The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Manitobans convicted of impaired driving after Nov. 30 will have to take a breathalyzer test each time they get behind the wheel in order to travel anywhere. That's when legislation kicks in that will require offenders with restricted driver's licenses to have ignition-lock units installed in their vehicles. The devices prevent the automobile from starting if the person providing the necessary breath sample has a blood alcohol level greater than .02. Roughly the size of a provincial telephone book, each unit will be connected to the ignition and placed in the front of the vehicle. Offenders will have to keep the units in their vehicles for at least a year, but serious repeat offenders will be required to use them for their entire lives. Cst. Nolan Suss of the Flin Flon RCMP called the new provincial initiative "a useful tool" and said it should help keep people with impaired driving convictions sober. "There is a lot of onus on them to stay sober," he said. "It will enable people who have been charged to maintain a normal lifestyle while making sure" they don't drink and drive. See 'Downloads' P.# Con't from P.# Unlike many crime deterrents, the mandatory breathalyzers appear nearly foolproof. If an offender has a sober friend start the vehicle, the driver must still worry about random requests for further samples in order to keep the vehicle running. The offender will be required to have the information stored in the units downloaded every two months. Under the law, any infraction will result in a license suspension. Offenders will pay about $125 to have the units installed in their vehicles on top of a monthly rental fee of $95. The devices will be installed by trained technicians at Standard Auto Glass outlets in Thompson, Brandon and Winnipeg. The units will be mandatory for all Manitobans issued a restricted driver's license stemming from an impaired driving charge. The use of the device will be required in addition to any other restrictions placed on these drivers. Marlene Zyluk, the Registrar of Motor Vehicles for the province, said Ontario is the only other province with mandatory use of the units. Zyluk and her department have spent the past two years developing the mandatory use system. The Manitoba government passed the required legislation, Bill 33, in 2001.
