| Instructions for this Report | Other DWI Web pages |
| National Commission Against Drunk Driving | Comparison |
| Article Summaries | Conclusion |
| The NCADD or National Commission
Against Drunk Driving has set up this web site that help you obtain
information on drunk driving and related topics. What they have done
is collected a number of abstracts of articles on DUI, underage drinkers,
traffic safety, etc. and put them into three main categories as to make
it easier for people to access. On the first page they have the three
main categories (as well as three additional areas) which you can choose
from. Once you click on the topic or area that you are interested
in it takes you to another page which first summarizes all the research
on the topic and then lists links to the actual abstracts. There
are approximately 200 article abstracts on this site (as of June 1997).
At the bottom of each abstract is information on where to find the article
itself.
I feel that this is a very useful site to use when doing research on
this particular topic. It is very easy to use and would save time
on searching. By making a organized list on-line such as this not
only are they helping those already interested in the subject they are
making others more aware of the problem of drunk driving by simply providing
information on the heavily visited world wide web. Just think of
how easy it would be to do research on a particular topic if you could
walk into the library knowing exactly which volumes of journals or magazines
to get. I would imagine it would save a lot of time. That is
what this web site provides.
|
| There are three main categories or topics that they have put the different abstracts into. These categories are 1) youth and adolescents, 2) young adults, and 3) chronic drunk divers. They have summarized the research on each of these categories on the web site. I will go into more detail about each of these summaries. |
| Youth and
Adolescence: The problem here is that young people (those under
21) are over represented in the number of alcohol related accidents.
They go on to describe some of the ways in which this problem may be corrected.
One way is to use more straight forward and truthful messages when talking
to teens. Research has shown that when the media exaggerates the
problem kids are more likely to be skeptical of all messages aimed toward
them. I think the exaggeration does backfire in some cases.
For example when they show drunk drivers as weaving all over the place
and hitting thing as the drive. This sends the message that it is
okay to drive if you have been drinking as long as your not that drunk.
But that is the problem. Most kids are just getting started in their
drinking and don't really know how much is too much.
Another solution they mention is the changing of attitudes. Teens need to be taught that it is okay to refuse to ride in the car of a intoxicated driver and it is also okay to not drink. The use of public service announcements were thought to help by making a sober person look good and the drunk person look bad. I think this is the most important solution. We need to figure out some way to to glorify the state of being sober and de-glorify the act of drinking. In high school it is the "cool" kids who drink. That perception needs to be altered. They also stressed the importance of the parents role in stopping this behavior. They said there is almost an acceptance when dealing with underage drinking. Parents need to be more aware of their child's drinking and be open to the possibility of the teen having a drinking problem. This is a hard one for me. I think the best way to deal with kids is not really to force them to follow what is right but to explain both sides of an issue and allow them to make their own decisions. I think this would lead to more trust and more respect in the relationship and in the long run the child would tend towards the right just because he/she feels it is right. The last solution mentioned was the importance of strict laws when it comes to underage drinking and driving. The implementation of zero tolerance laws such as revoking the licenses of underage DUIs was seen as a good thing. Also cracking down on the sales of alcohol to underage people and trying all teen DUIs as adults would be a good way to help in the fight. I see this as a given. In Hawaii I know that .08 BAL is the legal limit but for underage drivers it is any trace of alcohol is illegal. That is a good start. I think impounding the cars of these drivers is also a good deterrent, as well as revoking their licenses. Don't give them another chance to make the same mistake. The problem of underage drinking and driving is a serious problem. The way to try and fight it is to implement all the suggestions listed above as well a as getting the kids themselves to get involved. By having their peers rather then adults explain the problems to them kids would be more responsive and hopefully someday end this behavior altogether.
|
| Young
Adults: The summary for the young adults is basically the
same as the one for the youth and adolescents. it incorporates the
same solutions such as changing the attitudes and social norms of drunk
driving, being honest when explaining the problem, getting the word out
that any amount of alcohol is impairing, and placing messages in places
where young people congregate. A couple of other suggestions are
to have some type of program at work that rewards employees for good drinking
and or driving behaviors at and away from work. These are all good
solutions and again I stress that the most important one would be the shifting
of attitudes. Get young people to view drinking and driving as "uncool".
