREAS, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), over 15,000 people were killed in 2005 in crashes involving alcohol, a substantial number of which had illegal BAC levels of .08 or above; and

WHEREAS, increasing numbers of law enforcement officers are killed or injured yearly as a result of alcohol-related traffic crashes; and

WHEREAS, research indicates that the effect of drugs, alone or in combination with alcohol, contribute significantly to the number of fatal and injury crashes; and

WHEREAS, research has shown that strong laws combined with sustained high-visibility enforcement, including the use of standardized field sobriety testing, drug recognition experts, and sobriety checkpoints where permitted by law and departmental policy not only reduce impaired driving but also reduce the incidence of other crimes; and

WHEREAS, the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) supports the use of technologies to prevent impaired drivers from operating vehicles, including the use of alcohol ignition interlocks, transdermal alcohol recognition systems, infra-red alcohol detection devices, and other technologies; and

WHEREAS, the IACP recognizes both Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and NHTSA in their continued efforts to eradicate impaired driving; and

WHEREAS, members of the IACPs Highway Safety Committee and other law enforcement leaders have publicly committed to MADDs Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving, including their presence at the highly publicized November 2006, Kick Off event in Washington, D.C.; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED that the IACP encourages its members to sign MADDs pledge to Eliminate Drunk Driving and to support MADDs Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving, which advocates the following: Ï Full support for high-visibility law enforcement Ï Maximum implementation of alcohol ignition interlock technologies Ï Advanced technology research initiatives Ï Mobilization of grassroots efforts; and, be it

FURTHER RESOLVED that the IACP supports the use of the Highway Safety Committee Impaired Driving Guidebook: Three Keys to Renewed Focus and Success and NHTSAs Saturation Patrols & Sobriety Checkpoints Guide and Low-Staffing Sobriety Checkpoints as resource tools to eliminate impaired driving.