Making a Written Impact...Part 6...Numbers to go with the faces...

Numbers to go with the faces

I realize that the court is likely very familiar with the statistics regarding DUI. Further, Amit Tandon was a human being, not a number. All that being said, I felt the following (including references) were just some of the relevant points to take into consideration.

*Drivers with a BAC level of .08 or higher involved in fatal crashes were eight times more likely to have a prior conviction for driving while impaired (DWI) than were drivers with no alcohol (8% and 1%, respectively). (Source: NHTSA, 2008)

*About one-third of all drivers arrested or convicted of driving while intoxicated or driving under the influence of alcohol are repeat offenders. [Fell, Jim. “Repeat DWI Offenders in the United States: National Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Traffic Tech No. 85, February 1995. http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/outreach/traftech/1995/TT085.htm]

*Fifty to 75 percent of drunk drivers whose licenses are suspended continue to drive. [Peck, R.C., Wilson, R. J., and Sutton, L. 1995. “Driver license strategies for controlling the persistent DUI offender, Strategies for Dealing with the intent Drinking Driver.” Transportation Research Board, Transportation Research Circular No. 437. Washington, D.C. National Research Council: 48-49.

Beck, KH, et al. “Effects of Ignition Interlock License Restrictions on Drivers with Multiple Alcohol Offenses: A Randomized Trial in Maryland.” American Journal of Public Health, 89 vol. 11 (1999): 1696-1700.]

*A first time drunk driving offender on average has driven drunk 87 times prior to being arrested. [Zador, Paul, Sheila Krawchuk, and B. Moore. (1997) “Drinking and Driving Trips, Stops by Police, and Arrests: Analysis of the 1995 National Survey of Drinking and Driving Attitudes and Behavior,” Rockville, MD: Estat, Inc, 1997.]

*A 2008 AAA poll measuring the traffic safety culture of Americans, found that 80% supported requiring drivers who have been convicted of DWI to use equipment that tests them for alcohol, i.e. an ignition interlock device. Also, 88% of the respondents in the poll felt that drunk driving is a serious traffic safety concern. [AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. “2008 Traffic Safety Culture Index” Washington DC: AAA Foundation, April 2008. http://www.aaafoundation.org/pdf/2008TSCIndexFinalReport.pdf]

*About one-third of all drivers arrested or convicted of driving while intoxicated or driving under the influence of alcohol are repeat offenders. [Fell, Jim. “Repeat DWI Offenders in the United States.” Washington, DC: National Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Traffic Tech No. 85, February 1995. http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/outreach/traftech/1995/TT085.htm]

*The risk of a driver who has one or more DWI convictions becoming involved in a fatal crash is about 1.4 times the risk of a driver with no DWI conviction. [National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. “Repeat DWI Offenders Are an Elusive Target.” Washington, DC: National Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Traffic Tech No. 217, March 2000. http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/outreach/traftech/pub/tt217.html]

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. "Traffic Safety Facts 2007 Data:Alcohol Impaired Driving” DOT 810 985. Washington DC: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 2008. http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/810985.pdf]