Issues Concerning the Adoption of an Administrative Per Se Statute by the Commonwealth of Virginia

• NCJ Number: 118203
• Author(s): S R Virkar; J D Wall; V M Kelly
• Date Published: 1989
• Length: 39 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: University of Virginia; Virginia Dept of Transportation
• Corporate Author: Virginia Transportation Research Council
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Type: Legislation/Policy Analysis
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This analysis of the legal and practical issues related to an administrative per se law for drunk driving concludes that a properly drafted law could withstand any constitutional challenges and that it could have a considerable impact on drunk driving.

Abstract

The United States Supreme Court determined in 1971 that a driver's license is an entitlement that can be taken away only if the revocation procedures meet the due process standards of the Fourteenth Amendment. However, the Court also held that in certain emergency situations the government may dispense with the requirements of a pre-deprivation notice and an opportunity for a hearing. An administrative per se law meets the required criterion of governmental interest and does not involve problems with double jeopardy. Such a law permits the summary revocation of the licenses of drivers whose blood alcohol concentration is above a prescribed level. Studies conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and by the United States Department of Transportation have indicated that an administrative per se law could help reduce alcohol-related crashes. Appended tables and State regulations. (Author abstract modified)