Georgia Avenue Section Dedicated to Fallen Police Officer Noah Leotta

OLNEY, MD – Slain Montgomery County Police Officer Noah Leotta, who was hit and killed by a repeat drunk driver during a holiday alcohol task force, was honored Tuesday by state and local leaders. Gov. Larry Hogan unveiled signs that rename a portion of Georgia Avenue (Maryland 97) in the Olney area for Leotta.

The officer, 24, died on Dec. 10, 2015, a week after he was hit by an intoxicated driver on Rockville Pike. Following his death, Officer Leotta’s family, friends and fellow officers worked with state elected officials to pass Senate Bill 945, the Drunk Driving Reduction Act of 2016 (Noah’s Law). The governor signed the bill into law on May 19, 2016; and it takes effect in about two weeks.

“Today as we unveil signs on MD 97 bearing Noah’s name, along with the message ‘Don’t Drink And Drive,’ we remember him and we say ‘thank you,’” Hogan said Tuesday in Olney. “We thank Noah for his service, we thank him for his sacrifice, and we thank him, knowing that even in death, he will continue to save lives through the law which bears his name.”

While Leotta was not hit along MD 97, he was raised in the Olney community, attended school there and his parents continue to live in the area. The section of MD 97 dedicated in his honor covers about a half-mile from the Intercounty Connector interchange to Emory Lane, which includes the portion of roadway next to the cemetery where Leotta is buried. The dedication signs will include the wording: Don’t Drink and Drive to remind drivers to always make a plan to have a safe and sober ride home.

Noah’s Law will take effect on Oct. 1. It mandates the use of an ignition interlock for those convicted of drunk driving and increases administrative driver’s license suspension periods. An ignition interlock is a device that prevents a vehicle from starting when it detects alcohol on the driver’s breath and requires the driver to retest at random points while they are driving.

“Noah was a dedicated police officer who had a passion for getting drunk drivers off our roadways,” said his father, Richard Leotta. “His legacy of saving lives will continue with the enactment of Noah’s Law. Starting October 1, 2016, Noah’s on patrol.”

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Under Noah’s Law, drivers are required to participate in Maryland’s Ignition Interlock Program for the following convictions:

• Driving under the influence;
• Driving while impaired while transporting a minor under the age of 16;
• Driving while intoxicated with an initial breathalyzer test refusal; and
• Homicide or life-threatening injury by motor vehicle while DUI or DWI.

Luis Gustavo Reluzco, 47, of Olney, pleaded guilty in May to manslaughter by motor vehicle in Leotta’s death. Reluzco had been arrested twice before for drunk driving and has a previous conviction for drug possession.

Over the past five years, impaired drivers have accounted for roughly one-third of all roadway deaths in Maryland. On average, there are 7,884 impaired driving crashes statewide, resulting in 171 fatalities and 4,026 injuries every year, state officials said.

"This is a somber occasion as we dedicate a portion of Rt. 97 to Officer Noah Leotta, who, like 171 people on average every year in Maryland, was killed by a drunk driver,” said Delegate Ben Kramer. “But, this also is a time for hope as the start of Noah’s Law on October 1 will save more lives through the expansion of Maryland’s nationally-recognized Ignition Interlock Program. Ignition interlocks save lives...period... and through the law that bears his name, we will know that Officer Noah Leotta is still on the job and saving lives.”

Maryland has the sixth highest number of ignition interlocks installed and the ninth highest usage rate in the nation. Noah’s Law will add several thousand drunk drivers to Maryland’s Ignition Interlock Program, authorities said.

"Last December, Officer Noah Leotta was killed doing a job he loved,” said Montgomery County Police Chief Tom Manger. “Because of Noah's Law, he is still saving lives. The signs we unveil today remind all of us of Noah's service and sacrifice."

According to a 2012 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration study, drivers who have interlock devices in their vehicles are 35 to 75 percent less likely to have a repeat drunk-driving offense than convicted drunk-drivers who do not have a device installed.

For more information on Noah’s Law and Maryland’s Ignition Interlock Program, www.towardzerodeathsmd.com/noah.

»Photo of highway sign dedicating MD 97 (Georgia Avenue) to Noah A. Leotta, courtesy of Maryland Governor’s office; photos from Noah's Law bill signing courtesy of Montgomery County Police Facebook page