NCJ Number
205629
Date Published
February 2004
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This report describes the growth in the use of dismissals and conditional discharges for prescribed concentration of alcohol (PCA) offenses and assesses the contribution that various factors make to the frequency of their use.
Abstract
Under the New South Wales (NSW) Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) Act of 1999, it is an offense to drive a motor vehicle with more than the prescribed concentration of blood alcohol (PCA). In Section 10 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act of 1999, the court, in certain circumstances, is permitted to find a person guilty and yet direct that the relevant charge be dismissed or the offender conditionally discharged. This means in the case of PCA offenses the compulsory license disqualification provisions under the Road Transport Act do not apply. Over the last decade there has been a rapid growth in the frequency with which PCA offenses have been dismissed or conditionally discharged, as well as a corresponding decline in the proportion of proven PCA offenses resulting in license disqualification. In describing the growth in the use of dismissals and conditional discharges for PCA offenses, this study shows that the use of dismissals and conditional discharges for PCA offenses has increased sharply over the last 10 years, across each of the three PCA offense ranges (low, middle, and high). The rate of use of dismissals and conditional discharges in relation to PCA offenses, however, varies markedly across local courts. The report examines the trends in offenses and penalties for PCA offenses for 1993-2002, variations between courts in PCA outcomes in 2002, bivariate comparisons of factors influencing PCA outcomes, and multivariate analysis of factors influencing PCA outcomes.