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ISP, ITD partnership helps detect impaired drivers

ITD and the Idaho State Police strengthened their commitment to highway safety and curbing impaired driving when they collaborated to created a full-time position, State Impaired Driving Coordinator (SIDC).

The SIDC position was established to provide oversight to three of Idaho's essential impaired driving programs. The coordinator is responsible for management of the Drug Evaluation and Classification Program (DECP), the Standardized Field Sobriety Testing program (SFST) and Law Enforcement Phlebotomy Program (LEPP).

Sgt. Dean Matlock of the Idaho State Police assumed the SIDC position on July 1, 2011, splitting his duties between the Idaho State Police Training Section and the SIDC position until a new training section sergeant was selected. He accepted the SIDC position on a full-time basis last October.

As part of the continuing partnership between ITD and ISP, the Office of Highway Safety purchased a new breath-testing instrument for training Idaho Law Enforcement officers. ISP acquired a new Intoxilyzer 5000 on Aug. 2 this year. It is being used to train new officers and to re-certify current officers and others as needed.

Thanks to the partnership, new officers are better prepared in the detection and arrest of alcohol/drug impaired drivers and are better able to administer the breath alcohol test(s) required by law.

Those combined efforts help make Idaho's roadways safer.