(By Michael Heinz/Journal & Courier) Dan Towery tests an ignition interlock device Tuesday at his business.

By Sophia Voravong

Despite bills that continue to stack up, Amy Osadchuk refuses to leave her husband's side as he slowly learns how to walk and talk again.

It's progress for the former Lafayette couple since doctors had predicted that David, 31, would not recover after being struck by an alleged drunken driver in July on Indiana 38 East.

"But the more aware he becomes, the more upset he gets about where he is and everything that was taken from him," Amy Osadchuk said. "This changed our perspective on a lot of things."

She urges motorists not to get behind the wheel after drinking alcoholic beverages. Something else she wants to see: an increased use in ignition interlock devices to prevent those who are intoxicated from driving.

The high-tech devices are being used as a part of sentencing for repeat impaired driving offenders in Tippecanoe Superior Court 6. They're also sparingly applied in surrounding counties.

Dan Towery, a member of the West Central Indiana chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, owns S&C Ignition Interlock LLC, a franchise of Smart Start Inc. The Dallas-based company makes ignition interlock devices that require a driver to give an alcohol-free breath test before the vehicle will start.

His Lafayette business so far has provided the devices to courts in Tippecanoe, Benton, Carroll, Clinton, Howard and Montgomery counties since January 2005.

"It's a tool -- a very effective tool -- for trying to change people's behavior," said Towery, who named his business for his daughter, Sarah Towery, 24, and her boyfriend, Chip Smith, 20. They were killed in a head-on crash caused by a drunken driver in March 1999.

"It's really about taking a comprehensive approach to change behavior," Towery said.

Kristen McVey, the chief deputy prosecutor in Tippecanoe County, said those ordered to use an ignition interlock device account for a small part of all offenders arrested for impaired driving.

But they often are included for first-time offenders who had a blood-alcohol content above 0.15 percent, were involved in crashes or have prior alcohol-related criminal histories, she said. They also are regularly part of plea agreements for repeat offenders of operating a vehicle while intoxicated.

The legal BAC limit to drive in Indiana is 0.08 percent.

"Ignition interlock is an effective device," McVey said. "It not only has the physical effect of stopping an intoxicated person from driving, but ideally it also has the psychological effect of reminding an offender that they are not to drive after consuming alcohol."

In Clinton County, an ignition interlock only has been ordered a few times. Cost and availability are part of that determination, according to prosecutor Anthony Sommer.

Towery's ignition interlocks cost $70 to install with a $90 monthly fee, along with various fines for transfers and resets needed because of violations.

Most offenders he sees are ordered to used the device for three months, six months or a year, Towery said.

But Sommer anticipates greater use in coming months and years.

"I think the law is paving the way. ... I expect it to be used more commonly," Sommer said.

In one case, an offender was ordered to use the device even after pleading guilty as part of his suspended sentence.

How it works

The ignition interlock is wired to the vehicle, with the "logger" box underneath the dash and the breath analyzer attached via a coiled cord.

Vehicles cannot start until the driver -- using a blow/hum technique that Towery says usually takes 10 to 15 minutes to teach -- is able to pass a predetermined setting. Drivers are prompted to blow again at various times.

"Anyone can have a spouse, friend or whoever drive the vehicle," Towery said. "But the person court-ordered is still responsible for each recording."

His devices are operated by a fuel cell, similar to portable breathalyzers used by police departments. These versions are less likely to produce false positives -- such as if the driver used mouthwash that contains alcohol.

Offenders also can't get around it by using cans of compressed air because the breath analyzer has a temperature gauge, Towery said.

But he admits that ignition interlock is not a foolproof device -- with the simplest "trick" being the use of another vehicle. If caught, the offender could be jailed up to 180 days.

McVey also points out that there are difficulties in implementation because the devices can be ordered only if the offender's license has not been suspended.

All drunken driving cases require some license suspension, she said.

"The difficulty with this is that a number of people continue to unlawfully drive vehicles during this suspension period, some of them while intoxicated," McVey said.

"While this behavior is obviously illegal, and gives rise to both new charges and probation violations, ignition interlock is not able to stop these offenders since they are not lawfully allowed to be driving anyway."

Amy Osadchuk, who's husband, David, is being treated at a rehabilitation facility in Terre Haute, said she thinks ordering more offenders to use ignition interlocks would sharply help cut down on OWI crashes.

A blood-sample from the man who struck David Osadchuk as he was leaving work at the Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. plant had a BAC of 0.218 percent.

The man, Juventino Castillo, 24, of Lafayette is scheduled for trial next month on numerous felony charges.

"I think it's perfectly OK to drink when you're having fun and having a good time," Amy Osadchuk said. "But when you're getting ready to come home, think about someone other than yourself. Think about those you could injure.

"Our entire lives have been turned upside down because of this."