Ravalli County Jail Diversion Program Reduces Drunk Driving with SCRAM CAM
Recently, law enforcement in Ravalli County decided that enough was enough. With a higher than average number of drunk driving fatalities and serious injuries, the Sheriff’s Office decided to implement a revolutionary program that would tackle the ongoing epidemic. The Ravalli County Jail Diversion Program is a collaborative effort between law enforcement, the courts and the detention center. The ultimate goal of the program is reducing drunk driving recidivism.
Participants in the program pay the fees, saving taxpayers significant amounts of money. If convicted of driving under the influence (DUI) and allowed into the program, offenders are allowed to continue working while undergoing alcohol and drug monitoring. The monitoring is typically done through a SCRAM Continuous Alcohol Monitoring device or SCRAM Remote Breath.
The program has already seen significant success even just one-year in. According to program advocates, there has been a reduction in repeat drunk driving offenses and a “93% compliance rate for those monitored with SCRAM Remote Breath.”
Overall, according to a SCRAM Case Study, the Ravalli County Jail Diversion Program has a 85.7% compliance rate amongst all participants and 99.3% sober days meaning that offenders remained sober the vast majority of their monitoring period. The program had monitored 8,100 days of participation according to the report and is completely self-funded. Offenders were monitored for an average of 80 days with 47% ordered to wear a SCRAM CAM bracelet and 39% required to complete SCRAM Remote Breath testing.
Initiatives such as the Ravalli County Jail Diversion have popped up across the country. Most require participants to submit to alcohol and drug testing, remaining completely sober for a monitoring period of around 90 days. Many jurisdictions report seeing a direct reduction in recidivism.