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Oh, Lindsay Lohan. First, her troubles with alcohol were the indirect cause of this sparkly jumpsuit thing, which Lohan wore to the MTV Movie Awards on Sunday night, most likely to camouflage the court-issued alcohol-monitoring bracelet that's been strapped around her ankle since May 24. Then later that night, the bracelet turned on her again, informing authorities of an "alcohol-related violation."
But how did it know?! What does it know? How do these booze bracelets actually work?
"The easiest way to describe it is it's like a Breathalyzer for your ankle," says Kathleen Brown in an e-mail. Brown is a spokeswoman for Alcohol Monitoring Systems, which manufacturers the alcohol monitors.
Every 30 minutes, the bracelet (called a Secure Continuous Remote Alcohol Monitor bracelet, or SCRAM) automatically measures alcohol content in the wearer's perspiration. The SCRAM bracelet will catch blood alcohol levels as low as 0.02 percent – that's about one drink or less in an hour. Any attempts to wiggle out of or cut off the bracelet will trigger an alert, too. Once a day, the bracelet will send what it's recorded to the company's data center in Colorado.
An Internet search for more information on the device helpfully suggests "beat SCRAM bracelet" as a related search item. Cunning message board posters suggest sticking the ankle in a bucket of ice water -- that'll eliminate the sweat, so there's nothing to monitor, right? Not quite, Brown says. Submerging the bracelet in water will trigger an alert. Plus, the bracelet measures perspiration that's on our skin all of the time. "You don't have to be 'sweaty,'" Brown explains.
One of the stranger suggestions to scam the SCRAM is to place a piece of bologna between the skin and the bracelet. But that won't work, either, says Brown. The device contains both temperature and infrared sensors that will issue an alert when something has been placed between the skin and the bracelet.
A word of warning: The bracelet can sometimes trigger an alert when the wearer hasn't been drinking. Regular household products that contain alcohol can set the device off -- wearers are advised to avoid using things like mouthwash, cleaners and disinfectants, body washes and lotion or perfumes and cologne.
But what if someone at a party (say, an MTV Movie Awards after party!) accidentally spills a martini on the booze bracelet? It can set off an alert, Brown says, but the company's team of data analysts will be able to tell that the alcohol didn't come from the wearer's bloodstream. "A spill or something else in the environment would create a rapid spike much faster than the body would ever consume alcohol and would evaporate and burn off much faster than the body can metabolize alcohol," Brown explains in an e-mail. "Our confirmation process includes an evaluation that ensures there is no chance that an alcohol alert is anything but consumed alcohol."
There is one final possible explanation: An Illinois law firm warns its clients that eating baked goods made with yeast can actually cause the body to produce alcohol, which can sometimes trigger an alert.
Yesterday, a judge doubled Lohan's bail to $200,000 in response to the violation. Lohan turned to Twitter to defend herself.
"My scram wasn't set off-its physically impossible considering I've nothing for it to go off-All of these false resports are absolutely wrong," she tweeted yesterday. She soon added, "This is all because of a FALSE accusation by tabloids& paparazzi& it is f---ing disgusting- I've been more than I'm compliance &feeling great."
Thanks, Lindsay -- now we're totally convinced that you're not hammered.
So, dear readers: Is Lindsay lying? Or is it a simple misunderstanding? Post a comment and tell us what you think.
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This is definitely NOT in defense of Miss Lohan, but those bracelets are complete JUNK! All of the so-called "sensors" are just imaginary safeguards made up by the company that sells the units. It is more about the appearance of detection rather than actual detection--a scare tactic. Besides, the cost-benefit ratio is ridiculous! It wouldn't be cost-effective in any way, shape or form. The whole thing is ridiculous, and these companies go across the U.S. touting their technology as cutting-edge (which it is actually over 25 years old now) and duping municipalities into forking over huge sums of cash for this 'tinker toy' junk, which isn't any more useful than any other punitive or rehabilitative measure. As far as LL . . . perhaps she should be more wary of her profile in her surroundings. She should understand the concept of 'guilt by association' by now. Doh!
