Statewide DWI Reporting Systems

Current, reliable statewide DWI reporting systems would go a long way in reducing the obstacles to identifying hardcore drunk drivers. In the past five years progress has been made, but much work still needs to be done. Access to reliable and current records is the cornerstone of any attempt to identify recidivist criminal behavior, regardless of the nature of the offense. However, because drunk driving offenders are usually processed through several different agencies, each of which maintains its own records, a system of shared information and data management is particularly important for recognizing hardcore drunk drivers. Many multiple DWI offenders are tried inaccurately as first time offenders, indicative of an under-reporting of multiple DWI convictions. Often there is no tracking to ensure offenders who are sent to treatment actually go, or even that information on the arrest, such as the offender’s BAC level, is provided to the treatment agency.

DWI offenders may have separate records in any of the following agencies:

• law enforcement organizations;
  
  
• departments of motor vehicles;
  
  
• county and municipal courts;
  
  
• offices of prosecutors and district attorneys;
  
  
• probation and corrections offices; and
  
  
• education and treatment providers.

The primary stakeholders in a DWI information system are law enforcement agencies, courts, departments of motor vehicles, treatment facilities and correctional agencies. Many states have some form of a judiciary-based citation or case-based impaired driving tracking system. With the growing use of administrative sanctions for impaired driving, motor vehicle departments have an increasingly important role in managing these sanctions through the driver licensing systems.

Law enforcement officers’ role in DWI information systems also has grown with the increased use of electronic citation systems, which provide them with immediate access to driver license and vehicle registration information. Without roadside access to records on prior arrests and driving violations, the officer is handicapped in his or her role as point-person for swift identification. For police officers, electronic citation systems provide the added benefit of reducing the paperwork and reporting burden, thereby increasing the time available for other patrol duties.

Delays in reporting or exchanging information regarding the disposition of traffic citations between the courts and licensing agencies commonly last six months or longer — sufficient time for a driver to commit additional traffic offenses, putting others at risk of death and injury.