Policing the drunk driver: Measuring law enforcement involvement in reducing alcohol-impaired drivingJournal of Safety Research
Volume 38, Issue 3, 2007, Pages 267-272
With many thousands of deaths still annually attributable to driving under the influence (DUI), it remains imperative that we continually address the problem of producing and sustaining effective countermeasures, and that we subject these efforts to empirical scrutiny. This article presents relevant findings from state-wide datasets.
A formula generating a potentially useful metric for assessing aspects of the DUI prosecutorial chain is presented, focusing on the rate of proactive DUI arrests.
While in need of cautious interpretation due to issues of inherent inaccuracies in large databases, small numbers of crashes and/or arrests in multiple jurisdictions, and the lack of replication in other states, the analyses show no relationship between the level of DUI arrest activity and DUI-related crashes.
This finding brings into question the efficacy of the many millions of dollars devoted each year to targeted DUI enforcement, as it is currently being implemented.
Results are discussed in terms of developing adequate disincentives to DUI so as to raise general deterrence via dramatic increases in proactive DUI enforcement and then engaging in pervasive and persistent social marketing of such efforts to maximize the perception that arrest and punishment for DUI is always imminent, that penalties will be swift, certain, and severe.
Reprint Request E-Mail: dulac@etsu.edu
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