Living Information

PATROLMAN: Howdy. I need to see your license and proof of insurance, please.

CNN REPORTER: You might have been through this before. Stopped at a police roadblock, gazing into the beam of a flashlight. But what you might not realize, while you’re looking for your wallet, is that this flashlight is helping the officer smell as well see what’s inside your car. This new device, aptly call the “Sniffer,” contains an alcohol sensor. Officers say the flashlight helps “sniff out” drivers who are legally drunk but who have blood alcohol levels too low to pick up with the nose alone.
U.S. Department of Transportation says one in every thirteen drivers on the road between 10 P.M. and 1 A.M. is legally drunk. Last year there were over 16,000 deaths in alcohol-related crashes nationwide. Like polygraph machines, the Sniffer can help police find clues although its results can’t be used as evidence in court.