Lindsey is a spoiled brat used to getting her way. It would not suprize me at all if she was trying to cheat the system or drinking anyway. She probably had a drink and figured she could wait a little longer than tha hour mentioned in the article and had another. She needs to accept the fact that she is messed up and get some real treatment
Lindsey is 23 and probably not very well adjusted (look at her family and childhood), hopefully she'll make it through to her late twenties without too much damage, as that is when a lot of people snap out of their adolescent phase.
She needs to get her act together soon to, as her lifestyle is already visibly aging her. Men can get away with looking "rugged", Downy Jr. for example, you can see a legacy of his early struggles in his face. But for women, not so good. At her rate she is going to be out of work and lost her looks by her early thirties.
So I hope she gets it together and finds something that motivates her to escape just being a waste of space.
Ms. Lindsey Lohan? I am not certain who she is and why we care but I can say this...addiction is a real menace.
Given the fact that this poor creature is self-destructing, I would suggest that she quit her career and move to a small town somewhere away from the draw of fame and adoration imposed by a society, that is so unhappy with its own self-abasement, that it has no recourse but to hunt the wounded and sick and offer them as fodder as appeasement for its sad degeneration.
I am old school and well into my years and I feel sorry for this pathetic creature whom I have never seen nor heard sing a song ( I presume she is a singer?).
She will never be safe from herself (and her public) unless she divests herself of an enviroment that offers only a re-visiting of the many 'triggers' that fuel her sickness.
Better to survive and be happy in the anonimity of everyday life, than crash and burn in the pigstye that is the world of fame and fortune.
(For proof see Elvis, Joplin, Michael Jackson, and a host of others that you readers are well aware of.)
Go away to a far off place, Ms. Lohan...and seek peace. Maybe then you will find that happiness is watching a butterfly fluttering on a flower petal and peace is the moment when the sun rises and spreads its wings of gold across the horizon.
The screams and howls of the 'mob' that feed your deep need for attention and validation are just wisps of smoke in the wind. Chasing these abstracts is akin to reaching out to grasp your shadow.
Go away. Get away. Run before it is too late.
You are no longer a star...you are simply a movie of the week on the Lifetime Channel and a seat for a 'freak' on the Jerry Springer Show. That is what the public is interested in....how far you will fall...not how high you will climb.
That's why we are writing this foolishness. And that is why 'they' will not leave you in peace. Hence your life is splashed on the page of this 'journal' of news and your failure(s) cheap thrills for those who are less.
I feel sorry for you, miss. Escape your destiny and be free.
Good luck
Ditto. Most kids cant spell or write. It was pretty lame, though, like careless as to content that skads of people will read. Hard to say...wouldnt want to be there.
oh lindsay. you are so hot......and so high. better hire a grammatics agent when you go online for your defense.
jim-18764662:
Grammatics agent??
No comment.
Lindsay - let's get together again tonight for another threesome. Don't let those idiotic police, judges and the public come between us. U need us, we need U. You don't need anything else.
Your best friends,
Capt. Morgan and Jack Daniels
P.S. Bud Lite is tonight's designated driver. See ya at the club! XOXOXO
This device measures the need for publicity. If the celebrity wearer's buzz goes below a certain level, it sends a signal that automatically triggers news stories like this one.
Isn't technology amazing?
Lindsay is someone who earned the money and career she made. It wasn't given to her. Can the same be said for you, West?
Of course she is full of it!!! I used to do and say the very same things, especially when I WOULD DRINK!! It will not matter if she goes to rehab for 3 months, the girl is not ready! Hopefully she will realize it and give it up for a chance to live past 30. I don't think everyone talking about her helps though, she needs help and support. She is a little girl that is in need of guidance.
Why are we paying attention to this person again?
agreed
your gubmint just exceeded $13 Trillion in debt and we have more space dedicated to this!!!
Hmmmm...Maybe they should spend more time reporting on our crappy educational system so illiterate rednecks like you won't call it a "gubmint."
can't be sure if her ability to express herself in written english is alcohol induced or just a limited mind. taken together with the bracelet alert, i'd say it's two strikes. that's out enough for me.
I think everyone should let her be. How many people that are not celebrities have 3 or 4 DUI's, and are still getting hammered drinking and drugging. I think the judges and prosecuters set the amount so high because half the money is going into the crooked politicians wallets..
