Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913

Sheriff's Office to Launch 24/7 Sobriety

The Valley County Sheriff's Office has launched a sobriety program aimed at preventing impaired driving in Northeast Montana. The program, referred to as "24/7 Sobriety," aims to provide another tool for law enforcement to enforce conditions of release imposed by the court and to verify those conditions are being met. In the long run, the intent of the program is to reduce recidivism and prevent DUI related crimes from participants already in the judicial system for those crimes.

"It's to keep them accountable and ultimately it's to keep our community safe," explained Sheriff Tom Boyer.

A person enters the program when a judge or misdemeanor probation places the person in the program as either a condition of release prior to trial or as a condition for parole or probation. It works by requiring participants to present themselves at the Valley County Detention Center twice a day to take a breath test for alcohol.

"Basically, the person comes into the detention center, registers, blows and if they are clean they leave," said Boyer. "And they get a high five." If the person has consumed alcohol, however, there are sanctions imposed by the judge. The same goes for if the participant misses a test or refuses the breathalyzer.

A separate advantage of the program is that a participant can go to any participating county and do the test there, as long as they are registered by their home county. This allows participants to travel and still remain current in the program. So if a Valley County resident travels to Missoula than they can still meet their requirement by notifying them ahead of time so they can go in and take the test, explained Boyer.

Boyer has sought to implement the program since taking office in January, as he views it as a useful tool to reduce DUI crimes and reduce the repeat offending often associated with the crime. All of the surrounding counties also participate in the 24/7 sobriety program. It is also a self-funded program that requires the participant to pay two dollars for every test.

In fact, one of the only needs for the program that Boyer was in need of was a way to organize and account for the participants digitally. That is where Nemont Wireless came into the picture. The Sheriff says he sent a letter to Nemont explaining the program and requesting an iPad tablet donation. The company quickly agreed that the program was worth supporting, according to Gregg Hunter with Nemont's marketing department.

With the tablet in hand and everything in order, the VCSO launched the program for the first time in Valley County on Monday, April 29.

 

Reader Comments(0)

 
 
Rendered 02/24/2024 11:36