Smart Start Interlock Devices - Matt Strausz - (866) 747-8278

Kansas High BAC Law through to Governor

Senate Bill 35 passed the Kansas House 125-0 and then cleared the Senate 39-0 on Friday, April 27th.  It is now off for its final step awaiting a signature from the Governor.  This bill was changed a little bit in the conference committee and as soon as I get the final draft I will outline how this will change the current Kansas DUI laws. 

DUI Crash in Wichita Kansas rocks the boat

KWCH Channel 12 ran a story on Thursday night about the DUI process in Wichita Kansas.  This came after one of their own reporters was hit and injured in an alcohol related accident.  They have investigated the process and found that it is TYPICAL for a DUI offender to not be charged for 4-8 months, with several taking over a year.  While changes are being put in place to correct this problem my question would be, what is the status of their drivers license during this period?  Shouldn't we have something in place to ensure that they are not still on the road the next night hurting someone else?  This sounds like a perfect place for ignition interlock to be used as a condition of bond.  Sound like a crazy idea?  Some states already have such legislation in place to prevent situations just like this.  I found this piece in the Texas statutes, it is for subsequent offenses but is still a great tool that could be utilized.

"Art. 17.441. CONDITIONS REQUIRING MOTOR VEHICLE IGNITION ITERLOCK. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a magistrate shall require on release that a defendant charged with a subsequent offense under Sections 49.04-49.06, Penal Code, or an offense under Section 49.07 or 49.08 of that code:

(1) have installed on the motor vehicle owned by the defendant or on the vehicle most regularly driven by the defendant, a device that uses a deep-lung breath analysis mechanism to make impractical the operation of a motor vehicle if ethyl alcohol is detected in the breath of the operator; and

(2) not operate any motor vehicle unless the vehicle is equipped with that device......."

(To find, follow link and search (CNTRL + F) for interlock in the document.)

 

Smart Start of Kansas Ignition Interlock - Wichita, Kansas

Smart Start of Kansas has a new, larger location to have your ignition interlock device installed and serviced in Wichita Kansas. (As I previously posted)  They are open 8 a.m. through 5:30 p.m. Monday-Friday and also have Saturday hours of 10:00 a.m through 1:00 p.m for your convenience.  Precision Audio is located at 7223 E. Harry and can be found on our location page.  Below is a picture of their facility and as always appointments can be made anytime by calling 866-747-8278 or send us your name and number at our contact us page.

Transportation Safety Conference

Another Kansas Transportation Safety Conference is in the books.  Who would have guessed it was such a popular event for school children?  (They were actually on the other side of the building for a different event.)  The Century II convention center proved once again to be an excellent venue, and the turnout was excellent, at least on the first day.  This event is put on annually by the University of Kansas continuing education.  If you weren't able to attend this year you should definitely try to make it next year, there is alot of excellent speakers and plenty of professionals from every area of the transportation industry.  Not to mention you will get to see me, and yes I will answer the question, "What is that some kind of breathalyzer for your car?"  :)

And then there were two...

Arizona apparently will try to become the second state to require ignition interlock for all DUI offenders.  They will follow the lead of New Mexico, which passed similar legislation last year.  They may be the next but don't expect them to be the last, MADD is working legislation in several other states this year to get 1st time offender bills through.  Maybe Kansas will follow suit in the coming years. 

Kansas Transportation Safety Conference

Smart Start of Kansas will once again be attending the Transportation Safety Conference.  This year it will take place at the Century II Convention Center in Wichita Kansas.  It will be April 17th and 18th.  There will be several sessions including one on new Kansas laws, including changed DUI laws.  If you can make it stop by our booth and say hello. 

Smart Start Ignition Interlock - Olathe Kansas

It is my goal to eventually have a post showing our location in each area.  For now I will have to post them as I get pictures of each.  First to come will be our shop in Olathe Kansas.  Alta Mere has been with us several years.  Their technicians are dedicated to customer service, going out of their way to get people the most convenient times for installations and services.  They are open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and work 10 a.m. through 2 p.m. on Saturday.  As always to schedule an appointment for any of our locations please feel free to contact us at 866-747-8278. 

1-A Secure, GPS Monitoring

As I have posted before Smart Start of Kansas and 1-A Secure work together in the Kansas offender monitoring market.  I have recently started a blog that will showcase products and services that we offer through 1-A Secure.  Many products for active and passive GPS, House arrest equipment and home alcohol monitoring are all available.  1-A Secure Blog can be found here. 

More Ignition Interlock Photos

These are a few pictures of the unit installed in a vehicle.  This is the only portion of our unit that is visible to the client.  Some other devices have a unit that attaches to the bottom of the dash, this device is totally concealed under the dash.  The unit is then attached to the head unit that you blow into by a curly cord that comes through the steering column.  The close up of the device is shown on my previous post.  I will post more ignition interlock photos as they become available.

Thanks to Tim Hibbard at Engraph who made it possible for me to display pictures on my blog now.  (He is the guy that I call when the box pops up urging me to consult my network administrator.  Smart guy....knows lots of hot keys, LOTS.)

Ignition Interlock Photo

I have received some interest in seeing a picture of our interlock devices.  Pictured here is the only piece that is visible to the user.  There is a L.E.D. display on the front that makes our device very user friendly.  It can be used to tell when a test is needed, displaying your next appointment date and time, and displaying technical information at your calibration checks.  I will post more pictures of our device installed in a vehicle soon.  More pictures can be found here.

New Kansas DUI legislation???....not yet

The Kansas House adopted the conference committee report 122-0 on 4/3/07.  Things were looking good for the new legislation that would offer increased penalties for DUI offenders that were blowing over .15 BAC.  That is until it went to the Senate for the final vote.  Sen. Phil Journey, who sponsored this bill, made a plea to the Senate prior to the vote.  Under heat from the Kansas Sheriff’s, Journey stated that passing this bill would increase the strain on local jails, many of which are already busting at the seams.  After several were heard voicing similar concerns the Senate rejected the conference committee report. 

So what's next?  Well the Senate sent the bill back to committee again and it should be worked again when the legislature gets back from the break on April 25th.  They will most likely take out the issues associated with increased jail time for so called "aggravated" offenders, and leave most of the bill the same as it is.  There is also a small issue of about $7.6 million in highway funds riding on some of the fixes included in this bill, so don't expect this bill to just vanish.

On a side note I would like to thank and congratulate those who we have elected to represent us for their diligence and hard work.  They worked bills all night and well into the morning, finally getting done around 4 a.m., hard work pays off.

There is an article posted by the Wichita Eagle that talks about this bill, but it is prior to the latest votes, if you're interested here it is.  I will post an update as soon as more information is available. 

Ignition interlock picture

There is a link at the bottom of this post that will take you to a product description with a picture of our unit.  I have received several requests from people wanting to see what the device looks like before having it installed.  I will add more pictures of the device installed in a vehicle at a later date, when I get the picture galleries setup.  Follow this link to get to my more recent post including a picture of the device.  There is an issue with the link on this post.