One way is to associate it with some group of people that are looked down
upon by the general public. It sounds unethical but it has worked
in other cases (i.e.. the criminalization of every illegal drug).
Some surprising statistics from this summary: Two thirds of drunks
at DUI checkpoints are young adults (21 -34 yr. old). Unmarried,
white males with high school or less education are at the highest risk
of DUI. This group is responsible for more alcohol related crashes
and kill more people than any other group.
|
| Chronic
Drunk Drivers: According to this summary the majority of
chronic drunk drivers are alcoholics. If they are not full blown
alcoholics they at least are alcohol dependent individuals. They
go on to describe some ways of stopping repeat offenders. These are
some legal sanctions that have been implemented in specific areas across
the U.S.
One way they mentioned is to speed up the time between the DUI arrest and the suspension of the license. In many cases the time is very long and the individual is usually allowed to keep his/her license during that period. Another way mentioned is to have the BAC level be lowered after your first arrest for DUI. If you are pulled over again on suspicion of DWI you would only need to blow a BAL of say .04 to be arrested. The only problem I see with this is that it doesn't really teach the person a lesson. I don't see how it would stop the person, all it results in is more arrests. Another solution provide is the marking if vehicles with some type of sticker on the bumper for those who have prior offenses. This way the officer has probable cause to pull you over and check the status of your license. Again thai may or may not work. If most repeaters are alcoholic they may have trouble making good decisions and then all your getting is more arrests but not really solving the problem. The solution that goes a little further than the one of placing stickers on the car is the confiscation of license plates at the time of the arrest. This does hurt the whole family because no one would be able to use the car but I think it would teach them not to it again. Also they said majority of the chronic drunk drivers are unmarried so maybe there wouldn't be many families inconvenienced after all. The solution that I liked the best was the interlock system. This way you do not even rely on the choices of the person who has been drinking. He doesn't need to make up his mind whether or not he should drive, the car does that for him. The only problem I see is that it would be irritating to blow every time you wanted to drive but then again the irritation is just another deterrent from drinking and driving. In all these solutions I seem to like the ones that simply take away
the drunk's choices. I am not all for making more arrests but these
are the ones you need to be kept off the roads. They are the ones
who make it a problem for "normal" social drinkers to drive. By putting
all these solutions into effect as well as counseling I think that the
problem is solvable. Also again it comes back to education early
in life so that the problem never gets started. Teach responsible
drinking and responsible driving so we do not add to the problem.
It is much easier to correct if the number of drunk drivers is finite.
|
| One interesting article I found here was about findings of a survey done on young people who were pulled over for DWI in Austria. Some interesting facts were discussed. Most of the young people did not know that they were legally intoxicated when pulled over. They found that the BAC rose after midnight. They were using the a .01% BAL for their limit for underage drivers. This lower level was the type of activism they were advocating. The page is supported by the Schaffer Library of Drug Policy. I think this article is convincing in that it shows how immature and inexperienced young people are in drinking behaviors and driving behaviors. I think it is vary important to hold young drivers to a higher standard until they are able to realize the consequences for their actions and choices. By stating the findings of this survey on young people and presenting it to their peers I think kids are more likely to take the message to heart. |
| Another article found here was about a new way cops in North Carolina are cracking down on DWI offenders. They said one of the problems with arrests is that it often takes a while to get the individual to a facility that has a breathalyzer. But now they have a bus they call the BAT (Breath Alcohol Testing) Mobile. It is stocked with everything cops need to set up a checkpoint to catch DWI offenders. This article doesn't really give any statistics on how effective the BAT mobile is so I can't reliably comment on how important I think it is. I do however feel that it has the potential to be effective because it is also an educational tool in that when the bus is not being used by cops it is at fairs and carnivals so drivers can test their BAC before they drive. Also it is used at high schools and colleges to educate young people about the dangers af drinking and driving. The bus and the site is supported by the Department of Health and Human Services in Raleigh, NC. It is also a part of the "Booze it and Lose it" campaign started by Gov. Hunt in NC. |
