The work of keeping impaired drivers off the road is personal for Deputy Molli Schmitt. When a close family member crashed into a tree while driving under the influence years ago, Schmitt – then just a young child – was in the car.
Schmitt said she thinks about her experience in that crash with each drug abuse arrest she makes. For Schmitt, it’s not about sending someone to jail. It’s about saving lives.
Schmitt made more DWI arrests than any other deputy at the St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office from April 2023 to May 2024. With 26 DWI arrests, Schmitt was awarded the Mother’s Against Drunk Driving Hero Award. She was honored at the 2024 MADD Louisiana Law Enforcement Luncheon on July 23.
MADD is a national organization committed to ending drunk and drugged driving. It was created in 1980 by Candace Lightner, whose 13-year-old daughter Cari was killed by a repeat drunk driver in California.
Schmitt said with each DWI arrests she knows she has taken an impaired driver off the roadway and saved countless lives.
“To hear I achieved enough DWI arrests to qualify for the award just proves that I am doing my job well,” Schmitt said. “I was proud of myself.”
Schmitt joined the St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office in 2019 as a college intern. After graduating from Nicholls State University, Schmitt began a full-time position at the Sheriff’s Office in 2021. She is currently assigned to the patrol division.
During her training in the academy, Schmitt was certified in field sobriety tests, which focus on alcohol impairment. Since joining the patrol division, however, Schmitt attended an advanced training on roadside impairment to help her detect impaired driving on other drugs, not just alcohol.
“People automatically correlate DWI arrests with alcohol, but it is about impairment, regardless of the drug,” Schmitt said.
Schmitt also said Sgt. Alexis Agnelly and Det. Paul Quick, who are both drug recognition experts, have helped her to better identify impaired driving.
“Their passion really motivated me and made me realize how important these types of arrests are,” Schmitt said. “My passion for drug abuse rehabilitation and their passion for drug impaired drivers work so cohesively together – getting people help plus preventing deaths.”
There was a time when a career in law enforcement was something Schmitt could never imagine. She is passionate about adolescent trauma counseling and addictive behavior counseling, but she found that a career in counseling would leave her dealing with the aftermath of trauma.
“I knew that as a law enforcement officer, I would be able to deal with the trauma on the forefront and work toward prevention,” she said.
Schmitt’s advice to all drivers is to be responsible.
“I stress to everyone, you could not only save your own life but the life of an innocent human being from being killed by simply not getting behind the wheel,” Schmitt said.
