Eight years after Noah’s Law went into effect, Maryland legislators have closed a loophole that allowed some drivers to repeatedly drive while intoxicated.
Now, anyone caught driving under the influence will be required to install an ignition interlock device, which includes a camera. The updated law goes into effect on Tuesday.
Under the 2016 legislation, those individuals who were sentenced to probation before judgment — that’s when a person has not been convicted and the court enters “probation before judgment” instead of guilty — weren’t required to have ignition interlock device in their cars. Probation before judgment is oftentimes served to first-time offenders.
But sometimes, those who get probation before judgment drive while intoxicated again. In 2023, about two-thirds of the more than 10,000 DUI or DWI offenders in Maryland received probation before judgment.
“That’s the goal, to save lives and change that person’s behavior, and it just took too long to get here today,” said Rich Leotta, the father of Montgomery County police officer Noah, who was killed in the line of duty in 2015 after he was struck by a drunk driver.
Under the revised Noah’s Law, drivers caught driving under the influence that received probation before judgment will have to blow into the device. If their blood alcohol content is over the legal limit, the engine won’t start.
“Everybody’s going to get that tool,” Leotta said. “It’s just a tool to help make that change. And what a gift!”
The hope is that it will prevent people from repeatedly driving while intoxicated or under the influence.
“I want people to know that even if they are caught impaired driving, they can change, and the interlock is going to help them make that change,” Leotta said.
Chrissy Nizer, administrator of the Maryland Department of Transportation’s Motor Vehicle Administration and Gov. Wes Moore’s Highway Safety representative, said technology such as the interlocks has made a difference in reducing drunken driving.
“We know the ignition interlock device works,” Nizer said. “We also know that it changes behavior and still allows them to get safely where they need to be.”
The original Noah’s Law that required interlocks be installed for those convicted of a DUI has made a difference. The number of people receiving third-time (or subsequent) offenses is going down, according to the state.
In 2023, the technology prevented more than 76,800 attempts to drive while intoxicated.
Still, Nizer said some 150 people die in Maryland every year as a result of intoxicated driving. Since his son’s death, Rich Leotta has advocated for the passage of Noah’s Law, and he spoke out about closing the loophole.
“I don’t take it out too much, but I have it on me every day,” Leotta told WTOP as he pulled his son’s police badge out from beneath his shirt. “It’s a reminder for me of why I continue this fight.”
He’s helped get both versions of the bill passed, spanning two governors’ administrations: former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan and Democratic Gov. Wes Moore.
“It goes to show this was not a Democrat/Republican issue,” Rich Leotta said. “This was a life and death issue.”
Last week, Leotta appeared on Capitol Hill with the hopes of making the legislation the law of the land through the End DWI Act. Virginia and D.C. already have similar legislation in place, along with 23 other states.
“I think it’s a gift from grief,” he said of Noah’s Law. “I would not have jumped in. I would not be here today had it not been for the grief that I carry from the loss of my son.”
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