Episode #59 High Truth in Drugs and Addiction with Jennifer Cifaldi and Drugged Driving

Episode #59 High Truth in Drugs and Addiction with Jennifer Cifaldi and Drugged Driving

High Truths on Drugs and Addiction

Take off the "Beer Goggles" when thinking about Drugged Driving. Driving while impaired is illegal whether it is from alcohol or any other drugs. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration drug use among fatally injured drivers who were tested fro drugs rose fro 25% in 2007 to 42% in 2016, and marijuana presence doubled in that time frame. Marijuana users were about 25% more likely to be involved in a crash than drivers with no marijuana use. Jennifer Cifaldi Jennifer Cifaldi has served as the Illinois Traffic Safety Resource Prosecutor since 2016 and is employed by the Univ. of Illinois, Springfield through a grant provided by the Illinois Department of Transportation.  She is a nationally recognized expert and speaker on impaired driving.  She has served on the Lifesaver’s Speaker Proposal Committee and Drug Recognition Expert Conference Speaker Proposal Committee.  She has presented several times at these and other national conferences.  She also serves on the Speaker’s Bureau for the National Marijuana Initiative and has trained thousands of officers, prosecutors, probation officers, victim advocates, and judges both in her state of Illinois and nationwide. From 1996-2016, Jennifer served as an Assistant State’s Attorney in the Adams County States Attorney’s Office prosecuting tens of thousands of impaired driving cases.  In 2007, Jennifer developed a DUI No-Refusal search warrant model that has now been adopted as the standard for law enforcement agencies and prosecutor offices across Illinois.  She authored a manual on how to implement a “No-Refusal” program for prosecutors.  She has conducted numerous training sessions on the topic for law enforcement personnel, as well as other prosecutors.  Additionally, she is a regular instructor at Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement programs and at Drug Recognition Expert schools.  During her time in the State’s Attorneys Office, she presented to thousands of high school students at assemblies during prom and homecoming and was a regular instructor in the driver’s education programs in her area. In the spring of 2018, with support from the Buffett Foundation, Jennifer implemented the Illinois Law Enforcement Phlebotomy Program (ILEPP).  She assembled a team of Drug Recognition Experts and academia from Macon County, Illinois, and they traveled to Phoenix, Arizona to attend the forensic phlebotomy training that Arizona has been utilizing for nearly 25 years.  The Illinois officers have been successfully performing their own venipunctures at their departments since that time.  Jennifer has worked with Richland Community College to assist them in developing the curriculum and has instructed at the forensic phlebotomy course currently offered.  She served as the interim Illinois State Phlebotomy Coordinator from 2018-2020.  She also drafted the ILEPP standards and procedures.  There are now over 25 officers in Illinois who are part of the ILEPP.  This training allows officers to perform blood draws on impaired drivers in a safe and efficient manner and alleviates the need to involve hospitals in their investigations. In 2016, Jennifer was the recipient of the National Traffic Safety Prosecutor of the Year award presented to her by the National Association of Prosecutor Coordinators.  She was also the recipient of the MADD Hero award in 2011 for her work on prosecuting DUI cases.  And in 2014, she was awarded the 2014 Murphy Leadership award for her vision, execution, and relentless effort to eliminate impaired driving and underage drinking.  Additionally, she serves on the Illinois Impaired Driving Task Force Committee and the Illinois Traffic Records Coordinating Committee. Jennifer earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Law and Society from Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana in 1993 and her Juris Doctorate from Valparaiso University, Valparaiso, Indiana in 1996.  She also was an Adjunct Professor at Hannibal LaGrang