DWI courts

DWI courts

DWI courts (sometimes called DUI courts) use substance-abuse interventions and treatment with defendants who plead guilty of driving while intoxicated or impaired.

Not every DWI offender is alcoholic, but most hard core repeat offenders are alcohol dependent. And hard core repeat offenders are involved in the majority of alcohol-related traffic fatalities. The emphasis of DWI courts is on reducing drunk driving by treating one of its major causes, alcoholism.

Those who want DWI court treatment are required to abstain from alcoholic beverages. Some must wear a device that permits their blood alcohol concentration (BAC) levels to be monitored at least once a day. It appears that DWI courts may be effective. In one of the first such courts, started in 1997, the recidivism rate has fallen from about 45% down to only 13.5%. The head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Dr. Jeffrey Runge, is promoting DWI courts as a major way to reduce impaired and drunk driving.

Currently there are only about 60 DWI courts in the United States. New York State, and possibly other states, has a drug court system and DWI offenders are often accepted into the drug court programs.


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