LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Every year in Jefferson County, there are hundreds of cases involving people who drink and drive. Many of those cases are repeat offenders.
Carmen Talbott, a 29-year-old Louisville mother of two, said she nearly lost her life to a drunk driver on New Year's Day this year.
“I just remember, like, my back burning, my stomach was burning," she said. Doctors said her intestines had been ripped in half as a result of the accident.
A police report later showed the man who hit her had a blood alcohol level of 0.1, above the legal limit of 0.08. Talbott said he got off on a $500 bond since it was his first offense.
“We have so many people in this community who are suffering from substance use disorder," Jefferson County Judge Stephanie Burke said.
Burke said the problem of people abusing drugs and alcohol has only worsened during the pandemic.
According to data from the Administrative Office of the Courts involving Jefferson County District Court between Jan. 1, 2017, and Feb. 21, 2022, of the 7,220 drunk driving cases in Jefferson County, 20 percent represent repeat offenses.
Burke said the best solution is prevention. She said she wants alcohol monitoring bracelets on the highest-risk offenders: Those who repeatedly drive while drunk.
“Meaning it was a second, third or fourth offense," she said.
But Burke said the bracelets aren’t being consistently used within the court system. Cost, she said, is one barrier.
Ann Schiavone Dyke, an assistant county attorney with the Jefferson County Attorney’s Office, believes there are additional ways to prevent driving under the influence.
Dyke said Kentucky needs to allow police to collect evidence proving impaired driving. She said a new piece of proposed legislation, House Bill 154, would do just that.
“Which would allow us, prosecutors, to get search warrants on DUI first, instead of having to only be able to use them in cases where there's death or serious physical injury," Dyke said. “That will be a huge game-changer.”
Many critics of the proposed bill point to privacy concerns. But advocates argue it’s an issue of public safety.
Right now, Kentucky is one of 16 states where police can’t obtain a search warrant to draw blood from a driver who may be under the influence of drugs or alcohol, according to a report from the nonprofit Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
A breath test cannot show drugs in a person’s system, which makes it "very, very difficult to get a conviction," Dyke said.
Dyke said without proof, it’s harder to hold people accountable, which often means drivers who are under the influence of alcohol or drugs do it again.
Talbott's plea to drivers: “Don't keep risking it... Risking killing someone over a drink," she said.
Those within our court system say since the start of the pandemic, cases involving drunk driving have remained pretty steady. Drugged driving, on the other hand, is rising quickly, which is why advocates say prevention is more important than ever.
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Contact reporter Paula Vasan at pvasan@whas11.com. Follow her on Twitter (@PaulaVasan) and Facebook.
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