The
Pauquette
Center
administers the Intoxicated Driver
Program (IDP) for Columbia and Sauk Counties and is available to residents of Columbia
and Sauk
Counties who have been in violation of the State of Wisconsin’s Intoxicated
Driving Law. The Program is
available to individuals who have been ordered by the Court or the
Department
of Transportation to receive an assessment for possible dependency on alcohol or
other controlled substances and for development of a Driver’s Safety Plan.
State law requires that convicted offenders must make initial
arrangements for this assessment within 72 hours of conviction. The
Intoxicated Driving Law affords offenders the opportunity to have a trained
assessor evaluate alcohol or drug use patterns in an effort to determine what
course of action may be most helpful to the individual. If
it is determined that a dependency problem exists, the assessor will be able to
provide information concerning the complexity of the problem, whether it is
likely to be an ongoing problem, and what might be done to alleviate the
problem.
Individuals
who have been instructed to receive this assessment will be given a
questionnaire to complete and will be asked to sign documents that authorize
release of information to permit contact with other people who have had personal
knowledge of the offenders recent alcohol and/or drug use problems (such as
family members, friends, employers, or physicians).
An in-office interview with a certified assessor using a standardized
assessment tool will then be conducted. This
assessment procedure is used by every assessment program in the State of
Wisconsin. Upon completion of these
assessment procedures, the assessor will review and interpret the information
that is gathered. These results will be used to develop a Driver’s Safety
Plan to enable the offender to maintain driving privileges in the State of
Wisconsin. This safety plan may include referral into an educational
program or a referral for professional treatment.
Results
of the assessment and the completed Driver’s Safety Plan are then forwarded to
the Department of Transportation.
Failure to successfully
complete the assessment or the
Driver’s Safety Plan will be reported to the Department of Transportation and
will result in an indefinite suspension of all driving privileges and often
involve additional costs to the individual.
The Pauquette Center is responsible for providing the Department of Transportation
with a final report indicating compliance or non-compliance with the Driver’s
Safety Plan. This may necessitate
one or more follow-up interviews with the assessor to determine progress in
treatment. Insufficient progress
during that time may result in a recommendation for additional services.
The assessor may recommend revocation of driving privileges if there is
substantial evidence or reason to believe that the individual is not willing or
able to benefit from rehabilitation as required in a Driver’s Safety Plan.
Pauquette
