BY ANNE MICHAUD
The Cincinnati Enquirer
After a dozen years and three different locations, Hamilton County's program for first-time drunken drivers is about to move to a permanent home.
Talbert House, which runs the program, has purchased a former medical office building at 4531 Reading Road in Bond Hill near the Norwood Lateral. The purchase and renovation top $700,000, said Neil Tilow, Talbert House director. It is scheduled to open by Nov. 1. The program is a three-day treatment in a dormitory setting, and offenders can opt to take their punishment there instead of jail. The sentence could otherwise amount to six months and a $1,000 fine.
"They can say "I want to go to jail,' but not many of them do," said Larry Williams, a vice president with Talbert House who supervises the program.
Each year, between 2,200 and 2,500 men and women attend, he said. Called the Driver Intervention Program, or DIP for short, it opened in 1986 at the former Drake Hospital. When that was torn down, DIP moved into 1617 Reading Road, a secure facility that houses other Talbert House programs.
Two years ago, county officials decided to use that location for more serious offenders. DIP moved to Jewish Hospital, but the hospital now needs the space for its own expansion.
DIP designates separate weekends for men and women. The program runs from Thursday evening through Sunday afternoon, and participants are not allowed to leave during that time. Each person pays $295 unless he or she can't afford it.
Staff people assess participants for serious alcohol or drug dependency and may refer them for further, court-ordered treatment. There are classes in traffic safety as well.
About a third of the participants in DIP realize they have made a mistake and are never arrested again for drunken driving, Mr. Williams said. Another third have a serious substance abuse problem. A third lie in the middle -- they may drive drunk again. Mr. Williams called it a holding pattern.
