Alcohol Sensor Tests Coming to the Chatham High Prom Friday

The Chatham Board of Education adopted some minor changes to district policy 5535 on Monday at its regular meeting, which will allow for a passive breath alcohol sensor test to be administered Friday at the Senior Prom.

The Chatham High Senior Prom will take place Friday, June 10 at the Birchwood Manor in Whippany.

"We adopted the policy so that we may use the passive breath alcoholsensor device as soon as possible," Chatham Superintendent Dr. Michael LaSusa said. "We have not used it yet. We anticipate using it for the Senior Prom."

The School District of the Chathams had amended its policy last December to allow for random alcohol breathalyzer tests at school-sponsored events. An incident of an inebriated student at a Chatham High football playoff game had prompted the policy revision for safety reasons.

But, after meeting with members of the ACLU, the BOE adjusted its policy before any random breathalyzers could be administered at school events.

"The policy is virtually unchanged from the last one," LaSusa said. "We just made some minor adjustments. You don't have to stick anything in your mouth and blow into it, it just senses whether or not there is alcohol. It's not called a breathalyzer."

Passive breath alcohol sensor devices can be held near a student to determine if there is alcohol in the air.

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Alcohol sensors in cars should be made compulsory

A former Government chief drugs adviser who controversially claimed Ecstasy is safer than drink has said alcohol sensors should be fitted in every car.

Professor David Nutt said all motorists would have to breathe into a device to prove they were not over the limit before their vehicle would start.

But the call was today dismissed as 'impractical' by the AA.

The controversial professor was sacked as the Government chief drugs adviser three years ago after claiming that drink was more harmful than Ecstasy.

He also suggested that riding a horse was more dangerous than taking the banned Class A drug.

The alcohol sensors plan is one of seven ways he suggests to reduce the harm caused by alcohol in his new book, Drugs - Without The Hot Air.

Other suggestions include shorter licensing hours, compelling pubs and supermarkets to sell non-alcoholic lagers and beers alongside alcoholic drinks, and devising less dangerous alternatives such as drinks which give people a moderate 'buzz'.

Prof Nutt is president of the British Neuroscience Association and a professor at Imperial College, London.

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New blood alcohol sensors could make cars shut down if they sense drivers are over the legal drinking limit

Blood alcohol sensor  technology might cause cars to shut down if they sense drivers are over the legal blood alcohol limit, it has been revealed.

A video showcasing the technology that is being researched by the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety (DADSS) was published Thursday to YouTube.

Breath-based and touch-based sensors could be employed in vehicles.

The breath-based system, the clip explains, could measure alcohol molecules in the driver's breath.

For the other option, the video's narration says 'This touch-based system uses near-infrared tissue spectroscopy to detect the level of alcohol in the blood.

'Alcohol absorbs specific wavelengths light. By measuring the light's intensity, the system can precisely pinpoint the driver's blood alcohol level.'

For both sensors, if the driver's blood alcohol is higher than .08 - which is the legal limit - the car will stay put, according to the video.

On the NHTSA website, the agency says 'The Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety, or DADSS, program is a collaborative research partnership between the Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety (ACTS), representing 17 automobile manufacturers, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to assess and develop alcohol-detection technologies to prevent vehicles from being driven when a driver's blood alcohol concentration (BAC) BAC exceeds the legal limit of 0.08 percent.'

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