Lawsuit: In-car sobriety devices a hazard

NORRISTOWN, Pa. - A lawsuit filed by a two-time drunken driving convict claims a dashboard device intended to stop people from driving while intoxicated can actually be a safety hazard.

Jason Reali, 29, said he passed out and crashed his car after blowing into an ignition interlock, a small machine that measures alcohol on the breath and won't allow a car to start if the driver has been drinking.

Forty-five states have laws requiring some drunken driving offenders to install the devices, which also require a series of sober breath samples to continue driving. In Pennsylvania alone last year, interlocks stopped would-be drunken drivers from turning on their cars nearly 34,000 times.

A heavy smoker, Reali said he blew so hard during one test while he was driving that he fell unconscious and crashed into a tree, severely injuring his hand. He was sober at the time.

Reali's lawsuit names the state and an interlock manufacturer as defendants.

Other drivers have had similar complaints.

A 79-year-old woman filed a lawsuit in Florida after she couldn't muster enough breath to get a reading on her court-ordered interlock. Her suit asks the state to lift the requirement that she equip her car with one of the devices, saying that in the case of someone with shortness of breath, the rule violates the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The Center for Auto Safety in Washington has questioned the safety of having drivers perform the breath tests while trying to concentrate on the road.

"I wouldn't want to be driving down the road and have someone coming the other way trying to blow into a tube," said Clarence Ditlow, a spokesman for the consumer group. "There are some real safety issues with regard to distraction that need to be looked at to see if the benefits outweigh the potential risks."

Backers of the devices say problems are infrequent, and that the interlocks do far more good than bad.

Most interlock manufacturers point out that drivers have a window of several minutes to pull over if they feel unsafe using the devices in traffic.

Many of the devices require users to take a deep breath, then blow for as long as six seconds.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation said it will adjust the breath-volume requirement on the machines for people who can produce medical proof that they have diminished lung power.