Let her be so that she can get into a car drunk or high on cocaine and kill someone?
Have you been watching too many Law & Order episodes or is your foil helmet on too tight? She knowingly left the country before a court appearence for a film festival. Thumb your nose at the court and use some outlandish "excuse" and see how far you get. Oh and incidently, the money gained from court bonds goes to help pay for public defenders/ prosecuters and court employees.
Yes.....Lindsey is lyng...She is lying like a dog. Pardon the PUN........But these Hollywood Celebrities still think that they are BETTER than you and me. They still have this SUPER-COMPLEX about themselves. Or just call it....A SUPERIORITY COMPLEX....owing to their Professional Success. Well, they are full of SH_T as far as I'm concerned. To begin with..I don't even listen to their STUPID music. They are so WRAPPED UP on themselves..so that they THINK...they can do no wrong.
I'm TIRED of hearing about these MORONS, and their DRUG habits. I am not impressed. The law can keep giving her the SHAFT.......UNTIL IT STARTS TO HURT.
The use of the SCRAM is a luxury, so the person doesn't have to be in jail. She's arguing that it doesn't work. Maybe she's right, maybe not. Either way, we have to use the alternative now. Like telling the cop who pulls you over for speeding that your speedometer doesn't work. It gets you nowhere.
I love society!!!! Gotta love how people love ya 'til it hurts and, then when your hurt, tell you to get over it rather than show compassion. I, myself ,have been in a family that has abused substances. I don't first hand myself, but I know the pain and frustration they feel when they have lost control of their lives and how painful it is to see that person try to come back. Oh, but how remarkable and joyous is it when they come back. It's apparent that yes, she slipped. Did she chug a bottle of Jack? Did she start a rousing game of shots at the bar? NO, because I am sure we would have all seen it on YouTube by now, right? Did she really hurt OUR feelings when her bracelet went off? The only person she hurt was herself. ...So, hmm .... let's all go to the mirror and repeat these words, "I am a good person! I never do anything beyond reproach! i am the change that I want to see in the world!" If you completed that task without batting an eye; without a second thought running across your mind, then check yourself into a mental institution because you have deemed yourself incompetent. Come on people, you will never get anywhere by helping yourself to someone else's pain and frustration. .... Lindsey, this is unconditional respect (also known as love) speaking. You will loose everything you hold dear if you don't change! Do I make myself clear! Your sister, your mother, your father, your home and everything in it, your career ... your self-respect (the love you have for yourself) if you do not start your life a better path. Best regards ....
totally agree with you' "Let he among you that is perfect cast the first stone"
I'm sorry but I reserve my compassion for people who deserve it, and not for irresponsible people who drive drunk and refuse to be accountable for their actions. Lohan is lucky she has not killed anyone while driving under the influence. If the SCRAM is not working, then she should get her ass in jail and serve time.
i have also witnessed substance abuse in my immediate family. my brother is currently in rehab. it destroys your family, but i have absolutely no respect for someone like lindsey that obviously has a problem and wont get the help to deal with it. getting over an addiction is one of the hardest tasks that a person can do, but i have no respect for someone that routinely puts other ppls lives on the line by driving under the influence. she is a total and absolute waste of beauty, talent, money, space...
The court should hold this young lady responsible and ensure that she meets the requirements of the program. As it should with everyone; however, we know there are too many folks in the program to monitor for every infraction. We only know about Lindsey because of her status. She needs to use her money to get help instead of travel and buy expensive things. Someone else will be spending her money if she dies. None of us are without infractions of some sort, get off your high horses and remember we are a product of our environment. Jealousy prevails in a lot of your tones.
evidence is evidence and it seems to me there are many situations that could set this thing off at a major entertainment gathering/party...so i think there is reasonable doubt that something other than her ingesting alcohol set this thing off, not withstanding her previous altercations with judges rulings. I fail to see how any corporation could invent/design a unit such as this for use by an entertainment star and all the various occurrances that COULD HAPPEN. She is INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY.
The judge should have made her submit to a blood test,that wouldn't lie!
