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Comment by vuln | Hacker News Reader

The high cost, installation/electrical issues (while in use and after it is uninstalled.), annd inconvenience is part of the intended punishment.

I’ve seen people do interesting things to avoid getting interlocks installed. In that state if you owned a business an interlock must be installed in all company vehicles. People will sign over vehicles to family members. Some buy a beater car to have the interlock installed on and only start the car a couple times a month to log the minimum amount of starts required for compliance which is checked monthly for an additional fee.

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Wait, minimum number of starts? So if you're convicted of a DUI you're legally required to drive? That's perverse.

If people don't like it, they can choose to instead do the jail time.

Not really. In most cases the actual jail time is suspended. Jail costs the city/town. Getting you back in the road insures more tax revenue and your fines will most likely get paid which is additional revenue to the city.

> the actual jail time is suspended.

As you said, the sentence is suspended - because the person agrees to the option of staying out of jail with conditions which the person agrees to comply with. If the person doesn't want that option then they do the jail time.

I get what you’re saying.

From what I have seen (obviously laws vary by location) it’s jail time (typically 365 days suspended) AND interlock. Not a choice between the two.

I assume the logic is that you need to demonstrate you have driven X thousand times, never with alcohol on your breath, before you can say your DUI problem has been solved.

I guess you are free to not drive in a month, but then the tester will need to stay attached to your car longer till you have demonstrated you are rehabilitated.

Well if you just let the car sit there all month then there is no reason you need to take it into the shop to be “calibrated” which costs 45-55$ per month.

Oh and by the way the interlock calibration installation / removal / calibration business is privately owned and only open Monday through Friday 9-11am 2-4pm by appointment only.

Pretty much every post-conviction thing court mandates people pay for is a blatant cash grab from people nobody will stand up for. Interlocks are no different.

People like to claim to courts that they NEED a car and MUST have a car. This way they can keep some sort of restricted driving license that lets them drive to/from work, school or grocery stores.

Actually not driving would show your claims (under penalty of perjury) to be lies. Courts do not like that at all.

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