Guardian Interlock works with state and local monitoring authorities to help ensure public safety while providing a safe way to allow convicted DUI offenders to return to their lives. We accomplish this mission through state-of-the-art technology coupled with our Responsible Driver Program.
Responsible Driver Program™
Drinking and driving has become the single largest cause of highway deaths in America. In fact, nearly 40 percent of all highway deaths involve alcohol. Unfortunately, left unchecked, many DUI offenders continue to drive regardless of court-imposed sanctions.
At Guardian, we believe that everyone deserves a second chance. We also believe in protecting the safety of pedestrians and motorists. Thus, we have implemented the Guardian Responsible Driver Program, allowing DUI offenders to lawfully participate as productive members of society by operating their vehicles under continuous supervision.
To protect both participants and the public, we provide a disciplined process of education, monitoring, and reporting.
How the Program Works
The program starts when a driver is sentenced to have a Guardian Interlock Device installed on his or her vehicle. The Guardian Interlock Device is a breath analyzer that is attached to the ignition system of the vehicle. Each time a participant starts the car, he or she must first blow into the unit.
The unit determines if the breath alcohol level is above or below a preset legal limit. If it is below this limit, the participant may start the car. If it is above the limit, the unit prevents the vehicle from starting.
Tracking Participant Success
State and local authorities are able to track the success and accuracy of each participant’s progress throughout the course of the monitoring period through our automated reporting system. Authorities are given password access to the records of all participants within their jurisdiction, providing the ability to review detailed or summary data on any participant, 24 hours a day, including weekends and holidays. All reporting data is secure and meets both state and local government requirements.
Capturing Participant Data
Once ordered to do so, a participant must bring their vehicle to a Guardian service center. Guardian adds the participant into the database— including all the basic data required by state and local authorities. This serves as the repository of all data regarding a participant’s activity during the monitoring period. The service center then establishes a link to the interlock device installed within the participant’s vehicle to begin the monitoring process.
Tracking and Reporting
Following installation, the system records every tracking event including successes and testing failures of any sort. Each event is recorded and a microprocessor time-stamps the results of each breath test, including the following:
- Breath Alcohol Content (BAC) level detected
- The time the vehicle’s engine was started
- The vehicle’s run-time
- Key events, such as the timing and results of rolling retests
The participant’s BAC level is measured as a participant blows into a handheld analyzer. In order to authenticate that the user is not using non-human air sources, they must first hum into the device. If no alcohol is detected or if the level is below the state-determined levels, then the vehicle ignition is unlocked and the participant may drive at will.
To ensure the participant remains within legal limits as they drive, periodic retesting must be performed through additional breath tests. These tests can be set to occur at fixed or random intervals. Should the monitoring authority deem it necessary, the system can restrict a participant’s driving abilities. It can, for instance, be programmed to accept tests only during a predetermined period of the day. If a participant fails the test, the circumvention alarm will sound until the vehicle is turned off.
Violation Detection
The system monitors for any attempts at tampering with or overriding the tracking and testing system. These include:
- Bypass Detection — An instrument that detects whether the vehicle is running. If a car is running, but the participant has not yet taken a breath test, the circumvention alarm will sound. The interlock device then enters a lockout state for a predetermined period.
- Power Interrupt Detection— A record of when the vehicle’s power has been disconnected or interrupted. This may occur if the participant tampers with the battery, repairs the battery, or replaces the battery. Participants are required to provide documentation of repairs.
- Violations Reset — A function that contains features from the Data Logger and the Memo Minder. If the device detects a violation from one of these features, it will automatically reset the Memo Minder, requiring the participant to come in for early service.
Monthly Progress Management
The Guardian Interlock system requires a monthly monitoring visit from each participant. At installation, the device’s service calendar is set for the number of days between monitoring visits. The system counts down the number of days remaining between the monitoring, issuing an audible and visual warning as the service date approaches. If the participant fails to return for service within a predetermined grace period, the system prevents the vehicle from being started.
Processing monitoring data:
- When the participant returns to the service center for his or her scheduled monitoring appointment, the service technician downloads the vehicle’s event logs.
- The system searches the event data and isolates failed breath tests, evidence of circumvention, evidence of tampering, or any suspicious test results.
- These events are highlighted for the technician’s attention, and appropriate reports are automatically generated. The system stores this data in the service center’s client history file and transmits duplicate records to Guardian’s national data center.
- In the event that a participant fails to report for his or her scheduled appointment, an exception report is generated, allowing the service center to identify and contact the participant.
- If contact is unsuccessful within a predetermined time-frame, a non-compliance report is generated for the appropriate authorities. The system records the appropriate data in the service center client file and transmits a duplicate record to the national data center.
Monitoring Period Closure
Once a participant has successfully completed his or her monitoring period, the vehicle needs to be returned to a Guardian service enter to have the interlock device removed and release forms are processed so they may return to their full, unmonitored driving privileges.