| This article found here is about a new law (effective Jan. 1, 1998) in Minnesota that makes the operation of any motor operated vehicle under the influence of alcohol illegal. This includes snowmobiles, boats, and ATVs (all-terrain vehicles). It is supported by the Minnesota DNR Enforcement Division. Again this law is fairly new and they did provide any support that the law has made a difference. They did mention that 63% of snowmobile fatalities were alcohol related so I guess this is a good law for their state. I don't think that this law will be to effective because I would think that most recreation vehicles are used in areas where it is hard to enforce. The thing that I found interesting is that there are a couple of situations that can make a first offense penalties worse. These are: if your BAL is greater than .2 or if there is a child under 16 on the vehicle or craft. I think those are good criteria. Also if you are caught for the first time DWI in a car but have been caught before DWI on an ATV or the like it is now your second offense. Or two offenses on an ATV and you lose your driving privileges also. On a third offense you automatically forfeit your licensee plates. |
| This article here is about new recommendations that this task force wants to be made into law in the state of New Jersey to try and reduce the amount of DWIs on the road. This task force called the Senate Task Force on Alcohol-Related Motor Vehicle Accidents and Fatalities had five basic recommendations. They are basically looking for stiffer penalties when it comes to DUI convictions. One idea they had was to make third offenses and any thereafter into fourth degree crimes rather than just traffic offenses as to get the offenders more minimum jail time. They want to amend the Miranda rights warning and delete the part about the individual having the right to refuse a breath test when in fact they do not have that right. They also discussed videotaping the drunks to aid in the prosecution of drunk drivers. The last recommendation was to use more of the $225 million they get from fines and taxes related to this issue for drivers education and counseling for those with drinking problems. Right now they receive $15 million of those funds. I think if these laws get passed that they can be vary effective. I especially like the video idea for the simple fact that they can show the offenders their behavior and sometimes seeing yourself from someone else eyes will convince you more that you have a problem. Seeing that these are elected public officials they have a good chance of making a difference. |
| The information at this site here is actually an executive order made by Gov. M. J. "Mike" Foster, Jr. of Louisiana to deal with their state's higher than average drunk driving occurrences. LA ranks twenty-first in population but is ranked fifth in the nation in alcohol-related fatalities and thirteenth in the nation in fatal crashes. Also nearly 55% of LA's traffic fatalities are alcohol-related, as compared to the national average of 43%. They also rank tenth in the nation in cost of auto insurance premiums. So what the governor did was establish a task force called the The Governor's DWI/Vehicular Homicide Task Force so head up solving this problem. I am not one to advocate more governmental control but I am convinced by the numbers that this state needs to do something. I think that it can be effective in reducing the number of DWIs and deaths as long as the people on the task force are dedicated. Their job is basically to come up with legislation to speed up the process of convictions as well as make DUI penalties stricter. They should also in my opinion go beyond that and try to find the root of the problem. Do people in LA drink more? Are they less experienced drivers? Whatever the answer they definitely have a problem on their hands. |
| Unfortunately no one else in my class has done this report or they are waiting to the very last moment to upload. It would have been interesting to see what others thought of the article summaries and on the topic of DWI in general. I also would have wanted to see what sites they found and take a look at them for my own interest. |
| The topic of DWI and ways to cut down on it is very interesting.
I have learned alot by going through the different sites on the net.
Basically everyone whose articles I have read have good ideas on what to
do. In some cases the ideas ae already in action and in others they
are still in the planning process. Future generations can of course
use this report and its links to get the started in searching the net but
there is so much on the topic that you will never be able to read everything.
The way others can improve on this report is to try and find sites that show more results of the methods I have talked about in trying to solve the DWI problem. Since many of these method are fairly new I'm sure that in the future there will be follow up articles to say how they are doing to reduce alcohol related accidents and deaths. Basically the first step is to do a search on any search engine such as Excite or Lycos using the keyword DWI. See what that comes up with. Then you can modify your search using other word such as legislation, laws, reports accidents, etc. There will always be more sites than you can visit but it is a very interesting journey. |
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