She is an alcoholic. Ofcourse she is lying! That is what we do! Until she decides she has a problem with Alcohol, and drugs, all the high tech. in the world will not stop her from drinking.
Lindsay needs to grow up and realize that she is no longer a child, she is now an adult. One of the things that comes along with being an adult, is growing up and facing life as it is. She has problems in her life. Hell, we more than likely all do. But, you learn to deal with your problems. I am a recovering alcoholic who hasn't had a drink in over 20 years. I new I had a problem and I sought help for it. My life is better for it. Lindsay needs to accept the fact that she has a problem, and she needs to get help for it before it is too late. Too late is when you keep saying everyone else is causing my problems, and you end up in jail or prison.
Like a child, i think Lindsey actually believes that fans, authorities, and peers actually believe crap like her passport was stolen or that the monitoring device just went off with there being no alcohol consumption. Really if she would indeed grow up and get some actual sense of reality she would realize just how much her lies sound like a child’s attempt to evade trouble , or does she think every one but her is stupid.
She definetly was drinking, I wouldn't doubt that a bit, but when you have money like her you can just buy your way out of violations. If that was you or I we would have been detained by now. She should due her jail time because based on her track recored she's not stoping anytime soon!
I have an ankle bracelet that will go off if I ever get near Lindsay Lohan. So far it's never beeped. I feel fortunate.
Lindsay. People are obviously obsessed about you & your lifestyle! So much of the negativity aimed at you is jealousy pure & simple! Don't feed these leeches any more of what they crave. Take yourself out of the spotlight. Do what the court tells you to do then don't break any more laws! Surround yourself with positive people who love you for you. All your gifts(talent,beauty,youth & yes,intelligence)are fleeting. It concerns me to see one so talented about to blow what can so easily be a wonderful life over partying & family issues!Get it together girl!
This is good advice. Maybe if she were to lead the simple life of the rich, instead of that of a spoiled brat, the media would get off her back and the rest of us wouldn't have to notice her problems. We should all have her money.
Instead of partying, Lindsay should go to night school. "English as a first language" would be a good place to start.
What I want to know is what in the heck does this judge think they are doing by "raising" her bail from 100K to 200K? Like another 100K is going have ANY influence on someone who has deep pockets....its like raising bus fair from a nickle to a dime. Someone needs to send her drunk self to the pokey for a few weeks....house arrest of something..........geshhhhhhhhhh! !
Maybe she should wear two SCRAMS. One for each ankle. Then a bar of soap for her mouth.
Hey, Mr. Twobit - what is your problem. You sound like a bitter little baby boy who is jealous of his older sister got a lollipop. Why are you attacking Keikee? You don't even know her. What is this chip on your shoulder, and why are you attacking someone who just has good intentions? You are a kook - angry at the world for no reason. If you want to be angry at the celebrities - so be it. We common folks are angry - they have it so good and then they blow it all away with their stupidity. We are all observing the waste. If I even had one tenth of what L. Lohan has, I wouldn't have to work, and I would donate my time to poor orphans. Lindsey is stupid, spoiled, and troubled. We all agree on that. Why are you wasting your time acting like a stupid jerk and attacking non movie stars who just want to give helpful advice? You are pathetic.
Oh Keikee, you're my new BFF! Will you start a new TV series with me??? You can follow me all around the world keeping me out of trouble and protecting me from the mobs......... OH Wait! You are one of them! You almost had me fooled thinking you really cared! You're not a Bff, you're a wannabe!
She's lying-again. AND getting away with it-I am sure.
She has been given the "benefit of doubt" way too many times. She needs to be in jail or a "no frills" rehab to get her life in some kind of order.
I hope she has given somebody her burial wishes.
Anyone ever hear of Dana Plato? Well, here she comes again.
It is such a shame that she is just throwing everything away. She could have it all, yet she chooses to be a fool. Lindsay, I hope for your sake, you get yourself straight before it is too late.
