NCJ Number
112312
Journal
Judges' Journal Volume: 27 Issue: 2 Dated: (Spring 1988) Pages: 14-18,45-48
Date Published
1988
Length
9 pages
Annotation
The Philadelphia judicial education project (JEP) was designed to inform judges about the state of Philadelphia's system for addressing drunk driving and to facilitate judges' participation in efforts to improve the effectiveness of this system.
Abstract
The project's steering committee formulated a list of research questions that reflected the concerns of municipal court judges. The finalized list of questions was the basis for the work of the research team. The research revealed a steady increase in drunk driving accidents in Philadelphia since 1980 and a dramatic decline in the number of drunk driving arrests over the same period. The study also found that drunk driving sentences were not being implemented, and there has not been agreement on program content among those administering and implementing the city-coordinated treatment programs for drunk drivers. Information-flow problems have contributed to the system's failure to counter drunk driving. Among the recommendations of the research team are that an ongoing assessment be made of all areas of the municipal court's substantive operations, that an integrated information system be developed, that managers be trained in how to think and manage in system terms, and that agencies involved in drunk driving cases jointly develop appropriate measures of the system's effectiveness in dealing with drunk drivers. 10 footnotes.