GHSA and Responsibility.org provided a $15,000 the Ohio Traffic Safety Office to purchase technology that allows law enforcement officers to manually test subjects’ eye movements, improving the detection of impaired driving.
In 2023, the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) partnered with the Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility (Responsibility.org) to provide a $15,000 grant to the Ohio Traffic Safety Office (OTSO) to tackle issues related to driving under the influence of drugs (DUID) and high-risk impaired driving in various settings, including laboratories, courtrooms and at the roadside.
The OTSO purchased five DAX Evidence Recorders, which allow law enforcement officers to manually test subjects’ eye movements and responses while directly observing and capturing responses via “live” video. The subject’s captured responses can then be stored and played back for instructor critique during training and used for evidentiary purposes.
The DAX Recorders were used for live training in 19 courses, including 17 ARIDE courses, 1 SFST course, and 1 Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) course. A total of 422 students from 110 agencies completed the training, including officers with the Ohio State Highway Patrol, 90 local police departments and 19 county sheriff’s offices. Emphasis was placed on providing training in areas where the need was greatest based on DRE callouts and number of arrests.
The agencies represented at the trainings cover 36 out of Ohio’s 88 counties, covering 72.64% of the state’s total population, 90.53% of Ohio’s African American population and 77.75% of the state’s Hispanic population. These demographics were identified as overrepresented and underserved populations in Ohio. The DAX Recorders will continue to be utilized in live training in Ohio. Additionally, recordings created during the grant year will be used in future training sessions.
The Ohio Traffic Safety Office plans to continue utilizing the DAX Recorders in its training programs.
