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Abstract: 

Since 1999, the steady progress in reducing alcohol involvement in fatal crashes has waned. James Fell, Robert Voas, and John Lacey provide a readable handbook on what works in sentencing. Surprisingly, such sanctions as increasing fines and automatic license suspension are questioned when dealing with recidivists, while actions separating the driver from his vehicle and DWI/DUI courts similar to the drug court model are encouraged. Intensive probation also appears to be an effective tool in dealing with the hard core population. The second edition of The Guide to Sentencing DWI Offenders was developed for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) at the end of 2004, with input from a multidisciplinary working group of judges, prosecutors, and researchers. The conclusions and recommendations in the updated 50-page guide are based on the findings of over 30 years of research on the effectiveness of sanctions for impaired driving offenders. The guide is in print and will be released by NHTSA soon. This article contains a summary of some of the important features of the guide.

Keywords: the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA); the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA);

Affiliations:  1: Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation; 2: Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation; 3: Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation.