Ohio police pacts set allowable booze levels

Associated Press

DAYTON

Some law-enforcement contracts across Ohio set allowable alcohol levels for officers on duty.

Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers and state park police are among those who can’t be disciplined for having blood-alcohol levels below .04 percent, the Dayton Daily News reported. Some local agencies in the state have higher permissible levels, while others have zero tolerance on drinking.

Officials say such language has often been in contracts for years.

Union officials say that doesn’t mean drinking on duty is condoned, but the level helps safeguard officers who might have taken cough syrup that contains alcohol or were unexpectedly called out to duty.

“I can’t for the life of me think of why it would be so important to have an acceptable level of alcohol permissible,” said Doug Scoles, executive director for Mothers Against Drunk Driving in Ohio. “Why’s that even in the contract?”

Highway Patrol Staff Lt. Anne Ralston said the .04 language has been in state contracts for years, including those for the patrol, park rangers, other state law enforcement and other state employees. It states: “No consequences will attach to any result below a .04 percent level.”

Ralston said that doesn’t mean they would be allowed to remain on duty after drinking.