NCJ Number
127381
Journal
Corrections Compendium Volume: 11 Issue: 4 Dated: (October 1986) Pages: 1,8-11
Date Published
1986
Length
5 pages
Annotation
This article examines the effect of tougher State laws for driving under the influence (DUI) with particular focus on deterrence of accidents.
Abstract
It cites examples from the 1984 National Institute of Justice (NIJ) study showing the increasing pressure of these new laws on corrections systems in Seattle, Tennessee, Cincinnati, and California. To cope with this problem, Prince George's County in Maryland charges DUI inmates the operating costs of a new 60-bed facility. Data from a DUI screening program of the National Council on Alcoholism in Albuquerque is provided regarding the profiles of DUIs and their rearrest rates. Court-mandated punishment and treatment programs in Albuquerque, New Mexico and Aspen, Arizona are examined as well as the newer automatic license revocation law in Minnesota. Some reformers claim that the entire drinking environment needs to be modified, while others suggest improved car safety design as a practical and short-term solution to the saving of lives. Overall the effects of tougher laws on alcohol-related car accidents seem minimal.