NORWICH – On Friday, the woman convicted of second degree manslaughter received her criminal sentence pleading guilty to 16 criminal counts – from drunk driving to second-degree manslaughter – after killing 11-year-old Leandra Rosado in a DWI accident.
As a result of the accident, Leandra’s father, Lenny, pushed for stiffer penalties against drunk drivers who endanger the welfare of children – and he succeeded.
The resulting legislation, called Leandra’s Law, makes any DWI charge with children in the vehicle a felony offense and anyone convicted of DWI at all, including first-time offenders, to have an ignition interlock system installed into their vehicle for a minimum of six months, as determined by a judge.
The first part of Leandra’s Law went into effect in January. The latter, and more controversial part, went into effect Aug. 15.
By default, all counties’ probation departments are expected to enforce DWI felons’ compliance with what is essentially a breathalyzer that controls an auto’s ignition system. And like other counties, Chenango County has been struggling to find the funding to handle the extra work.
Back in July, the county, in fact, considered joining other counties that were pursuing a civil lawsuit against the state for the unfunded mandate. However, upon the advice of its attorney, lawmakers decided against pursuing it.
Leandra’s Law has provisions for the offender to cover both the approximately $80 expense for the device and approximately $70 monthly monitoring fee, but it is uncertain how many of those convicted will be able to afford the cost. Chenango County Director of Probation Laureen J. Clarke told members of the county’s Finance Committee that a governor’s office grant was recently created that woud provide $114 per offender for the period of Oct. 1 to Sept. 1, 2010.
Using 2009 figures, there were 78 offenders in Chenango County who would have qualified for the devices. Clarke has estimated that the legislation would triple the number of cases coming through her department and lead to an additional $3,000 and $9,000 on the taxpayer-funded levy.
Probation has been directed to absorb the extra expenses now, but may be turning to Chenango County’s Stop DWI program to absorb the costs after January. The Finance Committee tabled Clarke’s budget last week until the details could be worked out with Stop DWI Coordinator Jan Miles.
The county’s Stop DWI program collects approximately $120,000 annually from drunk driving convictions. The revenues have been used to purchase patrol cars and patrol equipment for the Chenango County Sheriff’s Office, the City of Norwich and for towns and villages. Revenues have also been used for Sheriff’s patrol overtime, to purchase a camera for the New York State Police, to offset the cost for an assistant in the Chenango County District Attorney’s Office, to purchase monthly radio and television advertising campaigns that promote safe driving.