"Wearers are advised to avoid mouthwash, body lotions, cleaners and disinfectants, perfumes, and cologne". So, basically if we're wearing one, we aren't allowed to take a shower and use a body wash to get rid of the stink? So basically if we're wearing one, we can't use mouthwash before a date or other formal event to get fresher breath? Whose brilliant idea was that? The idiot who came up with that idea should have been willing to live that kind of life himself before he even thought of letting his idea go public. Its just like with the tazer. Police say its harmless and won't kill people, but a conversation between three Japanese soldiers proves how "harmless" it is: Soldier #1: "Watch where you point that thing!" Soldier #2: "Oh, relax, it is non-lethal anyway." Soldier #1: "You ever been hit by one of those?" Soldier #2: "No..." Soldier #1: "Well, Mamuto has, and I don't want to end up like him." Mamuto: "Huh?" Soldier #1: "See? It made him stupid." Soldier #2: "Mamuto, did you get shot with one of these?" Mamuto: "Huh?!" Soldier #1: "I told you! Dumb as a sack of rice!" Mamuto: "Oh, ho, ho! Sack of rice! Heh." What the Tazer manufacturers don't tell the police is blood is very conductive to electricity, so electricity is flowing through the heart even if both prongs don't go anywhere near the heart. That electric current also flows to and fries brain cells, so by tazing a suspect, the police are not doing the public a favor at all. If the electricity from the tazer only flowed from prong to prong, then all anyone would feel is a tingling sensation between and around the two prongs. The real truth is, a tazer sends electricity throughout the entire body. That is evident by EVERY muscle in the body seizing up when the tazer is activated. A tazer outputs 50,000 volts at 150 milliamperes, but it only takes 30 milliamperes across the heart to kill someone.
Electricity will take the shortest path to ground, and since tazers are not grounded circuits, that means the suspect is basically being electrocuted every time the tazer is activated. With every zap, the officer is severely damaging the suspect's body's own electrical signaling, which can cause severe mental retardation, physical muscle damage, and even death. If police want an idea of how "harmless" tazers are, go find someone who survived a direct hit from lightning and look at how badly they are affected by the electricity. The power from lightning has been physically measured: A single lightning bolt has over 500,000 volts and several hundred milliamperes of power. All it takes to kill a full grown and very healthy adult male is 30 milliamperes through the heart. For those with heart problems, even an EMP pulse from a nearby transformer exploding will cause problems.
Mouth wash some cough syrups and some types of soap contain alcohol which is why she is told to avoid those things. Look at the ingredients on a bottle of perfume alcohol is very often an ingredient because it helps the perfume dry quickly on your skin. If you can read you can avoid those things that contain alcohol while wearing the bracelet. Reading is all it takes, it's not rocket science.
there are several items on the market, mouthwash, soap, perfume, etc. that do not have alcohol in them. You do have to look for them but they are out there.
People who take the medication that induces vomiting when alcohol is ingested must also use these products otherwise, ya get the picture. The medication and bracelet are types of aversion therapy, use alcohol in any form and a nasty incident happens. So the person getting down on the developer of this bracelet should also know about the medication that in a way has a way worse side effect. I've heard the medication does work.
So for Lindsay maybe she needs both? The medication AND the bracelet then they'd know for sure if she had ingested any alcohol as she'd set off the alarm and get very sick. :)
You can use a nonalcoholic mouthwash and try brushing your teeth before an event. They are doing her a favor with the SCRAM; perhaps she should just serve her time. Then she can write a celebrity book and get richer.
Let see.... Oh yea...1 I believe her...! Nooot..! About as much when she conveniently lost her passport...
com'on if she were any normal person she'd be in county for a bit in a nice friendly group environment, then wear a bracelet...
But until all these special favors excuted by creative lawyers and a empathic judicial system... we won’t see the favoritism alter itself much...
Why is it that this nations is fascinated with celebrities who have issues and why does our press have to keep hitting people when they are down. Evidently we as a nation don't have enough decency to let celebs with these type of issues have the privacy to take care of these issues without a minute to minute expose on what they are doing. I really wonder how the average Joe would fair with with the press in their face during such a low period of their lives or how much they would enjoy it....Shame on the american press to be so consumed with getting more dirt on someone struggling with life instead of other more newsworthy stories. As for you Americans who are so hungry for the latest gossip interest and money drive the press feeds on....Get a life!!!