A US Congressman is proposing spending $40 million to investigate, research, and develop technology for cars to automatically detect alcohol consumption by the driver. The goal would be to prevent drunk driving before it happens.

According to reports, there may be multiple methods for detecting alcohol consumption, including skin sensors in the steering wheel, and other methods to analyze perspiration and breath.

Questions this raises include:

• What would happen if the car detects alcohol? Presumably the car would not start, but would police be notified and criminal action taken?
• What is the threshold for measuring alcohol? Is it set lower than the legal limit of .08% BAC?
• What is the remedy to challenge any false positives?
• Can the devices be sure that it isn’t a passenger who many be intoxicated and not the driver?

Everyone wants to prevent drunk driving, but this kind of extremely intrusive monitoring that bypasses any presumption of innocence is frightening, and could be a dangerous precedent.

According to the report by KENS 5 in San Antonio, the devices could be standard in new vehicles within 5 or 10 years.

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Update: More info on the proposed car alcohol sensors here.

A new toxicology lab in Montgomery County has law enforcement and many in the legal community looking forward to faster turnaround when it comes to processing criminal evidence. The Sam Houston State University Regional Crime Lab opened this year, though it hasn’t begun receiving cases yet. It is estimated, by The Courier, that the new lab will be able to handle about 6,000 cases each year. read more

Any criminal conviction can affect your life for years to come, in ways you might not consider. That’s why it is always makes sense to speak to a criminal defense attorney about your legal options, even for minor offenses like drug possession or shoplifting. If you have a reasonable chance to beat a criminal charge in court, the lawyers fees may be the best money you ever spent. read more

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The term “no refusal” refers to a law enforcement tactic where they are set up to forcefully take of blood evidence from a suspected drunk drivers. read more

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