Short-term License Suspensions for Drinking Drivers

AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety · 2007 · AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety

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Summary

This report evaluates the effectiveness of short-term administrative license suspensions (12–24 hours) for drivers with low blood-alcohol concentrations (BACs) in Saskatchewan, Canada. The study was motivated by the need to assess whether this administrative sanction, introduced in 1996 to provide swift punishment for drivers with BACs exceeding 0.04%, successfully deters drinking and driving. The research addresses four key areas: general deterrence (impact on overall crash rates), specific deterrence (recidivism among offenders), offender characteristics, and police attitudes. The study employed four distinct methodologies. First, general deterrence was assessed using time-series analysis of driver fatality and injury data from Saskatchewan, compared against Alberta as a control province, covering the period before and after the law’s implementation. Second, specific deterrence was examined by tracking the re-offense records of male drivers over a seven-year period (1996–2003), comparing those issued short-term suspensions, those convicted of Criminal Code driving while impaired (DWI) offenses, and a control group with no alcohol-related offenses. Third, a survey compared the psychological and behavioral characteristics of short-term suspension recipients, Criminal Code DWI offenders, and the general driving population. Fourth, a survey of Saskatchewan police officers assessed their attitudes, perceptions, and enforcement practices regarding the law. The findings indicate that the short-term suspension law had no statistically significant general deterrent impact on alcohol-involved fatalities or injuries. While there were small decreases in fatalities involving low BACs (0.04%–0.08%), these trends were not distinguishable from pre-existing downward trends in crash data. Regarding specific deterrence, drivers without prior DWI convictions who received short-term suspensions had lower recidivism rates for criminal DWI offenses (fewer than 8%) compared to those initially convicted of Criminal Code DWI (over 14%). However, drivers with prior DWI convictions who received short-term suspensions exhibited extremely high recidivism rates (88% charged with subsequent DWI), indicating the sanction is ineffective for this high-risk group. The surveys revealed that short-term suspension recipients are distinct from Criminal Code offenders; they tend to be younger, engage in riskier driving behaviors, but consume less alcohol than Criminal Code offenders, who are characterized by heavy, excessive drinking. Police officers viewed the suspensions as an efficient tool for removing impaired drivers from the road, particularly when evidence for criminal charges was insufficient, though they expressed frustration with the time required to process criminal charges. The study concludes that short-term suspensions serve as an effective administrative tool for removing low-BAC drivers from the road, doubling the number of drinking drivers removed compared to criminal charges alone. However, the law lacks a measurable general deterrent effect on crash rates. The distinct behavioral profiles of short-term suspension recipients versus Criminal Code offenders suggest that remedial interventions should differ: short-term suspension recipients may benefit from driver improvement programs focusing on separating drinking and driving, while Criminal Code offenders require assessment and treatment for alcohol abuse. The findings support retaining short-term suspensions for their efficiency and immediate impact, despite the lack of broader deterrence.

Key finding

Saskatchewan's 24-hour suspension for BAC > 0.04% did not produce statistically significant general deterrence on alcohol-involved fatal or injury crashes versus Alberta, but among drivers without prior DWI convictions fewer than 8% of those issued a suspension index offence received a subsequent criminal DWI within six years, compared with over 14% after an initial Criminal Code DWI conviction.

Methodology

mixed_methods

Provenance

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Topics

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• dui enforcement
• drowsy as impairment
• alcohol