Mandatory alcohol assessment and treatment: law than mandates that convicted DUI/DWI offenders undergo an assessment of alcohol abuse problems and participate in required treatment program.

Overview

Over 70 percent of all DUI offenders have alcohol abuse problems and 10 to 50 percent are alcohol dependent. (Wieczorek, 1992) One-third of all DUI arrests are of drivers who have had previous DUIs. (Fell, 1995)  Even those who have had serious injuries from drunk driving are unlikely to change—over half of crash survivors who were drinking drivers said one year after their crash that they had driven impaired at least once. (Larkin, 1993) Clearly, part of the solution to drunk driving is to solve an underlying substance abuse problem.

Mandatory assessment and treatment of DUI offenders address substance abuse problems. A comprehensive educational program of education, treatment, and some form of follow-up monitoring (e.g., supervised probation or aftercare) has been shown to decrease repeat offenses by seven to nine percent. (Wells-Parker, 1995)  Treatment has shown results across gender and racial lines. (Woodall, et al, 2004)

Assessment and treatment are not a replacement for sanctions. Treatment works best when coupled with sanctions. (Wells-Parker, 1995)  Additionally, sanctions deter people from ever committing DUIs, whereas treatment prevents repeat offenses only by the individual receiving the treatment.

Assessment and treatment need to be mandatory components of all DUI sentences to make sure that offenders get treatment when necessary. If a DUI offender has a problem with alcohol, that person is less like to endanger themselves and others again if the problem with alcohol is treated.

Take Action

Despite the potential of treatment, 14 states and the District of Columbia do not require assessment and treatment as part of their drunk driving law: Alaska, California, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Nebraska, New Jersey, South Dakota, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Washington D.C.  If you are from one of these states, please tell your legislators you want them to require assessment and treatment of drunk driving offenders.

Related Issues 

• Ignition interlock

• Administrative license revocation (ALR)

Resources

• Official Position Statement on Mandatory Alcohol Assessment and Treatment
• Studies
  • 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.
  • Jones, Ralph and John Lacey. "State of Knowledge of Alcohol-Impaired Driving: Research on Repeat DWI Offenders." Washington, DC: National Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, February 2000. 
  • Larkin, E., E. Vingilis, G. Stoduto, and A. Parkinson-Heyes. "Psychosocial Sequelae Following a Serious Injury Producing Crash." In Utzelmann, H.-D., G. Berghaus, & G. Kroj (Eds.). Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety – T92 (Vol. 2, pp. 945-949). Cologne, Germany: Verlage T<V Rheinland.
  • 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.
  • Wells-Parker, Elisabeth, et al. "Final Results From a Meta-Analysis of Remedial Interventions with DUI Offenders" Addiction 90 (1995): 907-926.
  • Wieczorek, William, Brenda Miller, and Thomas Nochajski. "Multiple and Single Location Drinking Among DWI Offenders Referred for Alcoholism Evaluation." American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, 18, no. 1 (1992):103-116.
  • Woodall, Gill, et al.  "The Prevention Paradox, Traffic Safety, and Driving-While-Intoxicated Treatment."  American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 27, no. 2 (2004): 106-111.
• Fact Sheets
  • MADD's TEA-21 Reauthorization Plan (PDF)   

States with this law
Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Wyoming