New Jersey legislators are voting on a bill that would require the installation of an ignition interlock device for all drivers convicted of a DUI. If enacted, this bill would require all drivers operating a motor vehicle within a period of time after their DUI conviction to periodically breathe into an electronic device to determine whether they are sober enough to operate a vehicle. If the device registers a breath of .08 percent or greater, it will prevent the driver from starting their vehicle.

New Jersey joins many states in seeking to add and tighten existing restrictions and sanctions on repeated offenders. In 2005, for example, the Massachusetts legislature enacted “Melanie’s Law,” which not only requires the installation of ignition interlock devices for repeat offenders, but also enhanced license suspension sanctions and mandatory confinement sentences. Under Melanie’s law, a person charged with an OUI with a license that was currently suspended faces a one year mandatory minimum jail sentence. The law also creates a jail penalty for anyone tampering with the interlock device.

New Jersey has already enacted legislation that requires ignition interlock devices to be installed in the vehicles of drivers charged with a second or subsequent OUI. The new bill, however, seeks to require the installation of the device for not only repeat offenders, but also first time offenders as well. According to the official statement to Senate Bill No. 385, anyone convicted of a first offense OUI with a BAC level between .08 percent and .10 percent would not only lose his license for 10 days, but would be required to install an ignition interlock device for a period of three months. The ignition interlock device will remain installed for longer periods of time if the BAC level was greater than .10 percent. The bill also includes a provision that allows for the automatic extension of this time period if the driver fails the breath test within the last thirty days.

As with any legislation, the effects that these measures may have on drunk driving are speculative. According to the Massachusetts Bar Association, it is very difficult to ascertain whether requiring the installation of ignition interlock devices actually yields fewer drunk driving incidents. Another question that will likely be an issue of future litigation is whether these forms of heavy restrictions create an unconstitutional infringement on a person’s constitutional right to travel.